Cloud CMSs that host your content and rent you an API. JustJSON takes a different path: your content is plain JSON in your own repo — no account, no server, no API key — and you start in one command.
| Tool | Account | Server / DB | API key | Local-first | Typed output | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JustJSON Local, file-based — needs no backend at all. | None | None — files on disk | None | Always (fully local) | types.ts + Astro collections | Devs who want content with zero backend |
| Hosted headless (Contentful, Sanity…) Cloud CMSs that host your content and rent you an API. | Required | Theirs — hosted database | Required to read | No | Via codegen | Large teams and scale |
A fair-use summary of publicly documented behaviour, compiled 2026. Hosted headless (Contentful, Sanity…) is a solid project — tell us if anything reads wrong. See the full comparison across all of them.