Start free.
Grow with SCHMA.
Explore SCHMA's content modeling, AI-assisted workflows and content delivery from your own PostgreSQL database.
7-day Pro trial + 25% off your first two months
Join the early access waitlist to receive an eligible 7-day Pro trial when you connect your workspace, plus a 25% discount for your first two months of Pro activated within seven days of rollout.
Available Subscription Plans
- Visual content model builder (11 visual field types in Studio)
- Content Studio with drafts, revisions & version history
- Connect your own PostgreSQL database (Site Lock active)
- 10,000 Delivery API requests / month (REST, GraphQL & SDK)
- 100 MB allowable media storage limit
- 1 production environment & up to 2 workspace members, including the owner
- Commercial client sites permitted within quotas
Pro
RecommendedFor developers and agencies who need more capacity for their work.
- SCHMA AI schema generation, refinement & field drafting
- 100,000 Managed AI tokens / month + Bring-Your-Own-Key (BYOK, 0% markup)
- Staged AI batch previews, validation & searchable run history
- Editorial review workflow & automated scheduled publishing
- Expanded durable webhooks (up to 5 active endpoints with HMAC-SHA256 & retries)
- 100,000 Delivery API requests / month & 1 GB media storage
- Up to 3 isolated environments & database host switching
- Up to 5 workspace members (Owner, Admin, Editor, Reviewer, or Custom roles)
- Experimental Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for Cursor & Claude
Max
Coming soonFor scaling agencies and organizations requiring custom capacity, blueprints, and extended audit retention.
Free versus Pro feature comparison.
Review detailed plan quotas, developer features, and architectural capabilities before choosing your plan.
| Capability | Free | Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Plan and Billing | ||
| Annual billing discount | — | 2 months free (pay for 10 months upfront) |
| Commercial client usage | Included within plan quotas | Included |
| Workspace team members | Up to 2 workspace members, including the owner | Up to 5 members (Owner, Admin, Editor, Reviewer, or Custom) |
| Media Storage & Delivery Quotas | ||
| Media library storage | 100 MB | 1 GB |
| Monthly Delivery API requests | 10,000 / month | 100,000 / month |
| Edge CDN caching (s-maxage & SWR) | Included | Included |
| Content Modeling & Studio | ||
| Visual content model builder (11 visual field types in Studio) | Included | Included |
| Content Studio editing, drafts & versions | Included | Included |
| Locale-aware Delivery API queries & storage | Included | Included |
| Editorial review gates & approval workflows | Not included | Included |
| Automated scheduled publishing | Not included | Included |
| Database & Infrastructure | ||
| Connect customer PostgreSQL database | Included (PostgreSQL 15+ & pgvector) | Included (PostgreSQL 15+ & pgvector) |
| Database connection host switching | Locked to initial DB (Site Lock) | Included with audit history |
| Isolated Postgres schema environments | 1 (production) | Up to 3 (production, staging, dev) |
| AI-Assisted Workflows | ||
| Managed AI tokens (in-model intelligence) | 5,000 tokens / month | 100,000 tokens / month |
| AI schema generation & refinement | Not included | Included |
| Staged batch preview & human diff review | Not included | Included |
| Bring Your Own AI Provider Key (BYOK) | Not included | Optional (0% markup on token costs) |
| Delivery APIs & Developer Tooling | ||
| Edge-cached REST Delivery API | Included (/v1/delivery/entries) | Included (/v1/delivery/entries) |
| Dynamic GraphQL Yoga API | Included (/v1/delivery/graphql) | Included (/v1/delivery/graphql) |
| Isomorphic TypeScript SDK (@schmadev/client) | Included | Included |
| Starter CLI (create-schma) | Included | Included |
| Active webhook endpoints | Up to 2 active endpoints | Up to 5 active endpoints (BullMQ, HMAC-SHA256, retries) |
| Local MCP Server for Cursor & Claude | Not included | Experimental |
| Support & Maintenance | ||
| Documentation & starter guides | Included | Included |
| Community support | Included | Included |
| Priority email & technical support | Community | Standard Priority |
Different approaches to structured content.
