# OTOBO vs Payload CMS

> Two self-hosted projects, compared on the numbers selfhost.directory tracks live: score, popularity, release cadence and setup effort.

| | OTOBO | Payload CMS |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 54/100 | 83/100 ✓ |
| Rank in category | #5 of 9 in Helpdesk | #2 of 13 in Headless CMS |
| GitHub stars | 338 | 45 568 ✓ |
| Stars, last 30 days | +0 | +636 ✓ |
| Stable releases, 12 months | 2 | 20 ✓ |
| Latest release | rel-11_0_15 · 4 Feb 2026 | v3.92.1 · 27 Oct 2026 ✓ |
| Setup | Advanced | Moderate ✓ |
| Official Docker image | Yes ✓ | No |
| License | GPL-3.0 | MIT |
| Main language | Perl | Typescript |

## Which one should you pick?

Payload CMS scores 83/100 against 54/100 for OTOBO, so it is the safer default.

Payload CMS ships more often: 20 stable releases in the past year, against 2 for OTOBO.

If you want the quickest setup, Payload CMS is easier to run; OTOBO needs more configuration.

Payload CMS is growing faster right now (+636 stars in 30 days).

## Details

- [OTOBO](https://selfhost.directory/project/otobo) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/otobo.md)
- [Payload CMS](https://selfhost.directory/project/payload-cms) (markdown: https://selfhost.directory/project/payload-cms.md)

## Related comparisons

- [Ghost vs Payload CMS](https://selfhost.directory/compare/ghost-vs-payload-cms)
- [directus vs Payload CMS](https://selfhost.directory/compare/directus-vs-payload-cms)

---
Source: https://selfhost.directory/compare/otobo-vs-payload-cms