Software Alternatives & Startups

Strapi VS PRO Elements

Compare Strapi VS PRO Elements and see what are their differences

Strapi logo Strapi

Manage any content. Anywhere. The leading open-source headless CMS. 100% JavaScript / TypeScript and fully customizable.

PRO Elements logo PRO Elements

Free WordPress plugin that enables PRO features in Elementor
  • Strapi
    Image date //
    2024-06-07
  • PRO Elements Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-03-16

Strapi features and specs

  • Open Source
    Strapi is an open-source platform, meaning it's free to use and has an active community contributing to its improvement. This can lead to rapid innovation and a wealth of community-driven resources.
  • Customization
    Strapi offers high levels of customization, allowing developers to tailor the content management system to their specific needs. This is beneficial for unique projects with specific requirements.
  • Headless CMS
    As a headless CMS, Strapi decouples the backend from the frontend, enabling developers to use any frontend technology they prefer, which increases flexibility and scalability.
  • RESTful and GraphQL APIs
    Strapi automatically generates RESTful APIs and also supports GraphQL out of the box. This makes it easier to integrate with various types of applications.
  • User-Friendly Interface
    Strapi provides a user-friendly admin panel that is powerful yet easy to use, making content management less of a chore for non-technical users.
  • Plugin Ecosystem
    Strapi has a growing ecosystem of plugins that can extend its functionality, allowing users to add features without extensive custom development.

Possible disadvantages of Strapi

  • Learning Curve
    Although Strapi is highly customizable, it can have a steep learning curve for new users, especially those who are not familiar with JavaScript and modern web development practices.
  • Performance Issues
    In some cases, users have reported performance issues, particularly when handling large amounts of data or complex queries, which may require optimization.
  • Community Support Variability
    While Strapi has an active community, the level of support and available third-party resources can vary, especially when compared to more mature CMS platforms.
  • Limited Built-in Features
    Out of the box, Strapi might lack some features that come built-in with other CMS platforms, requiring users to implement or configure these features themselves.
  • Self-Hosting Requirement
    Strapi requires self-hosting, which means you need to manage your own servers and infrastructure. This can be a downside for those looking for a fully managed solution.
  • Frequent Updates
    Frequent updates can sometimes introduce breaking changes, requiring developers to continuously adapt their codebase to stay current.

PRO Elements features and specs

  • Extensive Features
    PRO Elements offers a wide range of features including advanced design capabilities, allowing for detailed customization of web design projects.
  • Seamless Integration
    The platform integrates smoothly with Elementor, enhancing the capabilities of one of the most popular WordPress page builders.
  • Regular Updates
    PRO Elements is regularly updated with new features, bug fixes, and security improvements, ensuring that users have access to the latest tools.
  • High-Quality Support
    Users have access to responsive and knowledgeable customer support, helping to resolve any issues quickly.

Possible disadvantages of PRO Elements

  • Cost
    PRO Elements may have a higher price point than some competitors, which could be a barrier for small businesses or freelancers with limited budgets.
  • Learning Curve
    Because of its extensive features, new users might find it challenging to learn and may require time to get accustomed to all functionalities.
  • Dependency on Elementor
    Since it integrates with Elementor, users are dependent on having Elementor installed and updated, which could be a limitation for those using other page builders.

Analysis of Strapi

Overall verdict

  • Strapi is generally considered a good choice for developers looking for an open-source headless CMS.

Why this product is good

  • Strapi offers the advantage of being open-source and highly customizable, which allows developers to tailor it to specific project requirements. It supports GraphQL and RESTful APIs, making it versatile for various use cases. Its user-friendly admin panel simplifies content management, while the extensive plugin architecture allows for enhanced functionality.

Recommended for

    Strapi is recommended for developers and development teams looking for a flexible and customizable CMS solution, particularly those who need a headless CMS that integrates easily with modern frontend frameworks like React, Vue, or Angular. It's also suitable for organizations that prefer an open-source solution they can modify according to their needs.

Analysis of PRO Elements

Overall verdict

  • PRO Elements is a GPL-based repackaging of Elementor Pro that provides premium page-builder features for free, making it a budget-friendly option, though it comes with caveats around official support, updates, and security that make it less suitable for mission-critical or professional client projects.

Why this product is good

  • Offers Elementor Pro widgets and features (theme builder, forms, popups, WooCommerce elements) without the recurring subscription cost
  • Distributed under the GPL license, which legally permits redistribution of the code
  • Can be a low-cost way to learn and experiment with advanced page-building capabilities
  • No usage or site limits since it is not tied to a paid license key

Recommended for

  • Hobbyists and beginners experimenting with WordPress page building on a tight budget
  • Developers testing features before committing to an official Elementor Pro license
  • Personal or non-critical projects where lack of official support and updates is acceptable
  • Users comfortable manually managing plugin updates and accepting potential security risks

Strapi videos

Let's Checkout... #Strapi CMS

More videos:

  • Review - Quick Strapi Review
  • Review - Learn Strapi in 12 minutes 🚀

PRO Elements videos

No PRO Elements videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Add video

