LXDvsPayload CMS
Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.
| LXD | Payload CMS | |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 70/100 | 83/100 |
| Rank in category | #3 of 15 in Virtualization | #2 of 13 in Headless CMS |
| GitHub stars | 4 844 | 45 568 |
| Stars, last 30 days | +13 | +636 |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 19 | 20 |
| Latest release | lxd-6.10.1 · 28 Oct 2026 | v3.92.1 · 27 Oct 2026 |
| Setup | Easy | Moderate |
| Official Docker image | No | No |
| License | AGPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Main language | Go | Typescript |
Which one should you pick?
Payload CMS scores 83/100 against 70/100 for LXD, so it is the safer default.
Payload CMS ships more often: 20 stable releases in the past year, against 19 for LXD.
If you want the quickest setup, LXD is easier to run; Payload CMS needs more configuration.
Payload CMS is growing faster right now (+636 stars in 30 days).
LXD details →Payload CMS details →
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