From Dato CMS to Agility CMS

We are the Dato CMS to Agility CMS migration experts

Challenges with Dato CMS

Key pain points

DatoCMS gives all the vibes of Prismic, but is somehow less flexible. It can feel like a glorified drag-and-drop schema builder. The moment you want to do anything mildly custom, the walls start closing in. And yes, the pricing stings. It scales fast, which is great for Dato, not so great for anyone trying to run a startup without selling a kidney.

The ecosystem is small, the extensions are thin, and deeper customisation often turns into “well, I guess we’re building that ourselves.” There’s no real visual editor, no guardrails for inactive billing, and once your project grows, you quickly realise drag-and-drop doesn’t magically give you validation or extensibility. If you need something genuinely custom or long-term scalable, there are better choices. Just contact us before you start one of the most expensive journeys.

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Limited customisation options

DatoCMS hits a ceiling fast if you need deeply custom logic. The drag-and-drop model is convenient, but it doesn’t give you the freedom a code-first setup would.

Pricing based on traffic

Costs scale with usage, which can get painful quickly for growing sites. Traffic spikes = surprise bills.

Steeper learning curve

While the UI is simple, the API-driven side demands more technical understanding. Non-developers may struggle once things get complex.

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Need for additional plugins

Out-of-the-box features only go so far. More advanced workflows often require plugins or custom development to bridge gaps.

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Limited feature set scalability

Great for small–mid projects, but larger, more demanding setups can outgrow what DatoCMS offers out of the box.

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Potential integration issues

Certain frameworks and tools need careful configuration, and edge cases appear more often than you’d expect in more mature CMS ecosystems.

Benefits of Agility CMS

Key advantages

Agility CMS is one of the few headless CMS platforms that genuinely tries to bridge the gap between developer freedom and editor autonomy. The standout feature is built-in page management, something most headless CMS tools completely ignore. Editors can create and manage pages, control the sitemap, handle SEO fields, and arrange modular components on pages without needing a developer to wire everything up. That alone saves us a ton of back-and-forth on client projects.

The Next.js integration is solid and well-maintained. The SDK handles page routing, preview mode, and image optimization out of the box, and getting a starter site running takes minutes rather than hours. The content modeling interface is intuitive enough that even non-technical clients can understand and extend models without hand-holding, which is rare in the headless space.

Support is genuinely excellent. The team is small enough that you get real humans who know the product inside out, not a ticket queue that disappears into the void. For agencies that need to move fast and hand projects off to client teams, that responsiveness matters. The API request limits are generous too, with high request allowances across all plans, so you're not constantly worrying about overage charges like you would with some competitors.

We also appreciate that Agility takes a pragmatic approach to headless. It doesn't try to be everything, but it does the core CMS job well and stays out of your way when you need to build custom functionality around it.

Page management interface in Agility CMS

Built-in page management

The only headless CMS with native page management. Editors can build and manage pages, control the sitemap, and arrange modular components without developer involvement.

Strong Next.js integration

First-class Next.js SDK with automatic preview mode, image optimization, and page routing. Getting a project scaffolded takes minutes, not hours.

Intuitive content modeling

Visual schema modeler that maps to JSON. Non-technical users can understand and extend content models without needing a developer to walk them through it.

Excellent support team

Small, responsive support team that actually knows the product. You get real answers quickly, not generic ticket responses that take days.

Generous API limits

Generous API request allowances across all plans. No surprise overage bills or throttling when traffic spikes, which removes a common headache with usage-based competitors.

Built-in SEO and redirect management

SEO fields, sitemap editing, and URL redirect management are native to the CMS. Editors can handle these without a separate tool or developer intervention.