News Analysis
The Gist
- CMS workflows are shifting left. Content and implementation is no longer downstream. It's becoming part of the design conversation from day one.
- Open source CMS is back. With Figma backing Payload, the argument for stagnant CMS innovation in the Open Source world holds less weight than before.
- Design systems and content modeling are converging. The tools used to define UI structure may soon define content and behavior too. Fewer brittle handoffs between designers, developers, and content editors means better quality and faster iterations.
Figma announced last month its acquisition of Payload, a US-based open-source headless content management system and application framework. While the financial terms remain undisclosed, the strategic nature of the acquisition is unmistakable: Figma is moving beyond design into deployment.
Figma’s acquisition of Payload CMS looks to change how digital experiences are designed and delivered. It brings content management closer to design, validates an open source and community-led focus and challenges long standing patterns of modern CMS architecture like headless and the MACH movement. According to Inthe Know reports, the global open-source CMS market is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.6% between 2025 and 2032.
The acquisition supports the roadmap introduced at Config 2025 with Figma Sites, a new product enabling users to go from idea to live website or application. Adding Payload gives Figma a robust backend and editorial system, crucial for any team managing content at scale.
According to MarketWatch, Figma, which filed for an IPO July 1, has 13 million monthly active users and has many Fortune 500 customers.
Table of Contents
- CMS Enters the Design Studio
- Payload’s CMS Innovation Approach
- Rethinking MACH and Headless
- Implications for Figma and Payload Users
- What’s Figma’s Next Move?
- The Bottom Line: Content, Design, Deployment Converge
- Core Questions About Figma’s Acquisition of Payload
CMS Enters the Design Studio
This isn’t just a martech consolidation. It reflects a broader shift: CMS is coming closer to where design happens. For years, content lived in one system, design in another, and development somewhere in between. Figma’s acquisition of Payload signals a realignment of that model.
Web Content Management systems were born to help non-technical teams define, create and edit content beyond hand-coding and tools like Frontpage and Dreamweaver. Their rigid structures were improved with Page builders and block-based authoring, but implementation projects still have a significant amount of effort to bridge content, design and deployment.
Payload’s developer-first, open-source architecture combined with Figma’s dominance in design workflows creates a platform that can serve both ends of the spectrum.
The design-to-code challenge — often referred to as Figma’s design-to-code pipeline — is being addressed in different ways from low-code platforms to generative AI code generation from designs. Webflow, Framer, Builder.io and Vercel’s v0.dev are examples of platforms addressing the challenge, but none have the reach of Figma for designers.
Related Article: Winners and Losers of the Failed $20B Adobe-Figma Deal
Payload’s CMS Innovation Approach
You may not have heard of Payload until now. As a CMS person I started exploring Payload in 2022 and was immediately intrigued. It just didn’t feel like every other open-source CMS.
More traditional vendors were focused on expanding beyond CMS to Digital Experience Platforms (DXPs) while the new headless vendors were gaining more adoption by adding more flexibility to CMS implementation.
"Developers have flocked to Payload because you can customize pretty much anything, extend it however you need, and the developer experience is just plain better than the alternatives," Kris Rasmussen, chief technology officer at Figma, said in a blog post. "That’s why it’s become one of the most popular open-source projects in its space, and we're excited to bring that same flexibility and power to the Figma community."
Rethinking MACH and Headless
Payload doesn’t follow the strict MACH (Microservices, API-first, Cloud-native, Headless) playbook, and that’s intentional. Payload’s hybrid CMS model — with its self-hosted architecture and full-stack capabilities — challenges the notion that modern equals cloud-only, SaaS or microservice oriented.
Its performance angle also moved beyond headless first by adding a local API where apps can talk directly to the database, sidestepping the latency of remote API calls. REST and GraphQL are still available for a hybrid approach.
Other features like fine-grained field-level permissions, code-first content modeling and first-rate support for React and Next.JS make it clear this was a CMS and app platform made for builders.