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Strapi and PRO Elements)
CMS
98 98%
2% 2
Blogging
98 98%
2% 2
WordPress
0 0%
100% 100
Developer Tools
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Strapi and PRO Elements

Strapi Reviews

21 Headless CMS Platforms That You Should Check Out
Strapi is one of the most used headless CMS platforms. Strapi is an open-source headless CMS that is customizable and easy to use. Companies such as Walmart, eBay, Toyota, IBM use this platform.
Source: popupsmart.com
Best Headless CMS in 2022
Strapi is an open-source Node.js headless content management system, which means that the entire codebase is available on GitHub and thrives on contributors. Strapi generates a working RESTful API or uses GraphQL for developers in minutes after installation. Data is made available through a customizable API. It’s important to note that Strapi is a self-hosted, not a SaaS...
Source: flatlogic.com
Best Node.js CMS platforms for 2022
Strapi is a popular, flexible, and open-source headless CMS that enables us to create rich digital experiences. Strapi provides REST and GraphQL APIs developers can use to access the content stored in its repository.
Best Headless CMS for 2020
Valid argument. But what is the alternative? Strapi on a server with a Database? What about doing backups? Isn't it even more complicated? In a git-based CMS you can at least undo all changes, which isn't that easy with a database.
Source: dev.to
11 Headless CMS to Consider for Modern Application
Strapi is an opensource CMS intended to be transparent and striving to be a perfect balance between a CMS, framework, and an automation tool to speed-up back-end development and management.
Source: geekflare.com

PRO Elements Reviews

We have no reviews of PRO Elements yet.
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Strapi seems to be a lot more popular than PRO Elements. While we know about 342 links to Strapi, we've tracked only 8 mentions of PRO Elements. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Strapi mentions (342)

  • Headless CMS vs. Traditional CMS: Which is Best in 2026?
    Instead of rendering pages on the server, a headless CMS operates solely as a database and editing dashboard. The content is entered into the editor interface and stored as raw data. Consequently, your frontend application fetches this data via APIs (GraphQL or REST) and compiles it into static files. Popular headless providers like Contentful or Strapi allow you to send this content to any device or framework,... - Source: dev.to / 27 days ago
  • 5 Strapi Alternatives Developers Are Actually Switching To in 2026
    That's not true anymore. In 2026, developers are switching away from Strapi at a pace that's hard to ignore — not because it got worse, but because the alternatives got dramatically better. - Source: dev.to / about 2 months ago
  • Three Ways to Convert JSON to TypeScript. Only One Is Deterministic.
    CMS content. Headless CMS responses from Strapi, Sanity, or Contentful are deeply nested. Type them once; let the compiler catch template bugs. - Source: dev.to / 5 months ago
  • 16 Best CMS Platforms for Websites in 2025
    Strapi is an open-source, Node.js-based headless CMS that gives developers full control over content APIs. It’s self-hosted, fully customizable, and supports REST and GraphQL, making it a favorite among developers building JAMstack and API-first applications. - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
  • Building faster content-driven sites with Astro
    This is where Strapi a flexible and scalable content management solution is needed. - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
View more

PRO Elements mentions (8)

  • The WordPress Plugins licensing structure, is highly broken
    The people in this subreddit generally glorify the license because they’re the developers and defend it. I do agree with you, I always get downvoted for posting the https://proelements.org/ link lol. Source: over 3 years ago
  • Booting up new Elementor Website from scratch. Site is for a nonprofit - will mainly be used for general information, distribute forms, landing pages for events, and collecting emails, potentially a blog. For 2023, are there any need-to-have plugins for a basic site?
    Proelements is a must have if you don't need premium support and paid templates you get from Elementor Pro subscription. Source: over 3 years ago
  • ELementor Pro scam?
    Just search for "are gpl plugins legal wordpress" and read. All plugins for wordpress have to be licensed under GPL, even pro. But you pay for the service like kits and so on. There are plenty of pages selling "gpl plugins" for wordpress. You can even get https://proelements.org/ for free. Source: over 3 years ago
  • Converting Elementor to HTML
    Elementor has a free version. Does the template require the pro version? You can use https://proelements.org/ for that too. Source: over 3 years ago
  • Bring backpro widgets
    It depends on if you saved the pages already. If you didn't make any changes they should appear again. You could try and install https://proelements.org/ to see if they are still there. Source: over 3 years ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Strapi and PRO Elements, you can also consider the following products

Contentful - You don't need another CMS. You need a better way to manage content — unified, structured, and ready to deploy to any digital channel.

WordPress - WordPress is web software you can use to create a beautiful website or blog. We like to say that WordPress is both free and priceless at the same time.

Sanity.io - Sanity.io a platform for structured content that comes with an open-source editor that you can customize with React.js.

Local by Flywheel - Provides a simple, local development environment with a friendly GUI.

Directus - Free and Open-Source Headless CMS

Payload CMS - Headless CMS and Application Framework built with Node.js, React and MongoDB