Headless CMS Explained: What It Is and When to Use It

Web design is a constant flowing river. To stay afloat, you navigate along, to stay one step ahead of your competitors. As modern technology continue to reshape the land, we can only adapt.

The introduction of headless CMS systems is one of the most recent innovations to change the digital environment. Let's explore the future of web development, where the splitting of backend and frontend led to more creative freedom and better cross-platform publication.

Understanding Headless CMS: Breaking Down the Basics

In order to understand the headless CMS system, it is also necessary to learn the traditional content management system model. In the past, a CMS was more of an integrated solution meant to link content creation and management with frontend presentation. This means that content and how it's displayed was in a tight coupling, like a tightly bundled package.

This method was very efficient. However, with new devices stacking on top of each other and new platforms emerging, it's causing limited flexibility to content teams.

What is a Headless Content Management System?

Headless CMS or Headless Content Management System is a component of digital experience platforms. It refers to a CPMS (content platform management system) whereby the backend or "the body" (the content repository and management interface) is detached form frontend or "the head" (the presentation layer).

This decoupling creates the opportunity to follow distinct paths in which content creators, content editors and/or developers can concentrate on their strong side. Ultimately, you get the flexibility to use the same content across multiple devices, like a computer, a phone, or tablet, without being tied to a specific way of showing it.

The Concept

Imagine your website like building blocks. In a traditional set-up, it's like buying a pre-designed set with the blocks stuck together. This represents both the content (text, media) and how it's displayed (the design). Now, the concept of a headless CMS is as if you could separate those blocks.

With a headless approach, the backend that has the function of content creation and management is separated from the front-end presentation. This separation of between layers and layers of circle frees up the development teams, allowing them to pick any technology stack for each layer individually. It forms a paradigm of possibilities the likes where never imagined before.

CMS with a headless approach comes as a breath of fresh air in the software field, as it radically breaks away from the established walls. It opens new doors for innovation.

How Headless CMS Works

Application Programming Interface

The API-oriented structure is the essence of a headless CMS. Unlike standard CMS, which is based on templates and themes, headless CMS exposes the content through APIs (Application Programming Interfaces). This allows developers to get content and integrate it on the different frontend platforms that include websites, mobile apps, smartwatches, and so forth. Essentially, API acts as a bridge for communication between software applications.