Most of the content management systems can handle both – the front end and interface of the website. For instance, it can handle the website pages, backend, and files that are stored on servers including the content database and scripts. 

![headless-cms-over-wordpress.png](https://blog.radicalloop.com/uploads/headless_cms_over_wordpress_f5782b04cf.png)

### **What is Headless CMS?**

However, **[headless CMS](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Headless_content_management_system)** is not a brand-new concept. It is a system like [Strapi](https://strapi.io), which exists primarily for containment, content input, editing, and sorting on the back end of the website. Strapi, as a headless CMS, is highly accessible and simultaneously it focuses on front-end visual impact too.

[Strapi](https://strapi.io), an instance of headless CMS, is a backend-only content management platform that acts like a content repository. It removes the front-end tools and leaves the backend content management tools. Through Strapi, you can upload, edit, and organize the content as per your requirement and trends.

Moreover, instead of posting directly to the front end, Headless CMS such as Strapi lets you leverage the front-end solution through REST API. This means that you can view it efficiently wherever it is called to, without using any plugins or templates. You can use Strapi for developing traditional browser-based websites or applications or anything supported with the Internet of Things.

## **Why you should choose Headless Application over traditional tightly coupled architecture?**

**1. Free flow Front-end**

For front-end development, some of the popularly used technologies like React JS, Vue JS, and Angular JS are gaining popularity at breakneck.

- Through headless CMS, you can significantly implement the latest front-end technologies ensuring usage of the latest and rich Graphical User Interfaces. These rich UI elements are easy to interact with and give you unparalleled performance.
- Our professional front-end developers have full freedom to leverage these technologies and implement the tools as per their own expertise and experience.
- Importantly, you don’t have to follow the [application](https://www.radicalloop.com/mobile-development) frameworks or any pre-defined standards and guidelines.

**2. Optimized site loading time**

Owing to the bifurcation of the presentation layers, and the logic of displaying data being shifted to the client side, the speed of data transmission optimizes significantly. Moreover, WordPress websites that are powered by frontends like Gatsby are incredibly smooth and responsive, with millisecond load times and prefetched delivery on the edge.

![](https://radicalloop.com/storage/blogs/3cb0cc70-8db1-4486-8e57-8e9286e6702f-Untitled-(14).png)

**3. Easy maintenance**

This approach is quite effective and beneficial enough to upscale and maintain the applications in a very well-organized and resourceful manner. Moreover, in Headless CMS, the API-delivered content is quite convenient to use -  edit, and disseminate and you can cut down on time for creating content-driven experiences like websites and mobile apps.

 **4. Easy** **Integration of Headless WordPress Data into Other Apps**

If you have a static website but are looking for a dynamic section of your website like – an online store, blog section, or testimonials. In that case, Headless WordPress can easily help you integrate all your WP data into other apps by leveraging various technologies to deliver a unique and seamless user experience.

**5. Improved Performance**

Traditional WordPress can render website pages dynamically. So, if you use Headless CMS, you don’t need to store static HTML pages for sending to users whenever requested because the hosting server creates an HTML page every time when a request comes in. 

This will happen for every website visitor that makes a request; affecting the performance of your website. Therefore when you leave the frontend delivery to a separate app like next.js, you can improve the performance of your website.

![](https://radicalloop.com/storage/blogs/c8d8b5be-e868-411c-80df-1b9460230159-Untitled-(15).png)

**6. Improved Security**

Headless Website is a server-side generated website which means that there’s no relationship between the website visitor with the database. Therefore, it works best for enhancing the security of your website because a hacker needs something to hack, and with headless, they’ll have nothing to phish for. However, it’s possible to locate and access your database. Now, since your frontend is separated from the backend it will become much more difficult.

## Benefits of Strapi

1. **Open Source**: Strapi is an open-source CMS, which means it's free to use and has a community of developers constantly working on improving its features and fixing issues.
2. **Self-Hosted**: Strapi allows for self-hosting, giving you full control over the data and privacy. It also helps to prevent potential issues with data compliance, such as GDPR.
3. **Customizable**: Strapi is highly customizable, enabling you to modify its features according to your requirements. This includes custom fields, authentication, and permissions.
4. **Headless CMS**: With Strapi, you can manage your content and distribute it anywhere with ease. Thanks to its headless nature, Strapi can deliver content effectively via RESTful or GraphQL APIs, optimizing it for use with any platform or device.
5. **Supports Multiple Databases**: Strapi supports SQLite, MongoDB, MySQL, and PostgreSQL, offering flexibility in database choices according to your project needs.
6. **Plugins and Extensions**: Strapi supports a wide range of plugins and extensions for custom functionality. You can add functionality such as email, upload, permissions, and more without any coding skills needed.
7. **Developer-Friendly**: Due to its RESTful or GraphQL APIs, Strapi is incredibly developer-friendly, and allows developers to use the tools they're comfortable with and easily integrate with existing infrastructure.
8. **Effective Content Management**: Strapi makes it easy to create, update, and manage content with its intuitive content management system. You’ll find features like Rich Text Editor, media library, roles & permissions, and more, simplifying the process of managing content.
9. **Scalability**: With Strapi, you can start small and scale up as needed. It fits well with microservices, allowing for easy scaling up or down without having to modify your entire architecture.

