Best CMS for an Astro blog in 2026: five picks by who does the writing
Astro is brilliant at showing content and has no opinion about where it comes from, so pick a CMS by who does the writing.
A plain-text version of this site for AI assistants is at https://contengi.com/llms.txt, with the full product documentation in one file at https://contengi.com/llms-full.txt. Every page is also available as markdown by adding .md to its URL.
TL;DR
- The best CMS for an Astro blog depends on who writes: Contengi if an AI agent drafts and publishes on-brand posts for you, Keystatic or Decap CMS if you want content in Git as Markdown, Storyblok if marketers want a visual editor, and TinaCMS for Git content with roles and workflow.
- Contengi connects to an Astro site through one signed endpoint, and fully static builds can read a feed of published posts instead, from $50 a month plus your own Anthropic key.
- Keystatic and Decap CMS keep your posts as files in your repository with no database, and Decap is MIT-licensed and free to self-host.
- TinaCMS is free for two users, and Storyblok's Starter plan is free with paid plans from $90.75 a month billed annually.
- Decide where your content lives first, in your repo or in a hosted service, because that choice is harder to undo than the editor.
Astro is brilliant at showing content and has no opinion about where it comes from. That's a gift for developers and a puzzle for whoever writes the blog, who now has to edit Markdown files or ask a developer every time a typo turn up.
This list covers five CMS options for an Astro blog, in no specific order after the first. We built Contengi, so it's first, and each of the others is a strong choice we'd recommend for a different setup. Astro's own docs list more than 40 CMS guides, so this is a short list on purpose.
What kind of CMS does Astro need?
Astro needs a headless CMS: one that stores and edits content and leaves the page design to your Astro project. Some, like Storyblok, ship an Astro integration, and others give you a JavaScript SDK or files in your repo.
The real decision is where content lives. Git-based options keep posts as files beside your code. API-based options keep them in a hosted service your site fetches from. Our explainer on what a headless CMS is covers the trade-offs.
1. Contengi: best for when you want an agent to write and run the blog
Contengi is an AI-native CMS for sites built with Claude Code, v0, Astro, or Next.js. It holds every draft and published post in one library, and its agents write from your brand knowledge base, edit live posts section by section, and republish over the same URL.
An Astro site connects with one signed endpoint that Contengi calls to publish, update, and delete. A fully static Astro build without a backend can read a feed of published posts instead. Pricing is from $50 a month with no seats, plus your own Anthropic key, and it's in beta.
Choose it if nobody on the team wants to write the blog by hand and you want posts that still sound like you.
2. Keystatic: best for when you want Markdown in Git with a friendly editor
Keystatic, from Thinkmill, makes Markdown, JSON, and YAML in your codebase editable by humans, with no database. It has an Astro integration, a TypeScript API, and support for Markdoc and MDX, and it edits on GitHub or your local file system. Keystatic Cloud adds simpler GitHub sign-in and image optimisation.
Choose it if a developer set up the site and a non-technical person needs to edit posts without touching files.
3. TinaCMS: best for when a growing team wants roles and workflow on Git content
TinaCMS is a Git-backed CMS with an Astro integration. The free plan covers two users, and Team is $24 per project a month, or $290 a year, for three users. Editorial workflow arrives on Team Plus at $41 per project a month.
Choose it if more than two people edit the blog and you want an approval step without leaving Git.
4. Decap CMS: best for when you want free and fully self-hosted
Decap CMS is an open-source, MIT-licensed CMS for Git workflows. You configure it with one config.yml file, content stays in your repository with full version history, and it works with all major Git providers. Decap Turbo is a paid add-on for hosted sign-in, roles, and faster loading.
Choose it if you want zero licence costs and you're happy to run your own sign-in.
5. Storyblok: best for when marketers need components and a visual editor
Storyblok is an API-based headless CMS with a visual editor and an Astro integration. The Starter plan is free for one user, and Growth is $99 a month, or $90.75 a month billed annually, with five seats, SEO meta tags, and scheduling.
Choose it if a marketing team builds landing pages from reusable components as well as running the blog.
Astro CMS options at a glance
| CMS | Best for | Where content lives | Starting price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contengi | AI agent writes and publishes | Contengi library, sent to your site | From $50/month plus your Anthropic key |
| Keystatic | Friendly editor for Git content | Your repo | Open project, Keystatic Cloud optional |
| TinaCMS | Roles and workflow on Git content | Your repo | Free for two users |
| Decap CMS | Free and self-hosted | Your repo | Free (MIT) |
| Storyblok | Component-based marketing pages | Storyblok's API | Free, Growth from $90.75/month annually |
How to add a CMS to an Astro site this week
- Decide who writes. A developer can live with Markdown. A marketer or founder needs an editor, or an agent.
- Pick Git or API storage before you pick a tool, because moving later means migrating every post.
- Map your fields: title, slug, meta description, date, author, hero image, and body.
- Move three posts first and check the URLs, canonical tags, and sitemap still match.
- Check what AI crawlers see on a published post with the free AI bot view, since a client-rendered blog can come back blank.
- Write your publishing rules down, including who approves what, before you add an AI writer. Our guide to an AI-native website stack shows the full setup.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best CMS for an Astro blog?
Contengi suits teams that want an agent to write and publish on-brand posts. Keystatic, TinaCMS, and Decap suit Git-based setups, and Storyblok suits marketers who want a visual editor and components.
Does Astro need a CMS?
No. Astro supports Markdown out of the box. A CMS helps once someone other than a developer needs to write, edit, or schedule posts.
Is there a free CMS for Astro?
Yes. Decap CMS is MIT-licensed and free to self-host, TinaCMS is free for two users, and Storyblok's Starter plan is free.
Can AI write and publish blog posts to an Astro site?
Yes. Contengi publishes to Astro through a signed endpoint, or through a feed for fully static builds, and keeps a human approval step before anything goes live.
Git-based or API-based CMS for Astro?
Git-based keeps content beside your code and costs little, and API-based scales better for big teams and many editors. For a small blog, Git-based is usually enough. Our guide to a CMS for an AI-native website goes deeper.