A Sveltia CMS alternative for Astro sites

Markstage vs Sveltia CMS: both keep content in git. Markstage edits on your Astro site's real design and adds staging and roles. Checked 3 Nov 2026.

Facts about Sveltia CMS checked on 2026-11-03, from its own website. Markstage is not affiliated with it.

Markstage
Visual editor

A visual editor for Astro: writers edit on the site’s real design; content stays Markdown and JSON in git.

Edits on the real page
Yes The site's own components and CSS; text and rich text typed on the page, other fields in a side panel. Components mark their fields with a helper ⁴

Content in git
Yes ³

Self-host
Yes One docker run with the server image, Docker Compose, or systemd and nginx ⁹ ⁸

Price to start
Free to self-host ³

Licence
Elastic License 2.0 Source-available, free to self-host ²⁰
Sveltia CMS
Git-based editor

A single-page admin over your git host, with a live preview beside the form.

Edits on the real page
Partly Two-pane editor with live preview, scroll sync and click-to-highlight ³⁸

Content in git
Yes ³⁷

Self-host
Yes A single-page app; no server ³⁸

Price to start
Free ³⁷

Licence
MIT ³⁷

From the full comparison; each number links to its source.

Sveltia CMS is a modern rewrite of Netlify/Decap CMS: a fast single-page app with no server and no database, strong translation support and a two-pane editor with live preview. Markstage takes a different path: writers edit on the page, and a server adds staging, roles and a forms inbox.

Who each one is for

Sveltia CMS suits sites that want a free, light editor with nothing to host, first-class multilingual content, and a smooth move from Decap CMS.

Markstage suits teams whose writers should work on the real design, and who need sign-in without a git account, roles, staging and single sign-on. It needs a server. Markstage is pre-release.

Side by side

	Markstage	Sveltia CMS
Editing	On the real page	Two panes: form and live preview, with scroll sync and click-to-highlight
What you run	A Node server next to your static site	Nothing: a single-page app served from a CDN
Sign-in	Email and password, two-step, single sign-on	OAuth with your git host
Review before going live	Staging and production with rules	Editorial workflow (GitHub, GitLab, Gitea/Forgejo)
Translations	Per-language status: missing, outdated, done	First-class i18n, locales in one file, separate files or folders
Formats	Markdown and JSON	Markdown with front matter, YAML, JSON, TOML
Forms inbox, SEO checks	Yes	Not listed
Price	Free to self-host	Free
Licence	Elastic License 2.0 (source-available)	MIT

Where Sveltia CMS is stronger

Nothing to host. No server, no database, no upgrades to install.
Translations. Many ways to lay out locales, localized slugs, and per-locale required fields.
Mobile. Its docs list mobile support.
Formats. YAML and TOML as well as Markdown and JSON.

Moving from Sveltia CMS to Markstage

Sveltia reads Decap-style configuration, so your collections already name their folders. Add the same folders as collections in markstage.config.mjs and add the @markstage/astro integration. Markstage edits Markdown and JSON; keep TOML or YAML data files in Sveltia or convert them. Writers then sign in to Markstage with an email address instead of a git host account.

Frequently asked questions

Is Sveltia CMS free?

Yes. Its site says it is free, with no server and no database.

Does Sveltia CMS work with Astro?

Its README says it works well with Astro and has a showcase of Astro sites. It is not in Astro's own list of CMS guides.

Does Sveltia CMS have visual editing?

It has a live preview beside the form, with click-to-highlight. Editing happens in the form. Markstage edits on the page itself.

Can my writers use Markstage without a GitHub account?

Yes. People sign in to Markstage with an email and password (and two-step sign-in), or through your single sign-on provider. Each save is still a git commit in their name.

Sources

Checked on 2026-11-03: Sveltia CMS on GitHub · Sveltia features · Sveltia editorial workflow · Sveltia entry collections · Sveltia getting started. Markstage facts: the full comparison.

Get Markstage on GitHub All comparisons Read the docs