Compare how SCHMA and other headless CMS platforms approach content ownership, AI, development workflows and pricing.
Content database and ownership
100% customer-owned PostgreSQL 15+ with pgvector (Supabase, Neon, AWS RDS, Railway, or self-hosted) with zero database-size quota imposed by SCHMA (managed DB option includes 100 MB Free / 1 GB Pro). Direct SQL access to all tables and records.
Runs on customer database (PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQLite) when self-hosted; managed AWS database on Strapi Cloud.
Hosting and deployment
Hybrid architecture: Customer database + edge-cached control plane and API delivery network. No servers to maintain.
Self-hosted requires maintaining Node.js server, OS updates, and database hosting. Strapi Cloud provides managed hosting.
Content modeling
Visual Studio builder (11 visual field types) + prompt-first natural language schema generator (8 AI-supported field types), nested components, and relationships.
Content-Type Builder in admin UI. Modifies local schema JSON/JS files on disk (requires server reload in development).
Native AI capabilities and AI workflow support
Built-in staged AI generation, human-in-the-loop diff validation, staged changesets, and Bring Your Own Key (BYOK) at 0% markup.
No native AI review or changeset pipeline in core. AI capabilities depend on third-party community plugins or external scripts.
Content generation and refinement
Prompt-driven bulk generation, staged previews with schema dry-run validation, and conversational bulk find-and-replace across repeaters.
Manual field-by-field entry. Bulk content operations require custom scripts or third-party extensions.
REST and GraphQL delivery
Both edge-cached REST (/v1/delivery/entries) and dynamic GraphQL Yoga schema derived directly from customer Postgres models.
Native REST API out-of-the-box. GraphQL supported via official plugin with schema auto-generation.
SDKs, CLI, MCP and other developer tools
Isomorphic TypeScript SDK (@schmadev/client), starter CLI (create-schma), and experimental Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for Cursor & Claude.
create-strapi-app CLI, Strapi SDK, and community plugin developer toolkit.
Content export and portability
100% portable: Direct SQL access to all tables, relationships, and JSONB fields in your own database; standard pg_dump at any time.
Full database export when self-hosted; CLI data transfer command on Strapi Cloud.
Drafts, preview and publishing workflows
Dual draft/published status, tokenized preview headers, editorial review approval gates, and scheduled automated publishing.
Draft & Publish workflow with role-based permissions and preview URLs.
Pricing model
Flat predictable workspace tiers: Free (£0) and Pro (£20/mo or £200/yr UK, €25/mo or €250/yr EU, $25/mo or $250/yr Rest of world; annual billing includes 2 months free upfront). 300 req/min delivery rate limit. Optional BYOK AI with 0% markup.
Free self-hosted Community Edition; Strapi Cloud starts at $29/project/mo (Developer) and $99/mo (Pro).
Free-plan restrictions
10,000 Delivery requests/mo, 100 MB allowable media storage, 100 MB SCHMA-managed DB storage (no database-size quota imposed on customer-owned PostgreSQL), up to 2 active webhook endpoints, up to 2 workspace members including the owner, single production database connection (Site Lock).
Community Edition: unlimited local usage, but no hosted cloud infrastructure; single admin role limit.
Commercial-use terms on free tier
Commercial client websites explicitly permitted on Free tier within applicable plan quotas.
