Git-based CMS
Siteshare vs Decap CMS
Decap CMS, formerly Netlify CMS, is free and open source: editors fill forms for the fields you configure, with a preview beside them. Siteshare lets them change the real site by talking to it, with nothing to configure.
| Question | Siteshare | Decap CMS |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | An editor at the client's own site, /edit, on the site you built | An open-source (MIT) React app that commits form edits through your Git host's API |
| How someone edits | Chat, select or draw on the real site; double-click to type | Forms with widgets, and a preview pane beside the form |
| Setup in your code | None: a GitHub App on the repository | A config.yml with collections and fields, two files, a backend and auth |
| Where content lives | Your repository | Your repository |
| Before it goes live | A draft, a build check on a clean copy, then one commit on main | Optional editorial workflow: a branch and pull request per draft |
| AI | An assistant per site, built in | None |
| Price | Free for 1 site, then $9 a site a month, down to $4 as you grow (5 sites $36, 20 sites $126); clients and builders unlimited | Free (MIT); hosted Decap Turbo free for 1 site and 1 seat, Pro €19 a month for 1 site and 5 seats |
The difference: a form, or the page itself
Decap is a solid, free answer for structured content. You list collections and fields in config.yml, and editors fill forms. The preview pane shows the result beside the form, and it is a separate render, not the live site.
Siteshare doesn’t ask you to model anything. The client works on the real site in a preview of its own, points at what should change or simply asks for it, and sees the result right away. The assistant edits the files where the content actually is.
Safety
With Decap’s editorial workflow each draft becomes a branch and a pull request, merged on publish. Siteshare keeps a draft per site and, at Publish, builds exactly the files that go live on a clean copy first; only a site that builds gets one commit on main. What a client may change is set per client, and anything beyond waits for your approval.
Price
Decap is free. Its hosted version, Decap Turbo, counts sites and seats: €19 a month for one site and five people (Siteshare vs Decap Turbo). Siteshare is free for one site and then $9 a site a month, less as you grow, with as many clients as you like on each.
When Decap CMS is the better choice
- You want a free, open-source editor and are happy to configure every field.
- Editors fill well-defined entries, such as blog posts, events or team members.
- Your site is on GitLab, Bitbucket or another Git host besides GitHub.
Questions
Is Decap CMS still maintained?
Yes. It is the continuation of Netlify CMS, open source under MIT, with Decap Turbo as an optional hosted add-on.
What can a client change in Siteshare that Decap doesn't reach?
Anything on the page that isn't a configured field: texts inside components, sections, buttons and links. In Decap, every editable part has to be in config.yml.
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