Umbraco alternative: Raytha, a lightweight open source .NET CMS

Raytha and Umbraco are both free, MIT-licensed content management systems built on ASP.NET Core. Umbraco is the mature choice with a large package ecosystem, multilingual content and a paid managed cloud. Raytha is a smaller, simpler alternative: one container plus PostgreSQL, content types defined in the admin, Liquid templates, a REST API, and public members with SAML or JWT single sign-on included at no cost.

Last reviewed October 2026 against Raytha 2.0.1 and Umbraco 17 LTS / 18.

Raytha vs Umbraco at a glance

	Raytha	Umbraco CMS
License	MIT, free	MIT, free (paid add-ons and cloud)
Runtime	.NET 10	.NET 10 (Umbraco 17 LTS and 18)
Database	PostgreSQL only	SQL Server or SQLite
Templates	Liquid, edited in the browser with revisions	Razor views in your project
Content model	Content types defined in the admin, stored in the database	Document types defined in the backoffice
Headless API	REST API v1 for content, media and users, API-key auth	Content Delivery API (read-only, built in) and Management API
Members and SSO	Public users, user groups, magic-code sign-in, SAML and JWT for admins and members	Members built in; external login providers are configured in code
Multilingual	Not built in	Built in (language variants)
Extensions	Raytha Functions (server-side JavaScript), webhooks	Large package marketplace, paid products such as Forms, Deploy and Workflow
Hosting	Self-hosted: Docker image or Railway template	Self-hosted, or Umbraco Cloud (paid, managed on Azure)
Pricing	No license fees, no per-seat pricing, no hosted plan	Free core; Umbraco Cloud and add-ons are paid

What Umbraco does well

Umbraco is one of the most established .NET content management systems, with one of the largest communities in the ecosystem. It follows Microsoft's release cadence: Umbraco 17 is the long-term-support release on .NET 10 (released November 2025, supported to November 2028), and Umbraco 18 is the current standard-term release. Umbraco 13 reaches end of life on December 14, 2026.

Its strengths are real: multilingual content with language variants, a polished editor experience, a marketplace of community packages, certified agency partners, and paid products (Forms, Deploy, Workflow, Commerce) when you need them. Umbraco Cloud gives you managed hosting with environments and deployments, and Umbraco Heartcore is a hosted headless option.

Where Raytha is different

Raytha is a deliberately smaller product. Its goal is to be easy to stand up, easy to understand and easy to keep running.

One app, one database. Raytha 2.0 runs on .NET 10 and PostgreSQL only. You deploy one container (raythahq/raytha) next to Postgres, or use the one-click Railway template.
Content model in the admin. You create content types and fields in the browser. Nothing is compiled, and there is no restart.
Templates in the browser. Pages render with Liquid templates stored in the database, with revision history, so a template change does not need a build and deploy.
Members and SSO included. Public users, user groups, email and password, emailed one-time codes, and SAML or JWT single sign-on for both administrators and members are part of the free product.
A full REST API. Every content type gets a REST API you can read and write with an API key, plus media and user endpoints.
Built for scripting. The raytha CLI manages themes, templates, content types, content, pages and menus as JSON, so a site can be built from a script or by an AI agent.

When to choose Umbraco

You need multilingual content or many sites with editorial workflows.
You want a large package ecosystem and a deep pool of agencies and developers who already know the platform.
You prefer Razor and want the CMS to live inside your own ASP.NET Core project.
You are standardized on SQL Server, or want a vendor-managed cloud with support (Umbraco Cloud).
You need commercial add-ons such as e-commerce, advanced forms or approval workflows from the vendor.

When to choose Raytha

You want a self-hosted .NET CMS that a small team can run without a platform specialist.
You are happy on PostgreSQL, or prefer it.
You want editors and developers to change content models and templates in the browser without a deploy.
You need public members, user groups and SAML or JWT single sign-on without paying for add-ons.
You want a read-write REST API and a CLI so other systems, scripts or AI agents can manage the site.

Before you switch

Raytha has no built-in multilingual content, no package marketplace, no GraphQL API and no SQL Server support in 2.0. Members-only content is handled in templates (show or hide based on the signed-in user or group), not as per-item permissions. There is no automated Umbraco importer; you would export your content and load it with Raytha's CSV import, REST API or CLI.

FAQ

Is Raytha a good Umbraco alternative?

For small and mid-sized sites that do not need multilingual content or Umbraco's package ecosystem, yes. Raytha covers content types, templates, page building, members, SSO and a REST API in one small, MIT-licensed app.

Is Umbraco free?

Umbraco CMS is free and open source under the MIT license. Umbraco Cloud hosting and several add-on products are paid.

Which databases do Raytha and Umbraco support?

Raytha 2.0 supports PostgreSQL only. Umbraco 17 supports SQL Server and SQLite.

Does Raytha run on .NET 10?

Yes. Raytha 2.0 and 2.0.1 target .NET 10.

Can Raytha be used headless?

Yes. Raytha generates a REST API for your content types, authenticated with API keys, and can also render its own pages with Liquid templates.

Related comparisons

Try Raytha

Raytha is free and MIT-licensed. Deploy it in a few minutes with the Railway template or Docker, following the quickstart. The platform overview lists what is in the box, and the source and release notes are on GitHub.

Raytha vs Umbraco: a lightweight open source .NET alternative