This is already the fourth edition of the Content Management Systems Market Overview. In 2018, we compared 12 solutions; in 2019, we compared 14; and in 2023, we compared 24 enterprise content management systems. These solutions are compared in 11 categories and on the basis of 120 criteria. This makes it much easier for you to find your way around the software selection process. You can download the comparison as a PDF.
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Enterprise Content Management Systems: The framework in which it all unfolds
Companies are communicating more and more with their target groups via the website and social media. In the process, the number of content threads and also the number of channels has increased significantly. An important task for marketing managers is to manage the content produced, i.e. to ensure that it is distributed on different channels. It is important that the content is adapted to the specifics of each channel. Another crucial task is to ensure that existing content can be quickly replaced, updated or taken offline. Content management systems (CMS) provide the right framework and are an important part of the enterprise content technology stack. We compared 24 commercial solutions for you in the following categories:
Categories of the market overview
- General information about the providers
- Industry focus of the providers
- Languages of the user interface
- Basic functions of the solutions in comparison
- Advanced functions and features for handling content
- Interfaces
- Further functions of the systems
- Legal criteria
- SEO criteria
- Additional services of the providers
- Pricing of the systems
We compared these enterprise content management systems:
Bloomreach Content
USP (according to its own statement): “Headless CMS for business users (WYSIWYG editor, out of the box features) and developers (open API, customizable) simultaneously.”
References: Baby Walz, Telekom, Puma, Bosch, Miele
USP (according to its own statement): “censhare offers a fully integrated solution for Digital Asset Management (DAM), Product Information Management (PIM) and Content Management (CMS), which can be extended by functional modules that are also fully integrated, e.g. HCMS, Print Production Management, Variant Management, Translation Management, and more.”
References: R+V Versicherungen, BSH Hausgeräte GmbH, FTI Group, Lands’ End, motor presse stuttgart
CONTAILOR
USP (according to its own statement): “Intuitive handling, individual solutions, maximum security”.
References: V. FRAAS, Wunsiedel district, city of Marktredwitz, Knoll Hydraulik
CONTENTS CMS
USP (according to its own statement): “Intuitive Web GUI (WYSIWYG); very good usability; flexible definition of content elements; multiple use of content; different display of content with format templates; multilingualism; multi-client capability; on premise and cloud; page generation static and dynamic; form builder for building individual data structures and lists; backend for external data management, etc.”
References: Würth Elektronik, Goethe-Institut e.V., OBI, McDonald’s, radio NRW, Best Western Hotel Central Europe, UniCredit Direct Services
Contentful Content Management Platform
USP (according to its own statement): “Launch faster, consistently, and at scale with the Contentful Composable Content Platform.”
References: HABA, alpro, Asics, Headspace, Bang & Olufsen
CoreMedia Content Cloud
USP (according to its own statement): “Hybrid CMS (headless and server side rendering), intuitive (low barrier) editorial interface, high customizability of the solution, deep eCommerce integrations. Operation can be on-prem, on-cloud as well as as-a-service. As a best-of-breed solution, CoreMedia can be easily integrated into existing infrastructures. High requirements for performance, availability as well as IT security are met.”
References: Deutsche Bahn, Deutsche Telekom, DMG Mori, Deutsche Börse, Finnair
Crownpeak CMS (FirstSpirit)
USP (according to its own statement): “Crownpeak is one of the few CMS providers with native barrier-free accessibility and quality in the CMS. It ensures compliance and support for central governance and maintenance of brand standards. By incorporating Product Discovery, Crownpeak is able to turn both content and product recommendations into personalized experiences across multiple channels.”
References: Nintendo, Bosch, Ernsting’s Family, Volkswagen AG
dotCMS
USP (according to their own statement): “We help organizations with sophisticated content requirements create, manage and deliver content anywhere.”
Dynamicweb E-Commerce Suite
USP (according to their own statement): “Dynamicweb E-Commerce Suite is a cloud-based all-in-one solution with CMS, e-commerce, PIM and marketing tools in one application. This approach reduces the complexity of your IT stack and helps you create exceptional customer experiences.”
References: Euronics, Europcar, Flying Tiger, Hummel, Mann + Hummel, bellissa HAAS
Hubspot CMS Hub
USP (according to its own statement): “We offer content management software that is both user-friendly and powerful, from free to enterprise versions. CMS Hub is integrated with HubSpot’s CRM platform: This puts all the information marketing teams need at their fingertips to deliver a fully personalized experience to potential and existing clientele.”
