Quick answer
A headless CMS is a CMS with no built-in frontend. It exposes content via an API so any framework can consume it: Next.js, Astro, mobile apps, etc.
What it is
A headless CMS separates content from presentation completely. Editors use the CMS UI to write content; developers consume the content via a typed API from any frontend. Sanity, Payload, Strapi, Contentful and Storyblok are headless CMSs.
Why it matters
Headless CMSs let you pick the best frontend for each channel without being locked into the CMS's opinions. They also scale better across multi-brand, multi-locale and multi-channel programs.
How to use it
- Pick a headless CMS that fits your editorial team.
- Design content models that match how your team thinks.
- Wire the frontend with type-safe content fetching.
- Set up editorial previews so editors see the published result.
Examples
- A multi-brand site uses one Sanity workspace and several Next.js frontends.
- A publisher uses Contentful and ships the same content to web, mobile and AMP.