What AI assistants actually recommend when buyers ask about open-source content management systems — measured weekly across 3 engines, published as open data.
Updated 2026-08-01 · 49 sampled answers · rolling 4-week window · methodology
Rankings are measured from sampled AI answers — never editorial, never paid. Orbator builds AI-visibility tooling; when Orbator itself appears in any category, it is measured by the same rules as everyone else.
Sample: 49 AI answers · Window: Jul 4, 2026 – Aug 1, 2026 (4-week rolling) · trend vs prior 4 weeks (44 answers)
Across 49 sampled AI answers from 3 engines, Drupal is recommended most often — appearing in 81.6% of recommendations, followed by WordPress (69.4%) and Strapi (69.4%).
This is a measurement of share of voice across 3 AI engines — not an editorial pick. See the full ranking below.
| # | Product | Share | Trend | Engines | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Drupal drupal.org Best for: AI recommends Drupal most when buyers ask “open-source CMS alternatives to expensive hosted content platforms with vendor lock-in” (100% of those answers) | 81.6% 95% CI 68.6–90% 40 mentions · avg pos 4.5 first pick 22.5% | — | GEMINI 81%CLAUDE 71.4%PERPLEXITY 85.7% | Claim |
| 2 | WordPress wordpress.com Best for: AI recommends WordPress most when buyers ask “open-source CMS for a nonprofit vs a media company — which platforms fit each use case” (100% of those answers) | 69.4% 95% CI 55.5–80.5% 34 mentions · avg pos 4.9 first pick 26.5% | — | GEMINI 81%CLAUDE 71.4%PERPLEXITY 57.1% | Claim |
| 3 | Strapi strapi.io Best for: AI recommends Strapi most when buyers ask “best self-hosted CMS for a developer building a headless site with a modern frontend” (100% of those answers) | 69.4% 95% CI 55.5–80.5% 34 mentions · avg pos 5.3 first pick 23.5% | — | GEMINI 76.2%CLAUDE 42.9%PERPLEXITY 71.4% | Claim |
| 4 | Payload payloadcms.com Best for: AI recommends Payload most when buyers ask “best self-hosted CMS for a developer building a headless site with a modern frontend” (88.9% of those answers) | 49% 95% CI 35.6–62.5% 24 mentions · avg pos 7.5 first pick 12.5% | — | GEMINI 52.4%CLAUDE 28.6%PERPLEXITY 52.4% | Claim |
| 5 | Directus directus.io Best for: AI recommends Directus most when buyers ask “best self-hosted CMS for a developer building a headless site with a modern frontend” (100% of those answers) | 46.9% 95% CI 33.7–60.6% 23 mentions · avg pos 7.1 first pick 4.3% | — | GEMINI 47.6%CLAUDE 42.9%PERPLEXITY 47.6% | Claim |
| 6 | Ghost ghost.org Best for: AI recommends Ghost most when buyers ask “open-source CMS alternatives to expensive hosted content platforms with vendor lock-in” (88.9% of those answers) | 46.9% 95% CI 33.7–60.6% 23 mentions · avg pos 7.3 first pick 8.7% | — | GEMINI 47.6%CLAUDE 28.6%PERPLEXITY 52.4% | Claim |
| 7 | Joomla joomla.org Best for: AI recommends Joomla most when buyers ask “open-source CMS alternatives to expensive hosted content platforms with vendor lock-in” (88.9% of those answers) | 42.9% 95% CI 30–56.7% 21 mentions · avg pos 6.8 first pick 14.3% | — | GEMINI 71.4%CLAUDE 28.6%PERPLEXITY 19% | Claim |
| 8 | Next.js nextjs.org Best for: AI recommends Next.js most when buyers ask “best self-hosted CMS for a developer building a headless site with a modern frontend” (88.9% of those answers) | 28.6% 95% CI 17.8–42.4% 14 mentions · avg pos 9.6 first pick 14.3% | — | GEMINI 19%CLAUDE 14.3%PERPLEXITY 42.9% | Claim |
| 9 | React react.dev Best for: AI recommends React most when buyers ask “best self-hosted CMS for a developer building a headless site with a modern frontend” (66.7% of those answers) | 26.5% 95% CI 16.2–40.3% 13 mentions · avg pos 12.8 first pick 15.4% | — | GEMINI 33.3%PERPLEXITY 28.6% | Claim |
| 10 | WooCommerce Best for: AI recommends WooCommerce most when buyers ask “which open-source CMS has the best plugin ecosystem for ecommerce and membership sites” (100% of those answers) | 14.3% 95% CI 7.1–26.7% 7 mentions · avg pos 1.2 first pick 57.1% | — | GEMINI 19%PERPLEXITY 14.3% | Claim |
| 11 | Wagtail wagtail.org | 12.2% 95% CI 5.7–24.2% 6 mentions · avg pos 5.5 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 19%PERPLEXITY 9.5% | Claim |
| 12 | TYPO3 Best for: AI recommends TYPO3 most when buyers ask “open-source CMS alternatives to expensive hosted content platforms with vendor lock-in” (55.6% of those answers) | 12.2% 95% CI 5.7–24.2% 6 mentions · avg pos 8.8 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 19%CLAUDE 28.6% | Claim |