References: Trusted Shops, Toyota Material Handling Germany, IDEAL Vorsorge, ELPRO-Buchs, Canva
InterRed
USP (according to their own statement): “InterRed is the central headless CMS for all channels: Online, Social, Print, E-Paper, App. As a central content hub, InterRed offers AI-based multi-channel publishing. Integrated features include digital asset management, action & topic planning, communication & workflow management, AI & data analytics, flexible content control and search engine optimization (SEO) technologies.”
References: Axel Springer SE, Rheinische Post Mediengruppe; Motor Presse Stuttgart, VDI Wissensforum GmbH, Wort und Bild Verlag
Liferay DXP
USP (according to its own statement): “With its cloud-based Digital Experience Platform (DXP), Liferay helps companies address their unique challenges: developing innovative, customer-centric experiences. Our platform is open source, which makes it more reliable and secure. More than 1000 companies in Finance, Insurance, Manufacturing and Public Sector use Liferay worldwide.”
References: Putzmeister, SCHOTT, A1 Telekom, Stuttgarter Versicherung, Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung
Magnolia
USP (according to its own statement): “Manage content in one place | Reuse across all channels | Increase efficiency through automation | Multisource content (CMS, DAM, PIM, etc.) Federated search | Auto-tagging | Image recognition | Image focal points |AI integration: ChatGPT, WordAI, Dale-e”
References: OBI, Generali, Union Investment, Carglass, Rose Bikes, Bike24, Dehner, R&V, Peri
Optimizely DXP
USP (according to its own statement): “Simplicity of the system & maximum output thanks to high-quality intelligence.”
References: Arvato, HDI, Dorothee Schumacher, Swiss Re, Güntner, Peri SE
pirobase CMS
USP (according to its own statement): “Our platform for digital content combines the capabilities of enterprise content management with the convenience of an intuitive editorial system. With pirobase, you master the full complexity of modern omnichannel communication.”
References: Axa, Deka, Strabag, State of Baden-Württemberg
Scrivito CMS
USP (according to its own statement): “As a decoupled/headless enterprise web CMS, Scrivito serves as a flexible foundation for all of our customers’ websites and apps. It delivers content to any channel and device, is user-friendly, secure, scalable, highly integratable, and designed for high-performance global deployment.”
References: ADAC, Nuremberg Airport, ERGO Insurance, OBI
Sitecore Experience Manager
USP (according to its own statement): “Experience Manager Cloud is a software-as-a-service headless CMS including personalization and WYSIWYG editing. In addition, our customers can access other services of our SaaS Composable Digital Experience Platform at any time (e.g. CDP, Commerce etc).”
References: Thule, l’Oreal, Hilti, Metro, Volvo, Festool, Grohe, Palm Dubai, Emirates
Sitefinity
USP (according to their own statement): “Sitefinity is powerful, user-friendly and cost-effective CMS system. Sitefinity CMS is based on ASP.NET and offers almost unlimited freedom in page layout and the possibility to integrate external applications. With built-in analytics, personalization and optimization features, you can segment your audience, differentiate the customer journey.”
References: Fujitsu, Diamond Sugar, Henry Ford, Tom Tailor, Best Western Hotels
SixCMS
USP (according to its own statement): “As a headless CMS, SixCMS enables platform-independent content output. Content is stored in a structured and media-neutral way. Large amounts of data are just as little a challenge as multilingual multisites. Detailed workflow management, individually customizable input masks, and precise role and rights assignments ensure the necessary efficiency and security.”
References: Cewe Fotobuch, Spektrum der Wissenschaft Verlag, GTÜ, Land Brandenburg, Landkreis Dahme-Spreewald, Freie Hansestadt Bremen
Storyblok
USP (according to its own statement): “Storyblok is the only content management system that empowers both developers and content teams to create and scale better content experiences across all digital channels. Storyblok was also voted #1 Customer’s choice in the January 2023 Gartner Peers Insight, received 30+ G2 badges, and achieved a 582% ROI in a 3-year period according to Forrester’s Total Economic Impact study.”