## **How Headless WordPress Works?**

Headless WordPress comes with an easy-to-use admin area that lets you create content and manage your website and [application](https://www.radicalloop.com/desktop-development) without any hassle. You can leverage a template engine for displaying the front end of your website by using popular themes.

WordPress also ships with an API called WordPress REST API. This API offers a programming interface for developers to access WordPress website data in JSON format. 

Developers can also use REST API for fetching data from WordPress. Further, you can use this data or frontend technologies like Faust.js, React.js, and Angular.js for developing custom-based websites.

## **When to use headless WordPress (or not)**

Headless WordPress is not for everyone. However, its performance and unmatched scalability make it a good choice for developers. Some of the cases where Headless WordPress can get your work done excellently -:

### **Use headless WordPress when:**

- **You anticipate publishing content on multiple platforms**

In Standard WordPress, both the backend and front ends are coupled. They coordinate, read and write calls for presenting your website or applications to the end user. 

With Decoupling, you can make personalized, omnichannel customer journeys by using APIs for publishing content on unique platforms with the objective to maximize reach and traffic.

- **Do you want to build a custom product**?

If you want to customize your website significantly, then go for Headless CMS.

The Headless Architecture gives you more options for various processes and workflow that vanilla WordPress doesn’t. It keeps everything in control in your hands so you can creatively prepare your website.

## **Don’t use headless WordPress if:**

- **You require a flexible backend**

Headless WordPress is quite flexible compared to its traditional version. However, if you are well versed with Headless platforms, you can choose this as it has content-as-a-service capabilities out-of-the-box.

- **You can’t configure it**

You can use Headless CMS with no prior knowledge. You won’t be able to improve the performance and strength security of your website. Also, it you fail in configuring and optimizing APIs, your website may become weak and unsafe.

## **Conclusion**

In a nutshell, a Headless CMS is the best way for decoupling the traditional frontend and backend interfaces to deliver content on multiple platforms. Headless CMS comes with a flexible stack integration for publishing content on different channels and significantly optimizes the loading time of your [website](https://www.radicalloop.com/web-development).

Headless content management offers several opportunities and options for developers and WordPress users who prioritize designing, and content delivery to mark upon the ‘next big thing’.

Hire [RadicalLoop](https://www.radicalloop.com/) now for integrating a headless WordPress system with WP Engine’s reliable and flexible WordPress hosting options! [Call us now](https://www.radicalloop.com/contact) to talk to our experts.

## **Frequently asked questions**

**Q: What is the difference between Headless CMS and WordPress?**

Both WordPress and Headless CMS are content management systems. However, they vary in terms of content delivery. To explain, WordPress is a traditional CMS that significantly focuses on content management and delivery. While Headless CMS is more than just content management and delivery and lets you design and develop a custom-based website and application with the utmost flexibility.

**Q: Which platform is better - Headless CMS, or WordPress?**

Headless CMS  is ideal for corporates that require a flexible solution and customization. WordPress is an ideal platform for businesses that requires a powerful content management and delivery system. Both, Headless CMS and WordPress are unique in their ways. It all depends upon on your business requirement.

**Q: Can I use WordPress and Headless CMS together?**

yes, you can use Headless CRM and WordPress together in a hybrid manner where the former will help you with content delivery and later with the content management system.

**Do you need help deciding whether headless WordPress is right for you? Let us know in the comments section below!**

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Explore the benefits of using a headless CMS over WordPress. Learn about the advantages of decoupled architecture, improved performance, easy maintenance, integration possibilities, and enhanced security. Discover the features and benefits of Strapi as a headless CMS. Understand when to choose headless WordPress and when it may not be the right fit. Read this informative blog to make an informed decision for your website development.

Why Should You Consider Headless CMS Over WordPress?

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