| 13 | Webiny webiny.com Best for: AI recommends Webiny most when buyers ask “how do I choose between self-hosted open-source CMS options for a large content team” (33.3% of those answers) | 12.2% 95% CI 5.7–24.2% 6 mentions · avg pos 14 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 19%PERPLEXITY 9.5% | Claim |
| 14 | Decap CMS Best for: AI recommends Decap CMS most when buyers ask “open-source CMS alternatives to expensive hosted content platforms with vendor lock-in” (55.6% of those answers) | 12.2% 95% CI 5.7–24.2% 6 mentions · avg pos 14.2 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 23.8%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 15 | Storyblok storyblok.com Best for: AI recommends Storyblok most when buyers ask “best open-source CMS for a marketing team that wants full design flexibility” (33.3% of those answers) | 10.2% 95% CI 4.4–21.8% 5 mentions · avg pos 3.7 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8%PERPLEXITY 19% | Claim |
| 16 | WPML wpml.org Best for: AI recommends WPML most when buyers ask “what self-hosted CMS should I use for a multilingual news website” (66.7% of those answers) | 10.2% 95% CI 4.4–21.8% 5 mentions · avg pos 3.8 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 9.5%CLAUDE 14.3%PERPLEXITY 9.5% | Claim |
| 17 | WordPress.org wordpress.org Best for: AI recommends WordPress.org most when buyers ask “open-source CMS for a nonprofit vs a media company — which platforms fit each use case” (33.3% of those answers) | 10.2% 95% CI 4.4–21.8% 5 mentions · avg pos 3.8 first pick 20% | — | GEMINI 14.3%CLAUDE 14.3%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 18 | Hygraph hygraph.com Best for: AI recommends Hygraph most when buyers ask “what self-hosted CMS should I use for a multilingual news website” (55.6% of those answers) | 10.2% 95% CI 4.4–21.8% 5 mentions · avg pos 6 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8%PERPLEXITY 19% | Claim |
| 19 | Sanity sanity.io Best for: AI recommends Sanity most when buyers ask “best self-hosted CMS for a developer building a headless site with a modern frontend” (33.3% of those answers) | 10.2% 95% CI 4.4–21.8% 5 mentions · avg pos 12.3 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 14.3%PERPLEXITY 9.5% | Claim |
| 20 | MemberPress memberpress.com Best for: AI recommends MemberPress most when buyers ask “which open-source CMS has the best plugin ecosystem for ecommerce and membership sites” (66.7% of those answers) | 8.2% 95% CI 3.2–19.2% 4 mentions · avg pos 1 first pick 25% | — | GEMINI 14.3%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 21 | Drupal Commerce drupalcommerce.org Best for: AI recommends Drupal Commerce most when buyers ask “which open-source CMS has the best plugin ecosystem for ecommerce and membership sites” (77.8% of those answers) | 8.2% 95% CI 3.2–19.2% 4 mentions · avg pos 3.3 first pick 25% | — | GEMINI 9.5%CLAUDE 14.3%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 22 | Magento magento.com Best for: AI recommends Magento most when buyers ask “which open-source CMS has the best plugin ecosystem for ecommerce and membership sites” (66.7% of those answers) | 8.2% 95% CI 3.2–19.2% 4 mentions · avg pos 3.3 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8%PERPLEXITY 14.3% | Claim |
| 23 | Polylang polylang.pro Best for: AI recommends Polylang most when buyers ask “what self-hosted CMS should I use for a multilingual news website” (55.6% of those answers) | 8.2% 95% CI 3.2–19.2% 4 mentions · avg pos 3.8 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 9.5%CLAUDE 14.3%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 24 | CiviCRM civicrm.org Best for: AI recommends CiviCRM most when buyers ask “open-source CMS for a nonprofit vs a media company — which platforms fit each use case” (44.4% of those answers) | 8.2% 95% CI 3.2–19.2% 4 mentions · avg pos 4 first pick 25% | — | GEMINI 14.3%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 25 | KeystoneJS keystonejs.com | 8.2% 95% CI 3.2–19.2% 4 mentions · avg pos 6.7 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 14.3%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 26 | Netlify CMS netlifycms.org Best for: AI recommends Netlify CMS most when buyers ask “open-source CMS alternatives to expensive hosted content platforms with vendor lock-in” (33.3% of those answers) | 8.2% 95% CI 3.2–19.2% 4 mentions · avg pos 16.3 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 19% | Claim |
