# Sanity

> Why we build on Sanity: a headless, API-first CMS with a fully customisable Studio, GROQ querying and real-time collaboration. Where it fits, and where it does not.

URL: https://www.smartastudio.com/stack/cms/sanity

_A structured-content platform you shape like code._

Sanity is our default when content is product-like and the editing experience matters. It treats content as structured data, not pages, and lets us design the Studio around how the team actually works.

## What it is

Sanity is a headless CMS built around a real-time content lake and a fully customisable editing environment called the Studio. Content is modelled as typed documents queried with GROQ, delivered over an API or CDN, and versioned — so the same content feeds a website, an app and an AI crawler without duplication.

## Why we build on it

We reach for Sanity when the content model is the product. The Studio is React, so we build bespoke editing tools, live previews and validation instead of forcing editors into a generic dashboard. Real-time collaboration, granular roles and content versioning make it safe for larger teams, and portable text keeps rich content clean rather than trapped in HTML.

## Editor & developer experience

For editors, Sanity is unusual: the admin — the Studio — is not a fixed dashboard but an interface we build around the content. Fields, validation, previews and custom input components are all shaped to the job, so the editing experience can be as guided or as free as the team needs. Real-time collaboration means several people edit the same document at once, with presence and revision history built in.

For developers, it is a genuine pleasure. Content is typed and modelled as code, queried with GROQ — a concise, powerful query language — and available over a fast CDN-backed API. The Studio is React, so extending it uses skills we already have, and content versioning plus a well-documented API make complex builds predictable rather than fragile.

## Where it earns the shortlist

Sanity earns the shortlist whenever the content model is doing real work: component-driven design systems, product-like content that feeds more than one surface, or a team that will be in the CMS every day and deserves an editor built for them. It scales cleanly from a marketing site to a full application, which is why it is our default headless CMS.

## Best for

- Design systems and component-driven sites where content maps to structured blocks
- Multi-surface content that feeds a site, app and other channels from one source
- Teams that want a tailored editing experience, not an off-the-shelf admin

## Choose it when

- **Content is structured and reused** — Component-based pages, shared blocks, or content that feeds a site and an app.
- **The editing experience matters** — You want a tailored, guard-railed Studio, not a generic admin.
- **A team publishes together** — Real-time collaboration, roles and revision history are built in.
- **Developers own the front end** — Typed content and GROQ make ambitious builds predictable.

## Look elsewhere when

- **You need drag-and-drop page building** — Marketers who want to compose pages visually are better served by Storyblok.
- **It is a simple brochure site** — A handful of static pages does not need a structured content model.
- **No developer is involved** — Sanity rewards a considered schema; it is not a no-code tool.

## Watch-outs

Sanity rewards a considered content model — it is not the fastest way to stand up a brochure site, and a sloppy schema is as painful here as anywhere. If a client needs full visual, drag-and-drop page building with no developer involved, Storyblok is often the better fit.

## Pricing, in plain terms

Sanity has a generous free tier that covers most small builds, then usage-based plans as a project grows — priced on API requests, datasets and seats rather than a flat licence. For most of our clients it lands as a predictable monthly cost well below enterprise CMS licences, and we size the plan to the project so you are never paying for headroom you do not use.

- **Free tier:** Yes — generous
- **Paid from:** ~£79/mo (Team)
- **Model:** Usage + seats

[Compare Sanity vs Contentful](https://www.smartastudio.com/compare/headless-cms/contentful-vs-sanity)

## At a glance

- **Type:** Headless, API-first CMS
- **Query language:** GROQ (and GraphQL)
- **Editing:** Customisable React Studio
- **Best paired with:** Next.js

## The SmartaStudio take

Sanity is our first choice for serious content work, and it is what our own site runs on. The flexibility that makes it powerful also means it rewards being set up properly — a rushed schema will hurt here as anywhere. Put the thinking in up front and you get a CMS that fits the team like a tailored suit and scales for years. When a client instead needs visual, no-developer page building, we will happily point them at Storyblok rather than force the fit.

## Related service

[Sanity development](https://www.smartastudio.com/services/sanity-development)