References: Marc O’ Polo, Chronext, DM, Oatly, Tesla
Sulu CMS
USP (according to its own statement): “Open source. Fit for enterprise.”
References: Küchengötter, Allianz Cinema, BRAX, Brille24, Tchibo MOBIL
WoodWing Studio
USP (according to its own statement): “Multi channel publishing: digital, apps, apple news+ and print.”
References: Aller, TX Group, Bauer, Dotdash Meredith, Hearst
Xperience by Kentico
USP (according to its own statement): “The hybrid headless architecture of Xperience by Kentico- CMS enables faster and more flexible implementation, so you can start small and gradually expand composable. With a wealth of out-of-the-box features and APIs, you’ll need fewer people to get to market faster and achieve amazing ROI.”
Xpublisher
USP (according to its own statement): “Xpublisher is a workflow-centric multichannel publishing system that can be used to create different content, manage it in a content pool and publish it highly efficiently and economically to any media channel. Benefits: BPMN workflow engine, metadata management, open API, certificates related to reliability and data & data center security.”
References: Lufthansa Technik, Heise Medien, Holtzbrinck Buchverlage (including Fischer, Droemer Knaur, rowohlt, Kiepenheuer & Witsch), Diogenes, Michael Page, American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ashp), Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP)
All providers have equipped their solutions with very extensive functions and features
All content management systems in this overview have a wide range of functions and features. Some belong to the mandatory category, some rather to the optional. First of all, it can be said that all solutions are on a similarly very good level when it comes to the basic features of the tools. These include, for example, a WYSIWYG editor, a user/authorization system, a file management system or responsive design. In this market overview, we have also paid special attention to the criteria of omnichannel, data analysis and headless CMS – with broad coverage as well. In short, every CMS compared in the market overview has the basic functions that users need on board. What is astonishing, however, is that the providers also cover almost all of the more advanced functions – i.e., more of the optional extras – to a large extent with their solutions. These functions include, for example, the option of personalization, workflow management, content staging and content versioning.
A CMS as a central point for content needs interfaces
Important for a CMS is its ability to cooperate with other tools and solutions via interfaces. For example, are there interfaces to Google Analytics and Google Search Console? Can third-party analysis tools such as Piwik or eTracker be connected? The question of newsletter tools or external store systems (-> see also our market overview of shop systems) and common social media platforms was also asked here. The result: Almost everything is possible and can be integrated, but not everything is included in the functional scope of the solutions without effort or additional costs. Users should therefore look at their tool setup and check to what extent a CMS provider allows integration. In this market overview, we also explicitly asked about interfaces to digital asset management (DAM) systems, product information management (PIM) solutions, CRM systems and customer data platforms. And here, too, connections are possible with most CMS providers.
Content has to be visible and a Content Management System has to help with that.
Why produce content if it can’t be found? There is a lot of truth in this sentence. At the same time, it shows the importance of SEO criteria for a CMS – and we asked about them. The good news: All providers have very good options for presenting the content in a search engine optimized way. These include the possibility to create individual snippets, the possibility of breadcrump navigation or the prevention of duplicate content through a canonical attribute. Basically, you should check whether the SEO software that you may already be using as a stand-alone solution can be integrated into the CMS (-> see also our SEO software market overview).
Legal criteria
Of course, legal criteria are also a factor that should not be underestimated when selecting software. Particularly against the Background of data protection regulations, it can be relevant where the provider’s servers are located or whether there is a standardized contract for commissioned data processing. The question of certifications is also relevant in this context. Here, there are differences among the providers within the market comparison, although at the same time it must be noted that the companies are of a good standard here. By the way, there are also some legal pitfalls in the transfer of content management systems, independent of the providers.
Price models of the providers very different, the amount of the costs too
Anyone who chooses a CMS naturally also looks at the price. It is interesting to know what the costs of the software for a company are made up of. There are big differences here: While with some providers the costs arise primarily through the number of users or installations, with others it is the number of visitors/views that the website in question has. The model of charging according to the number of functional modules used in the solution was also mentioned. There are large differences in the minimum monthly costs for the software. The range here is between EUR 79 and EUR 70,000 – at least among the providers who provided information on this question. In general, the providers are reluctant to specify the costs. This is also the case, for example, with the question of setup costs, because the implementation of a CMS can be very complex. Here, many providers have not provided any details. At the same time, some providers also offer a free setup.