| 27 | dotCMS dotcms.com | 6.1% 95% CI 2.1–16.5% 3 mentions · avg pos 7.5 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 9.5%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 28 | Backdrop Best for: AI recommends Backdrop most when buyers ask “open-source CMS alternatives to expensive hosted content platforms with vendor lock-in” (33.3% of those answers) | 6.1% 95% CI 2.1–16.5% 3 mentions · avg pos 9.5 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8%PERPLEXITY 9.5% | Claim |
| 29 | F6S f6s.com Best for: AI recommends F6S most when buyers ask “how do I choose between self-hosted open-source CMS options for a large content team” (33.3% of those answers) | 6.1% 95% CI 2.1–16.5% 3 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 14.3% | Claim |
| 30 | Grav getgrav.org Best for: AI recommends Grav most when buyers ask “open-source CMS alternatives to expensive hosted content platforms with vendor lock-in” (44.4% of those answers) | 6.1% 95% CI 2.1–16.5% 3 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 14.3% | Claim |
| 31 | OpenCart opencart.com Best for: AI recommends OpenCart most when buyers ask “which open-source CMS has the best plugin ecosystem for ecommerce and membership sites” (33.3% of those answers) | 4.1% 95% CI 1.1–13.7% 2 mentions · avg pos 2.5 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 32 | GiveWP givewp.com | 4.1% 95% CI 1.1–13.7% 2 mentions · avg pos 3 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8%CLAUDE 14.3% | Claim |
| 33 | Restrict Content Pro Best for: AI recommends Restrict Content Pro most when buyers ask “which open-source CMS has the best plugin ecosystem for ecommerce and membership sites” (44.4% of those answers) | 4.1% 95% CI 1.1–13.7% 2 mentions · avg pos 3 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 9.5% | Claim |
| 34 | Craft CMS craftcms.com | 4.1% 95% CI 1.1–13.7% 2 mentions · avg pos 5 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 35 | Membership Pro Best for: AI recommends Membership Pro most when buyers ask “which open-source CMS has the best plugin ecosystem for ecommerce and membership sites” (33.3% of those answers) | 4.1% 95% CI 1.1–13.7% 2 mentions · avg pos 5.5 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 9.5% | Claim |
| 36 | Contentful contentful.com Best for: AI recommends Contentful most when buyers ask “best self-hosted CMS for a developer building a headless site with a modern frontend” (33.3% of those answers) | 4.1% 95% CI 1.1–13.7% 2 mentions · avg pos 6 first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 9.5% | Claim |
| 37 | Prismic prismic.io Best for: AI recommends Prismic most when buyers ask “best self-hosted CMS for a developer building a headless site with a modern frontend” (33.3% of those answers) | 4.1% 95% CI 1.1–13.7% 2 mentions · avg pos 6 first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 9.5% | Claim |
| 38 | ProcessWire | 4.1% 95% CI 1.1–13.7% 2 mentions · avg pos 8 first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 9.5% | Claim |
| 39 | Backdrop CMS backdropcms.org | 4.1% 95% CI 1.1–13.7% 2 mentions · avg pos 11 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 40 | Group | 4.1% 95% CI 1.1–13.7% 2 mentions · avg pos 11 first pick 50% | — | GEMINI 9.5% | Claim |
| 41 | MediaCMS mediacms.io Best for: AI recommends MediaCMS most when buyers ask “open-source CMS for a nonprofit vs a media company — which platforms fit each use case” (33.3% of those answers) | 4.1% 95% CI 1.1–13.7% 2 mentions · avg pos 31 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 9.5% | Claim |
| 42 | Astro astro.build Best for: AI recommends Astro most when buyers ask “best self-hosted CMS for a developer building a headless site with a modern frontend” (33.3% of those answers) | 4.1% 95% CI 1.1–13.7% 2 mentions first pick 0% | — | CLAUDE 14.3%PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 43 | Dev.to dev.to Best for: AI recommends Dev.to most when buyers ask “open-source CMS alternatives to expensive hosted content platforms with vendor lock-in” (33.3% of those answers) | 4.1% 95% CI 1.1–13.7% 2 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 9.5% | Claim |
| 44 | HikaShop hikashop.com | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 2 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8% | Claim |
| 45 | Newspack newspack.pub | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 2 first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 46 | VirtueMart virtuemart.net Best for: AI recommends VirtueMart most when buyers ask “which open-source CMS has the best plugin ecosystem for ecommerce and membership sites” (33.3% of those answers) | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 2 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8% | Claim |
