CMS & Web: European providers compared
Content management systems for websites, blogs and digital content – classic or headless, ideally open source, self-hostable and with EU data residency.
Recommendations
TYPO3
Germany
Open-source enterprise CMS from Europe (DE/CH) with European governance – fully self-hostable, an alternative to WordPress and Adobe/AEM.
Strapi
France
Leading open-source headless CMS from France (Node.js) – self-hostable or as a cloud, an alternative to Contentful.
Storyblok
Austria
Austrian headless CMS with a visual editor – EU data storage, ISO 27001 & SOC 2, an alternative to Contentful.
Comparison table
Selection criteria
Clarify whether you need a classic CMS (website incl. rendering) or a headless CMS (content via API, your own frontend). For data control, open source and self-hosting matter; for editorial teams, a good visual editor.
Data protection & compliance
CMS store content and sometimes personal data (forms, user accounts). Important factors are EU data residency or self-hosting, a DPA and clean permissions.
The Sovereignty Score is an editorial orientation aid, not legal advice.
Typical use cases
- Websites and blogs with your own frontend
- Headless content via API for web, app and shop
- Editorial collaboration with a visual editor
- Self-hosting for full data control
Pricing guidance
Open-source CMS are free when self-hosted (operating costs); hosted/cloud plans bill by projects, users or traffic.
Providers in this category
TYPO3
Germany
Open-source enterprise CMS from Europe (DE/CH) with European governance – fully self-hostable, an alternative to WordPress and Adobe/AEM.
Strapi
France
Leading open-source headless CMS from France (Node.js) – self-hostable or as a cloud, an alternative to Contentful.
Storyblok
Austria
Austrian headless CMS with a visual editor – EU data storage, ISO 27001 & SOC 2, an alternative to Contentful.
Related alternative pages
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between a classic and a headless CMS?
The Sovereignty Score is an editorial orientation aid, not legal advice. How we rate.