Top Use Cases for PayloadCMS: Is It Right for You?

In this guide, I'm going to go over when you should use PayloadCMS.

When to Use Payload CMS

You should use PayloadCMS whenever you need a headless CMS. This is particularly true when you’re using Next.js. There are other options of headless CMSes, and you can use PayloadCMS in other environments outside of Next.js, but the experience is more seamless when using Next.js and PayloadCMS together.

You should also consider using PayloadCMS if you need a customizable and flexible e-commerce platform. Off-the-shelf solutions are typically rigid and don’t allow you to extend the functionality of the platform—at least not as well as PayloadCMS does.

PayloadCMS is also great for building websites with blogs or other content-heavy sections. From small blogs to full enterprise-level websites with multiple sections of resources, PayloadCMS makes it easy to serve content across use cases. It’s easy to create new collections on the backend to then render on the frontend of the site.

Since Next.js can be used as a static site generator as well, anytime you need SSG is a perfect time to use PayloadCMS. The same is true for when you want to use on-demand revalidation (ODR) with incremental static regeneration (ISR). PayloadCMS makes it easy to use hooks to automatically trigger cache refreshes to your content.

One last reason to use PayloadCMS: the local API. This makes it very easy to communicate with your backend from the frontend. The Local API is an intuitive way to query your backend with exactly what you want. With PayloadCMS, the Local API is typed, as well, so your IDE should be able to assist you in querying the backend with ease.

In fact, the main reason I found PayloadCMS is that it’s one of the only headless CMSes I’ve found that provides flexibility in how you query data. There are some that require GraphQL (which I don’t like) and there are others that require REST (which I prefer). Payload is the first I’ve seen that lets you choose between GraphQL, REST, and their own method.

The first reason you shouldn’t use PayloadCMS is obvious. Don’t use PayloadCMS if you don’t need a CMS. If you’re building a site that doesn’t require content management like a brochure site (in some cases) or a single landing page, it will be overkill to use PayloadCMS. That would be true for every CMS, though.

CMSes do add a layer of complexity to any project, so if you’re looking to get started quickly or don’t need a full-featured solution, it’s best to just build the site without using a CMS.

The second reason you shouldn’t use PayloadCMS is if you don’t have time or ability to extend the functionality of the platform. While PayloadCMS does include some templates that allow you to build from, off-the-shelf platforms can be easier to get up and running right away.

PayloadCMS requires configuration that is best suited for developers to work through. If you or your team are strapped for developer resources, it could be better to pay for an off-the-shelf solution.

One other reason to avoid PayloadCMS is if you don’t want to use TypeScript. While you don’t need to use TypeScript on your frontend, PayloadCMS is built with TypeScript and works best when you consume the information with TypeScript. That said, if you’re learning or want to learn TypeScript, PayloadCMS is the perfect avenue for that.

Closing Thoughts

That’s it for when to use PayloadCMS. There aren’t many reasons to not use PayloadCMS, but it’s not right for everyone. Be sure you have the time, skill, and energy to learn how to use it. Once you learn it, it becomes very simple to use and almost infinitely extensible.