| 47 | Charitable charitable.com | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 3 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8% | Claim |
| 48 | Superdesk superdesk.org | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 3 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8% | Claim |
| 49 | The Events Calendar theeventscalendar.com | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 3 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8% | Claim |
| 50 | MultilingualPress multilingualpress.org | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 4 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8% | Claim |
| 51 | Umbraco umbraco.com | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 4 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8% | Claim |
| 52 | HTMLy htmly.com | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 7 first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 53 | Quintype quintype.com | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 8 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8% | Claim |
| 54 | ElmapiCMS elmapicms.com Best for: AI recommends ElmapiCMS most when buyers ask “how do I choose between self-hosted open-source CMS options for a large content team” (33.3% of those answers) | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 15 first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 55 | Keystone | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 15 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8% | Claim |
| 56 | Open Source Matters opensourcematters.org | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions · avg pos 15 first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8% | Claim |
| 57 | ApostropheCMS apostrophecms.org | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 58 | BCMS thebcms.com | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 59 | Brightspot brightspot.com | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 60 | Designmodo designmodo.com Best for: AI recommends Designmodo most when buyers ask “open-source CMS alternatives to expensive hosted content platforms with vendor lock-in” (33.3% of those answers) | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 61 | Kontent.ai kontent.ai Best for: AI recommends Kontent.ai most when buyers ask “best open-source CMS for a marketing team that wants full design flexibility” (33.3% of those answers) | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 62 | Nuxt nuxt.com | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | CLAUDE 14.3% | Claim |
| 63 | Paid Memberships Pro paidmembershipspro.com Best for: AI recommends Paid Memberships Pro most when buyers ask “which open-source CMS has the best plugin ecosystem for ecommerce and membership sites” (44.4% of those answers) | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | GEMINI 4.8% | Claim |
| 64 | Plone plone.org | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 65 | RebelMouse rebelmouse.com Best for: AI recommends RebelMouse most when buyers ask “what self-hosted CMS should I use for a multilingual news website” (44.4% of those answers) | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 66 | Shopify shopify.com | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 67 | SvelteKit kit.svelte.dev | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | CLAUDE 14.3% | Claim |
| 68 | Weglot weglot.com Best for: AI recommends Weglot most when buyers ask “what self-hosted CMS should I use for a multilingual news website” (44.4% of those answers) | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
| 69 | iZooto izooto.com | 2% 95% CI 0.4–10.7% 1 mentions first pick 0% | — | PERPLEXITY 4.8% | Claim |
Reading the numbers: Share is a point estimate on 49 sampled answers, so each row also shows its 95% CI — the Wilson score interval around that share. When two products' intervals overlap, the gap between them isn't statistically meaningful at this sample size. First pick is the share of a product's recommending answers where it was named first, which separates “always mentioned” from “usually the top recommendation”. Full methodology.
Independence: Orbator customers are badged for disclosure. Customer status does not affect prompts, sampling, extraction, or ranking — see the methodology. Your product on this list? Claim it to see the prompts behind your rank and track it weekly.
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