Headless CMS plans comparison for API calls
Tags: cms, strapi, prismic, contentful
Published: 2021-08-10 07:55:26

### Introduction
 
When your using a headless CMS to power your website - you're always doing some API calls in the background to pull your content. In most cases the CMS providers limit the number of interactions with their APIs and you have to be aware of this quota. If you exceed the number of calls allowed in your pricing tier - your system may stop working!

Below you will find a comparison of popular headless CMS with their API calls limits (if provided by the CMS vendor), available plans and the most important thing: cost.

API calls per plan table

| CMS |Free Tier |First Paid Tier| Next Paid Tier|
|---|---|---|---|
| Contentful | 2M | 2M+ | Unlimited|
| DatoCMS | 100k/mo | 1M | 2M |
| ButterCMS | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Kentico | N/A | 2M | 5M |
| Magnolia | N/A | N/A| N/A |
| Strapi | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| NetlifyCMS | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Forestry | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Sanity | 500k (CDN), 100k (standard) | 15M (CDN), 3M (standard) | 75 (CDN), 15M (standard)|
| Prismic | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |

### Comparison

**1. Contentful**
Link: [Contentful Website] (https://contenful.com)

**Available plans and API calls limits**
Contentful plans are split into 3 parts:

- Community
- Team (Medium/Large)
- Enterprise

Contentful gives 2 000 000 API Calls for free accounts, same with additional overages for Medium/Large Team and no limit for Enterprise.

![image](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/9lgxypgxi50rzyyqy4nv.png)
 
**Cost**
Contentful charges for Team Accounts, they have 2 plans:

- 489$/month for Medium Teams
- 879$/month for Large Teams

![image](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/tpmalb8bflkl5s7erd6b.png)
 

**2. DatoCMS**
Link: [DatoCMS Website] (https://datocms.com)

**Available plans and API calls limits**
In DatoCMS user has 4 account type options:

- Developer
- Professional
- Scale
- Enterprise

DatoCMS API calls limits are refreshing every month starting with 100k API calls for free developer accounts, rising to 1M for Professional and 2M for Scale plans. Additionaly, you have to pay 9 euro more for every 250k extra API calls.

![image](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/rkjnp65tsyti20kez6og.png)
 


**Cost**

DatoCMS provides free "Developer" plan. Professional and Scale starts at 199 euro/month and 399 euro/month, respectively.

![image](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/x9a68vyqexkjrtz12sue.png)
 

**3. Butter CMS**
Link: [ButterCMS Website] (https://buttercms.com)

ButterCMS does not provide information about available API calls limits.

**4. Kentico**
Link: [Kentico Software Website] (https://www.kentico.com/)

**Available plans and API calls limits**
Kentico is a headless CMS geared mostly towards big projects. They have 3 plans:

- Business
- Premium
- Enterprise

Kentico provides 2M API calls for Business users, and 5M API Calls for Premium per month.

![image](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/8b8miq70r9shqrcg0y2c.png)
 


**Cost**

Kentico provide free developer account. Paid plans starts at $999 for a month, and premium for $1,999. Enterprise is priced individually.

![image](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/c3ls6y0y1y9e7rwj23id.png)
 

**5. Magnolia**
Link: [MagnoliaCMS Website](https://magnolia-cms.com)

MagnoliaCMS does not provide information about API calls limit. You can download [community edition] (https://docs.magnolia-cms.com/product-docs/6.2/Getting-started-with-Magnolia/Hello-Magnolia.html) for free. Other options are available via [demo request form] (https://www.magnolia-cms.com/get-started/demo.html).

**6. Strapi**
Link: Strapi Website

Strapi is open-source and self-hosted headless CMS, therefore any limits are set up by instance owner.

**7. NetlifyCMS**
Link: [NetlifyCMS Website] (https://www.netlifycms.org/)

NetlifyCMS is open-source headless CMS, therefore any limits are set up by instance owner.

**8. Forestry**
Link: [Forestry Website](https://forestry.io/)

**Description**
Forestry provides 4 plans:

- Personal
- Starter
- Pro
- Enterprise 

**Cost**

Forestry provides free account. Paid plans starts at $29 per month and ends with custom for enterprise solutions.
![image](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/wok5vlp5b40a9e1zpwq1.png)
 

**9. Sanity**
Link: [SanityCMS Website] (https://www.sanity.io/)

**Available plans and API calls limits**

Sanity users can choose 1 from 3 plans:

- Standard
- Advanced
- Enterprise

Sanity provides two types of API:

- standard API - default, the live and uncached API. This will give always the freshest data but requests are slower. Call limits starts from 100k for standard plans, rising to 3M for advanced and 15M for enterprise.
- CDN API - CDN distributed cached API, that will give very fast response to request that have been cached. Call limits starts from 500k for standard plans, rising to 15M for advanced and 75M for enterprise.

![image](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/r7ldbet5xivroemoifo2.png)
 
**Cost**
Sanity provides free (standard plan) accounts. Advanced cost starts from $199 a month, and Enterprise depends on needs and requirements.

![image](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/br85c1quuebga52eoa91.png)
 

**10. Prismic**
Link: [Prismic Website] (https://prismic.io/)

**Available plans and API calls limits**
Unlike other HeadlessCMS players, Prismic provides many plans for users:

Developers group:

- Community (free)
- Starter ($7/month) 
- Small ($15/month)

Organization group:

- Medium ($100/month)
- Platinum (500$/month)
- Enterprise(custom)

Prismic offers unlimited API calls for all plans in groups above

![image](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/5yqbonfdywsffpf6hm3q.png)