A CMS for editors and developers

Every ask, newest first

Each line is an AI paraphrase of what the writer wanted. The link goes to their own words on Hacker News.

Reader’s note. Many are recommendation requests; static output is a recurring wish.

1. Apr 2026Sees an opening for a static site generator plus CMS a marketing department can use instead of WordPress. Read it: a comment in “The End of Eleventy”
2. Oct 2024Wants an open source CMS for non-technical users, with custom fields and page building like WordPress. Read it: a comment in “Why World War WordPress Will End with a Zombie Fork”
3. Oct 2024Wants a static site generator workflow that non-programmers can use for collaboration, with shortcodes for common page layouts. Read it: a comment in “The Static Site Paradox”
4. Jul 2023Wants a visual CMS like Primo for serial dynamic content such as blog posts and reviews, beyond WordPress. Read it: a comment in “Show HN: Primo – a visual CMS with Svelte blocks, a code editor, and SSG”
5. Jul 2023Wants a developer-friendly CMS that edits JSON files visually, for clients needing changes to large landing pages. Read it: a comment in “Is there any visual editor to edit i18 jsons visually?”
6. Jun 2023Wants a headless CMS with an API, easy for a non-technical person, for a React single-page site. Read it: a post: “Ask HN: Headless CMS Recommendation?”
7. Nov 2021Wants a client-friendly, stable static site management tool for low-budget customers. Read it: a post: “Ask HN: What are you using for static site management these days?”
8. Jan 2021Wants a tool letting non-technical users edit text on static HTML pages and send edits to a backend. Read it: a post: “Ask HN: Tools that enable non-technical users to edit simple static HTML pages?”
9. Nov 2020Wants a CMS as pleasant to write in as WordPress but built to output static files. Read it: a comment in “I Built My Own Shitty Static Site Generator”
10. Oct 2020Wants a Webflow-like builder with drag-and-drop CMS for non-technical users and clean static HTML export. Read it: a comment in “Why build another website builder?”
11. Sep 2020Wants an open source CMS that pairs with static site generators for large sites, versioned in Git. Read it: a comment in “On not choosing WordPress for the W3C redesign project”
12. Jan 2020Wants a SaaS where marketers build content and custom UI together, embedded in their own site, without developers. Read it: a comment in “Ask HN: CMS for static pages on a React website?”
13. Jan 2020Seeks a Webflow-style tool letting non-technical staff add lead-gen and SEO pages to an existing React site. Read it: a post: “Ask HN: CMS for static pages on a React website?”
14. Oct 2019Wants a WordPress-like CMS that auto-publishes content as static pages without running a build per post. Read it: a comment in “Tina is not a CMS”
15. Dec 2018Wants an open source backend as easy as WordPress without PHP front ends; hosted alternatives cost too much. Read it: a comment in “WordPress 5.0: A Gutenberg FAQ”
16. Mar 2018Needs a very simple CMS a retired parent can use on cheap hosting, quick to install and theme. Read it: a post: “Ask HN: What's the best cms for a grandma?”
17. Sep 2016Wants a CMS for landing pages so sales can edit copy and split test without CI. Read it: a post: “Ask HN: How do you manage your landing page?”
18. Aug 2016Wants a free self-hosted CMS lighter than WordPress, with basic templates and a gallery page linking to items. Read it: a post: “Recommendations for a CMS for self-hosted portfolio site?”
19. Sep 2014Wishes for WordPress-style admin and plugin ecosystem built on Laravel, using it for the editing interface only. Read it: a comment in “Wordpress 4.0”
20. May 2014Wants hosted web editing for non-developers that previews the content inside their own site styling, not plain Markdown. Read it: a comment in “Prose, a content editor for GitHub”
21. Apr 2014Wants a ready-made admin interface so site users can write posts for a news section. Read it: a post: “Ask HN: GUI for users to modify webpage?”
22. Jul 2010Wants a WordPress-grade CMS built with Python and SQLite, matching its polish, features and ease. Read it: a comment in “Wordpress 3.2 drops support for PHP 4 and MySQL 4”
23. Apr 2010Wants a simple PHP and SQLite CMS for non-technical users: posts, pages, media, contact form, easy templates. Read it: a post: “Ask HN: A simple CMS for non-tech users?”
24. Oct 2009Wants a CMS as flexible as Drupal but less ugly and hostile; current choices are rigid or unpleasant. Read it: a comment in “Drupal Sucks”