Commercial use permitted under Community Edition (MIT license) on customer's own infrastructure.
| Dimension | SCHMAYour Database | Strapi | Storyblok | Sanity | Prismic | Hygraph |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ArchitectureContent database and ownership | 100% customer-owned PostgreSQL 15+ with pgvector (Supabase, Neon, AWS RDS, Railway, or self-hosted) with zero database-size quota imposed by SCHMA (managed DB option includes 100 MB Free / 1 GB Pro). Direct SQL access to all tables and records. | Runs on customer database (PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQLite) when self-hosted; managed AWS database on Strapi Cloud. | Proprietary managed multi-tenant cloud storage. Content is stored within Storyblok's infrastructure without direct database SQL access. | Proprietary hosted 'Content Lake'. Documents reside in Sanity's managed cloud; queried exclusively via GROQ or Sanity APIs. | Proprietary managed cloud repository. Content is stored entirely within Prismic's cloud infrastructure. | Proprietary managed cloud database. Content resides in Hygraph's multi-tenant clusters; accessed via GraphQL. |
| ArchitectureHosting and deployment | Hybrid architecture: Customer database + edge-cached control plane and API delivery network. No servers to maintain. | Self-hosted requires maintaining Node.js server, OS updates, and database hosting. Strapi Cloud provides managed hosting. | 100% managed SaaS cloud. No server maintenance; editor iframe connects to preview URLs. | 100% managed SaaS Content Lake. Sanity Studio is a React SPA that can be self-hosted or deployed on Sanity's CDN. | 100% managed SaaS repository. Local Slice Machine runs during development; production served from Prismic CDN. | 100% managed SaaS GraphQL platform. Globally distributed content delivery across multi-region edge caches. |
| WorkflowsContent modeling | Visual Studio builder (11 visual field types) + prompt-first natural language schema generator (8 AI-supported field types), nested components, and relationships. | Content-Type Builder in admin UI. Modifies local schema JSON/JS files on disk (requires server reload in development). | Visual component-based block builder. Content types are composed from nestable components ('Bloks'). | Code-first schema definitions authored in TypeScript/JavaScript files and bundled into the Studio. | Custom Types and Slices defined locally in Slice Machine and pushed to the cloud repository. | Visual schema builder for models, components, enumerations, and remote data federation sources. |
| WorkflowsNative AI capabilities and AI workflow support | Built-in staged AI generation, human-in-the-loop diff validation, staged changesets, and Bring Your Own Key (BYOK) at 0% markup. | No native AI review or changeset pipeline in core. AI capabilities depend on third-party community plugins or external scripts. | Storyblok AI assistant available in editor for text generation and field-level copy tasks. | Sanity AI Assist provides contextual writing tools in Studio, billed via separate action credits. | Limited native AI capabilities. Relies on external AI tooling integrated into development workflows. | AI-assisted field generation and translation features within the Hygraph editorial interface. |
| WorkflowsContent generation and refinement | Prompt-driven bulk generation, staged previews with schema dry-run validation, and conversational bulk find-and-replace across repeaters. | Manual field-by-field entry. Bulk content operations require custom scripts or third-party extensions. | Field-level AI text assistance and component cloning inside the visual live editor. | AI Assist field prompts and schema-aware text drafting directly inside Studio input fields. | Manual field input and Slice assembly. Bulk updates require Custom Types API and custom scripts. | Field-level generative prompts and automated content translation across configured locales. |
| Delivery & ToolingREST and GraphQL delivery | Both edge-cached REST (/v1/delivery/entries) and dynamic GraphQL Yoga schema derived directly from customer Postgres models. | Native REST API out-of-the-box. GraphQL supported via official plugin with schema auto-generation. | Content Delivery API (REST v2) and dynamic GraphQL API with CDN caching. | REST API, GROQ query language (native), and generated GraphQL endpoints via Sanity CLI. | REST API (v2) and GraphQL API for querying published documents and Slice components. | Native GraphQL-first architecture. All content querying, filtering, and mutations use GraphQL. |
