Compare software

Payload vs d9: catalog facts
Payload	d9
Free Free and open source under the MIT license; enterprise features are sold separately.	Free Free and open source under the GPL-3.0 licence.
Self-hosted	Web, Self-hosted
Installs inside an existing Next.js app folder Full TypeScript backend with an extensible admin panel	Drop-in replacement for Directus 9 with the same schema Supports PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQLite, Oracle, CockroachDB, MariaDB and MS-SQL
Configured in code, so it needs a developer Tied to the Next.js and React ecosystem	Based on the older Directus 9 codebase rather than current Directus Smaller maintainer team than the original project
Self-hosted	Self-hosted
Open source	Open source
License: MIT	License: GPL-3.0
No account needed	Not stated if an account is needed
Not stated if it works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 2, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked October 2, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.