TessTess vs WordPress
Traditional CMS (PHP), usable headless
The world's most used CMS, a PHP application with themes, plugins and a REST API, often used headless through WPGraphQL.
Side by side
| Criterion | Tess | WordPress |
|---|---|---|
| Architecture | Headless: content only, any front end | Monolithic site builder with themes; headless through its APIs |
| Content models | Typed models with validation, defined in the admin or API | Posts and pages; custom post types and fields through code or plugins such as ACF |
| API | GraphQL generated from the models | REST API built in; GraphQL through the WPGraphQL plugin |
| Stack | Rust binary, six database backends | PHP with MySQL or MariaDB |
| Editorial workflow | Draft, review, publish per content type | Draft, pending review and publish; more through plugins |
| Extensibility | Sandboxed WebAssembly plugins | Tens of thousands of PHP plugins and themes |
| License | Community (personal use) / Enterprise (commercial use) | GPLv2 or later |
Choose WordPress if…
- You want a website with themes, built by non-developers.
- You rely on a specific WordPress plugin or the huge ecosystem.
Choose Tess if…
- Your content feeds several front ends (sites, mobile apps, kiosks).
- You want structured, validated content and a typed API instead of posts and meta fields.
Moving from WordPress to Tess
Model your post types and custom fields as Tess content types (ACF field groups map well to components), import them with tess-transfer, then move the posts from the WordPress REST API to the Tess GraphQL API with a short script.
Facts checked on October 20, 2026 from WordPress's public documentation (wordpress.org). Products change quickly: check the vendor's site for the latest features and pricing.