| Delivery & ToolingSDKs, CLI, MCP and other developer tools | Isomorphic TypeScript SDK (@schmadev/client), starter CLI (create-schma), and experimental Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for Cursor & Claude. | create-strapi-app CLI, Strapi SDK, and community plugin developer toolkit. | Storyblok JavaScript / TypeScript SDKs, Storyblok CLI for component syncing, and visual editor bridge. | Sanity CLI, @sanity/client, Groq tooling, and Sanity Studio React component ecosystem. | @prismicio/client, Slice Machine CLI, and framework adapters for Next.js, Nuxt, and SvelteKit. | Hygraph Management SDK, GraphQL client libraries, and schema migration tooling. |
| ArchitectureContent export and portability | 100% portable: Direct SQL access to all tables, relationships, and JSONB fields in your own database; standard pg_dump at any time. | Full database export when self-hosted; CLI data transfer command on Strapi Cloud. | Export via management API or Space backup/restore CLI tool to JSON format. | Export via CLI to NDJSON (Newline Delimited JSON) dump with assets. | JSON export available via Import/Export module or Content Management API. | Export content entries and schema via Management SDK and GraphQL queries to JSON. |
| WorkflowsDrafts, preview and publishing workflows | Dual draft/published status, tokenized preview headers, editorial review approval gates, and scheduled automated publishing. | Draft & Publish workflow with role-based permissions and preview URLs. | Visual preview with real-time postMessage editor iframe bridge, drafts, and scheduled releases. | Real-time live preview with Content Source Maps, draft documents, and scheduled publishing. | Draft releases, visual shareable preview links, and scheduled content releases. | Draft and Published stages with stage-based permissions and scheduled publishing releases. |
| EconomicsPricing model | Flat predictable workspace tiers: Free (£0) and Pro (£20/mo or £200/yr UK, €25/mo or €250/yr EU, $25/mo or $250/yr Rest of world; annual billing includes 2 months free upfront). 300 req/min delivery rate limit. Optional BYOK AI with 0% markup. | Free self-hosted Community Edition; Strapi Cloud starts at $29/project/mo (Developer) and $99/mo (Pro). | Tiered SaaS: Community (Free for 1 user), Entry ($99/mo for 5 users), Business ($449/mo). | Usage-based SaaS: Free tier (up to 20 users, quota-capped), Growth plan ($15/user/mo), Enterprise custom. | User-tiered SaaS: Free (up to 3 users), Starter ($7/mo), Small ($15/mo), Medium ($100/mo). | Tiered SaaS: Community (Free up to 3 users), Self-serve Professional starts at $399/mo, Enterprise custom. |
| EconomicsFree-plan restrictions | 10,000 Delivery requests/mo, 100 MB allowable media storage, 100 MB SCHMA-managed DB storage (no database-size quota imposed on customer-owned PostgreSQL), up to 2 active webhook endpoints, up to 2 workspace members including the owner, single production database connection (Site Lock). | Community Edition: unlimited local usage, but no hosted cloud infrastructure; single admin role limit. | Community tier: strictly 1 user, community support only, capped API requests and traffic. | Free tier: up to 20 users, 500k API CDN requests/mo, 100 GB bandwidth; non-commercial / community guidelines. | Free tier: up to 3 users, community support, standard API quotas. | Community tier: up to 3 users, 1 million API operations/mo, 100 GB asset traffic. |
| EconomicsCommercial-use terms on free tier | Commercial client websites explicitly permitted on Free tier within applicable plan quotas. | Commercial use permitted under Community Edition (MIT license) on customer's own infrastructure. | Commercial use allowed on Community tier for single users, subject to traffic caps. | Commercial projects permitted within generous free-tier quotas; overages billed at standard unit rates. | Commercial client websites allowed on Free tier within standard 3-user and quota limits. | Commercial use permitted within Community tier operation and bandwidth limits. |
Methodology & Verification Note: Feature availability, quotas, and pricing are verified against publicly published documentation and pricing pages as of October 2026. Headless CMS capabilities evolve frequently. Comparisons reference comparable entry/self-serve tiers. Trademarks belong to their respective owners.
Frequently asked questions.
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