Umbraco or Sanity

Which CMS is the right fit for your organisation?

A new digital platform needs a CMS that fits your content processes, technical environment and growth ambitions. Umbraco and Sanity are both strong options for modern websites and digital platforms, but they start from different principles.

Umbraco is an open-source CMS built on Microsoft .NET, with strong editorial usability, customisation options and technical control. Sanity is a headless content platform built around structured content, made available through APIs across multiple channels.

What is Umbraco?

Umbraco is a flexible CMS for websites, customer portals and digital platforms. It gives editorial teams a familiar content management environment, while giving developers plenty of room for custom development, integrations and technical control. Umbraco can be used in a traditional, hybrid or headless setup and fits well with Microsoft, .NET and Azure environments.

What is Sanity?

Sanity is a headless content platform for organisations that want to manage content separately from presentation. Content is stored in a structured way and used via APIs across websites, apps, campaigns and other digital channels.

Sanity is a good fit for composable architectures, modern front ends and organisations that want to reuse content across multiple touchpoints.

What is the difference between Umbraco and Sanity?

Umbraco starts from a complete CMS where website management, content structure and custom development come together. Sanity starts from content as structured data that can be used freely across different channels and front ends.

This makes Umbraco a logical choice for organisations looking for a manageable CMS for a website or platform with custom requirements. Sanity is a better fit when content forms a central layer within a headless or composable architecture.

The key differences between Umbraco and Sanity

Time-to-market and implementation

Umbraco is usually faster to implement when you need a powerful CMS with a clear editorial foundation. Many CMS features are available out of the box, so teams can get started quickly. Sanity requires more preparation around content modelling and front-end architecture, but gives you more freedom in how content is structured and reused.

Editorial and content management

Umbraco gives editorial teams a familiar CMS environment. Pages, templates, media and content structures can be managed clearly and efficiently. Sanity requires more upfront thinking, because content is modelled as separate, reusable components. This makes it strong for multiple channels, brands, countries or use cases.

Flexibility and architecture

Umbraco can be used in a traditional, hybrid or headless setup. This makes it suitable for organisations that want to combine editorial usability with technical control. Sanity is headless and composable by design. It fits well with organisations that work with modern frameworks and separate front ends.

Integrations and custom development

Umbraco fits well with Microsoft and .NET environments and offers plenty of room for custom development and integrations with CRM, ERP, PIM and marketing tools. Sanity is strongly API-driven and works well in environments where content needs to connect with multiple systems and channels.

Scalability and future readiness

Umbraco provides a solid foundation for websites, customer portals and platforms that need to grow in a controlled and manageable way. Sanity is strong when content will be used more broadly over time, for example across websites, apps, campaigns, product data, international platforms or AI applications.

Hosting and management

Umbraco gives you a high level of control over hosting, infrastructure, security and management. This works well for organisations with specific technical or compliance requirements. Sanity largely works as a managed cloud platform. This reduces the emphasis on infrastructure management, but also means you are more closely tied to Sanity’s platform model.

AI, structured content and findability

Sanity is strong in structured content. This makes content easier to reuse for AI applications, personalisation and distribution across multiple channels. Umbraco also offers options for this, but more often starts from website and page structures. The best choice depends on how central content is to your digital strategy.

How does New Orange help you choose between Umbraco and Sanity?

At New Orange, we look beyond features. We look at the role the CMS needs to play within your organisation. We map how your content team works, which systems need to be connected and what kind of digital growth you want to achieve.

As a Platinum Umbraco Partner, the highest partner status in the Umbraco partner programme, we know Umbraco inside out. At the same time, our advice does not start with a preference for one platform. It starts with what your organisation needs. Sometimes that is Umbraco. Sometimes Sanity. Sometimes the right solution calls for a broader composable architecture in which CMS, commerce, CRM, ERP and marketing technology work together properly.

Want to know which platform is the best fit for your organisation? We would be happy to think it through with you.

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