CMS Comparison
Sitepins vs TinaCMS
Compare Sitepins and TinaCMS side-by-side. Explore setup, editing experience, non-technical usability, collaboration, Git workflow, and pricing.
Sitepins
Git-Based CMSSitepins is a Git-based headless CMS built for teams who want full content control without the technical overhead. It connects directly to your repository and lets anyone—whether they're a developer or not—manage content, collaborate in real time and deploy without touching code. Sitepins is designed for simplicity, speed, and non-technical accessibility.
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TinaCMS
Git-Based CMSTinaCMS is an open-source, Git-backed headless CMS originally developed by Forestry.io and acquired by SSW (Superior Software for Windows). It provides a visual editing interface on top of Markdown, MDX, and JSON files stored in Git, giving developers full control over the content model while abstracting Git complexity for content editors.
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| Feature | Sitepins | TinaCMS |
|---|---|---|
| CMS type | Git-Based | Git-Based (open-source) |
| SSG support | Astro, Next.js, Hugo, 11ty, Jekyll, SvelteKit, Nuxt + more | Astro, Next.js, Hugo, Jekyll, Gatsby, Remix, 11ty, SvelteKit + other frameworks |
| Pricing entry point | $12/mo (monthly) or $10/mo (annual); $199 one-time lifetime | $24/mo (monthly) or $290/yr (annual) — Team plan. No lifetime option. |
| Free plan | ✅ Yes — Free forever, with limitations (Hobby plan) | ✅ Yes — Free forever, limited to 2 users and 1 project (Free plan) |
| Free trial (without credit card) | ✅ Yes — 15 days (no card required) | ❌ No — No time-limited trial. The permanent free plan serves this role. |
| Content security | ✅ Yes — Highly secured. No database to hack; files are static and stored in Git | ✅ Yes — Highly secured. No database to hack; files are stored in your Git repo. SOC 2 framework alignment, AWS-hosted infrastructure, encryption at rest and in transit. |
| Native language support | ✅ Yes — 12 languages natively (en, zh, ja, de, fr, es, pt, ru, ko, id, vi, bn) for a consistent and localized experience | ❌ No — English only for the CMS interface. |
| Mobile friendly | ✅ Yes — Fully mobile and tablet optimized | ✅ Yes — Mobile and tablet optimized as of TinaCMS v2.0 (iOS and Android supported) |
Setup & Configuration
| Feature | Sitepins | TinaCMS |
|---|---|---|
| Non-technical setup | ✅ Yes — Zero configuration. Register, connect your repo and get started without any code or config. | ❌ No — Developer-led setup required. A developer must install and configure the /tina folder and schema before editors can use the CMS. |
| Starter templates | ✅ Yes — 100+ Astro, Hugo, and Next.js ready-made project templates to launch faster | ⚠️ Yes but — A small set of official CLI starters (Next.js, Astro). Additional community starters exist but no large curated template library. |
| Edit schema modifier | ✅ Yes — Visual schema editor within the CMS. Adjust content field types and settings directly inside the CMS. | ❌ No — Schema is defined in code via TypeScript/JavaScript config files. No visual in-app schema editor. |
Editing Experience
| Feature | Sitepins | TinaCMS |
|---|---|---|
| Editor | Visual editor + Markdown + Code | Visual (contextual/inline) editor + Rich Text (Plate-based) + Markdown + Code |
| Live preview system | ✅ Yes — Sandbox live preview. See how your content looks on the site before publishing. | ⚠️ Yes but — Contextual visual editing with real-time inline preview. Requires developer setup to wire the preview to the frontend. |
| AI assistant integration | ✅ Yes — Bring Your Own Key (BYOK) supporting OpenAI, Gemini, Claude, and Grok to generate or rewrite content inside the editor. | ❌ No — AI features listed as “Coming Soon” on paid plans. TinaGPT is a support chatbot only, not an in-editor content generation tool. |
| Collaborative editing | ✅ Yes — Allows multiple users to edit content simultaneously. | ❌ No — TinaCMS is single-user per document. Simultaneous multi-user editing is not supported. |
| iFrame embed preview | ✅ Yes — Render embedded content like videos or charts live inside the editor. | ⚠️ Yes but — Not a native out-of-the-box feature. iFrame/embed support depends on custom MDX component configuration by a developer. |
| Shortcode support | ✅ Yes — Manage shortcodes and custom content blocks for powerful content structuring. | ✅ Yes — Supports custom Markdown shortcodes via the rich-text field’s custom MDX syntax configuration. |
| SEO tools | ✅ Yes — Built-in tools to optimize and preview content for search engines, content analysis, slug editing, and SERP preview. | ⚠️ Yes but — SEO fields are configurable by developers. No built-in SEO analysis, SERP preview, or content scoring tool out of the box. |
| Dark mode | ✅ Yes — Supports full platform dark mode, switchable between Dark and Light. | ❌ No — Not confirmed as a switchable CMS interface setting. Dark mode is available in TinaDocs (the docs template product) but not documented as a platform-level toggle for the CMS admin. |
Non-Technical User Experience
| Feature | Sitepins | TinaCMS |
|---|---|---|
