BenchRank
#22 in CMS & PublishingUpdated 2026-08

ProcessWire

by ProcessWire · Open source PHP CMS with custom fields and an API-driven template layer

43.7 — BenchRank score out of 100

Screenshots of ProcessWire

  • Homepage

Homepage · ProcessWire

Homepage of ProcessWire

Overview

ProcessWire is a free, open source PHP content management system and framework. Content is stored as pages in a hierarchical tree, and all fields are custom fields you define in the admin, including repeatable groups. Templates are plain PHP that fetch and output content through its API, so you control the markup rather than ProcessWire.

Best for
PHP developers building content sites who want custom fields and full control of the markup
Pricing
The core CMS is stated to be free and open source; no figures are shown for the PRO or paid modules (Form Builder, ProCache, PAGEGRID) sold through the Pro Shop.

Strengths and trade-offs

Strengths

  • Every field is a custom field, defined and edited in the admin
  • Multi-language fields, URLs and translation tools in the core
  • Role-based access control plus a hooks system throughout
  • Hierarchical page tree with no depth limit imposed

Trade-offs

  • You write all front-end markup yourself; no themes are supplied
  • Page builder, form builder and caching ship as paid PRO modules
  • Self-hosted PHP and MySQL, so you provide and run the server
  • No prices published on the captured page for the PRO modules

How this score is made up

Each dimension is scored out of 100 and combined into the headline score using fixed weights.

MCP support
80 out of 100
API quality
0 out of 100
Documentation
65 out of 100
Agent friendliness
59 out of 100
Changelog
0 out of 100
Marketing site structure
75 out of 100
Operational trust
0 out of 100

Measured, but not part of the score

Useful to know, but not a mark for or against the product — so these do not affect the ranking.

Openness
30 out of 100
Maintenance
100 out of 100

This doesn’t look right — report a problem with ProcessWire’s score

Alternatives in CMS & Publishing

  • Ranked 1

    84.3 — BenchRank score out of 100

    Marble

    Marble CMS · Headless CMS for blog content and media files

    Best for: Developers who want a low-cost headless CMS for a blog and its media, not a full content platform.

  • Ranked 2

    78.9 — BenchRank score out of 100

    Builder.io

    Builder · Collaborative platform for building software with AI agents

    Best for: Product teams wanting designers, PMs and marketers to edit the real codebase alongside engineers

  • Ranked 3

    76.7 — BenchRank score out of 100

    Webflow

    Webflow · Visual website builder with hosting, CMS and paid optimisation add-ons

    Best for: Marketing and design teams building and hosting company websites without filing dev tickets.

See all 46 alternatives to ProcessWire

Report a problem with this page

Report an issue with ProcessWire