Raytha vs Strapi: a Strapi-style headless CMS for .NET
Strapi is a popular open source headless CMS for JavaScript and TypeScript teams, with REST and GraphQL APIs, internationalization and a large plugin marketplace. Raytha is the closest equivalent for .NET: custom content types defined in the admin, an auto-generated REST API, plus Liquid templates if you want Raytha to render the site itself. It runs on .NET 10 and PostgreSQL and includes SAML and JWT single sign-on in the free, MIT-licensed product.
Last reviewed October 2026 against Raytha 2.0.1 and Strapi 5.
Raytha vs Strapi at a glance
| Raytha | Strapi 5 | |
|---|---|---|
| License | MIT | MIT Community Edition; Growth and Enterprise features are paid |
| Stack | .NET 10 (C#) | Node.js (JavaScript/TypeScript) |
| Database | PostgreSQL only | PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, SQLite |
| Content model | Defined in the admin and stored in the database; no restart | Defined in the Content-Type Builder and saved as schema files in the project; changes need a restart |
| API | REST API v1, API keys | REST and GraphQL, API tokens |
| Rendering | Headless or full site with Liquid templates and a page builder | Headless; you build the front end |
| Admin roles | Unlimited, per content type | Unlimited custom roles in Community Edition |
| SSO | SAML and JWT included | Growth plan with SSO add-on, or Enterprise |
| Audit logs | Included | Enterprise |
| Internationalization | Not built in | Built in |
| Hosting | Self-hosted (Docker, Railway) | Self-hosted, or Strapi Cloud (paid) |
What Strapi does well
Strapi is one of the most widely used open source headless CMSs, with more than 70,000 stars on GitHub. It gives JavaScript teams a fast way to model content and get REST and GraphQL APIs, with internationalization, draft and publish, webhooks, a media library and a marketplace of plugins. Unlimited custom roles have been free in the Community Edition since Strapi 4.8. Strapi Cloud offers managed hosting if you do not want to run servers.
Where Raytha is different
The content model lives in the database. In Strapi, content types are saved as schema.json files inside the project, and Strapi's documentation notes that schema changes require a restart; in production you change them in code and redeploy. In Raytha, content types and fields are records in the database. You add a field in the admin or with the raytha CLI, and it is live immediately. That makes Raytha easy to run as a stock Docker image and to manage from scripts.
SSO and audit logs are free. Strapi puts single sign-on behind the Growth plan with an SSO add-on or the Enterprise plan, and audit logs behind Enterprise. Raytha includes SAML and JWT sign-in for administrators and public users, and an audit log, in the MIT-licensed product.
It can render the site too. Raytha is headless when you want it to be, but it also has Liquid templates, themes, site pages and a widget page builder, so a marketing site does not need a separate front-end app.
It fits a .NET stack. If your services are C#, Raytha deploys, logs and scales the same way.
When to choose Strapi
- Your team works in JavaScript or TypeScript and wants the CMS in the same language.
- You need GraphQL or built-in internationalization.
- You want MySQL, MariaDB or SQLite rather than PostgreSQL.
- You want a large plugin marketplace or a vendor-managed cloud.
When to choose Raytha
- Your team writes C# and runs .NET in production.
- You want to change the content model at runtime without a code change or redeploy.
- You need SAML or JWT single sign-on and audit logs without a paid plan.
- You want one app that can serve both the API and the website.
Before you switch
Raytha has no GraphQL API, no built-in localization and no plugin marketplace, and 2.0 supports PostgreSQL only. Moving content is a script job: read from Strapi's REST API and write to Raytha's REST API, CLI or CSV import.
FAQ
Is there a Strapi equivalent for .NET?
Raytha is the closest open source equivalent: custom content types, an auto-generated REST API, roles and an admin UI, built on .NET 10 and MIT-licensed.
Does Strapi Community Edition limit roles?
No, not any more. Unlimited custom roles have been available in the free Community Edition since Strapi 4.8. Single sign-on still requires a paid plan or add-on.
Does Raytha support GraphQL?
No. Raytha exposes a REST API (v1) authenticated with API keys.
Can I change Raytha content types without redeploying?
Yes. Content types are stored in the database and can be changed in the admin or with the raytha CLI, with no restart.
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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.