| Designed for non-technicals | ✅ Yes — Core product mission. | ⚠️ Yes but — Non-technical editors can use the CMS after developer setup, but initial configuration and schema changes require developer involvement. |
| Version rollback | ✅ Yes — Undo changes and restore a previous version without touching Git, directly within the CMS. | ⚠️ Yes but — Content is Git-backed so rollback is possible through Git. No dedicated non-technical rollback UI within the CMS dashboard. |
| Initial setup by non-dev | ✅ Yes — Zero configuration. Can be set up easily without developer involvement. | ❌ No — Requires a developer to install the package, configure the schema, and deploy the admin route before the CMS is usable. |
Media Management
| Feature | Sitepins | TinaCMS |
|---|---|---|
| Media management | ✅ Yes — Upload, organize, drag and drop, rename files and folders, replace images and delete directly from the CMS. | ⚠️ Yes but — Upload, view, and delete media via the Media Manager. External providers (Cloudinary, S3, Digital Ocean Spaces) available. Note: files cannot be renamed through the Media Manager. |
| External image URL support | ✅ Yes — Use images hosted on external CDNs or third-party services directly in the editor. | ⚠️ Yes but — Handled via external media provider plugins (Cloudinary, AWS S3, Digital Ocean Spaces). No direct inline external URL support. |
Collaboration & Teams
| Feature | Sitepins | TinaCMS |
|---|---|---|
| User access | ✅ Yes — Invite editors by email. Possible without requiring a Git account. | ✅ Yes — Invite collaborators via TinaCloud. Users do not need a GitHub account to edit content, only a TinaCloud account. |
| Custom roles | ✅ Yes — Define specific permission levels for different types of users. E.g. Owner, Admin, Editor. | ⚠️ Yes but — Two roles (Admin and Editor) on Free, Team, and Team Plus plans. Three roles available on Business plan (in beta). Custom roles on Enterprise only. |
| Organization management | ✅ Yes — Manage multiple teams and projects under one account. | ✅ Yes — Organizations are supported in TinaCloud to manage multiple projects. |
| Branch workflows | ✅ Yes — Manage branches, create PRs, and merge directly from Sitepins. | ⚠️ Yes but — Editorial Workflow supports branch creation, protected branches, PR-based review, and preview links. Available on Team Plus plan and above only. |
Git & Deployment
| Feature | Sitepins | TinaCMS |
|---|---|---|
| Git providers | GitHub (all plans), GitLab (Team plan) | GitHub only via TinaCloud (including GitHub Enterprise on Enterprise plan). GitLab not supported natively; possible via self-hosting with a custom Git provider. |
| Vendor lock-in | ✅ No — No vendor lock-in. Content is stored in your own repo. | ✅ No — No vendor lock-in. Content stored as Markdown/MDX/JSON in your own GitHub repository. TinaCloud is optional; self-hosting is available. |
| Deployment | ✅ Yes — One-click Vercel deployment built-in. | Pushes content changes to your Git repo, triggering builds on external hosts. Supports Vercel, Netlify, GitHub Pages, Cloudflare Pages, Cloudflare Workers, and Alibaba Cloud. |
Accessibilities
| Feature | Sitepins | TinaCMS |
|---|---|---|
| Global search | ✅ Yes — Cmd/Ctrl+K to search for files stored anywhere in the CMS. | ⚠️ Yes but — Built-in content search available via TinaCloud with indexer token configuration. Not available in self-hosted mode. |
| Edit configs as code | ✅ Yes — Direct access to configuration files. | ✅ Yes — All configuration is done in code via the /tina/config.ts file. Direct editing of config files is the primary method. |
| Mermaid diagram preview | ✅ Yes — Render Mermaid diagrams live while writing without leaving the CMS. | ✅ Yes — Mermaid diagram rendering is supported in the rich-text editor using the Mermaid npm package. |
Note: If you found any wrong information here, please contact us and we will fix it.
Which one is right for you?
A quick summary to help you choose the right Git-based CMS.
Choose Sitepins if:
- You want to get started without writing a single line of config
- Your team includes non-technical editors or clients who need to manage content independently
- You want built-in AI assistance, collaborative editing, and live previews out of the box
- You need a free plan or a one-time lifetime deal with no recurring costs
- You want your CMS interface in your team's native language
Choose TinaCMS if:
- Your team has a developer who can handle setup and schema configuration
- You are building a Next.js or Astro project and want deep contextual visual editing
- You need a fully open-source CMS with a self-hosting option for maximum control
- You require GitHub Enterprise support for enterprise environments
- You prefer a code-first content model with full TypeScript support
Migration Support
Already using another CMS?
Whether you are coming from WordPress, Contentful, Sanity, or any other platform, our team is ready to help you migrate your content, structure, and workflows with zero downtime. Migration support is available for all users on the Team plan or the Lifetime deal. We handle the boring, tedious tasks so you can focus on launching as soon as possible.
Get Started with Sitepins
Get started for free today and discover easy, flexible, and full control over your content.