This flexibility may appeal to digital teams that value performance, simplicity and direct control over infrastructure. For CMOs and CTOs, this is a call to re-examine rigid interpretations of “modern architecture.”
Related Article: Composability Isn't a Cure-All — It's a Choice
Implications for Figma and Payload Users
For Figma users, this marks a platform evolution that can work with Figma Sites to go beyond prototyping or collaboration with a pathway to working websites and apps. Designers can work in an environment where live content can be structured, edited and deployed.
And, by the way, Figma announced an IPO on July 1, which will make the transition even more interesting.
Existing fans of Payload have expressed their support in social media while open-source developers will be watching their future moves closely. Will Payload remain flexible and community-driven? Or will enterprise integration take precedence? The acquisition brings scale and reach with the potential to enter enterprise environments while enterprise feature pricing and the project’s direction will be more clear in the future.
What’s Figma’s Next Move?
Finally, there is the positioning challenge. Will Figma and Payload target the Framer/Webflow crowd? The enterprise CMS space like Adobe and Sitecore? Or the open-source WordPress ecosystem?
It might aim to do all three. But success depends on clarity.
So far, Figma has committed to keeping Payload open and independently usable. But how that plays out including feature gating, contribution policy and governance will shape community trust.
Figma’s blocked merger with Adobe left open questions about competition in design and martech. With this move, Figma takes another step to position itself not just as a design tool, but a contender in enterprise experience architecture.
Will it expand into a full martech suite? Will it partner deeply with cloud platforms like Vercel or Shopify? These decisions will define its competitive posture in a crowded field. For now, it is clear: Figma is no longer just for designers.
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Summary: What Figma’s Acquisition of Payload Means
This table highlights the major themes, implications and shifts introduced by the acquisition.
| Topic | What’s Changing | Why It Matters |
|---|---|---|
| Design-to-Deployment Workflow | Figma adds backend CMS capabilities via Payload | Teams can manage design, content and live deployment in one pipeline |
| Open Source CMS | Payload’s developer-first, code-based CMS gains visibility | Signals renewed interest in flexible, open-source experience platforms |
| Headless and MACH Architecture | Payload deviates from strict MACH with a hybrid model | Opens the door to more nuanced, performant CMS implementations |
| Design Systems + Content Modeling | Structural design and content schema start to converge | Reduces brittle handoffs and enables faster iteration across teams |
| Figma’s Strategic Direction | Expanding beyond design into full-stack experience delivery | May position Figma as a competitor to DXP platforms like Adobe and Sitecore |
| Community and Ecosystem | Open-source users watching how Figma handles governance | Trust and flexibility will shape long-term adoption and credibility |
The Bottom Line: Content, Design, Deployment Converge
Figma’s acquisition of Payload is more than a product announcement. It’s a signal that modern digital experience demands tighter integration between content, design and deployment.
For CMOs and experienced leaders, the message is clear: your next CMS may not look like the ones before. And your design tools might soon play a far more operational role than ever imagined.
Core Questions About Figma’s Acquisition of Payload
Editor's note: Key questions surrounding what Figma’s move means for content, design and the future of CMS architecture.
Why did Figma acquire an open-source CMS?
Figma is expanding from a design collaboration platform into a more complete digital experience stack. Acquiring Payload allows it to offer not just front-end design tools, but a structured backend for content management and deployment — helping teams move from idea to production within one connected workflow.
What makes Payload different from other CMS platforms?
Unlike many modern CMSs that rely on strict MACH principles or SaaS-only hosting, Payload takes a hybrid, developer-first approach. It combines a code-based config model, support for self-hosting and full-stack flexibility. This appeals to teams that want both control and performance — not just API-first content delivery.
How does this affect the MACH and headless CMS landscape?
Payload’s model challenges the idea that headless must mean cloud-only and microservices-based. By offering local APIs alongside GraphQL/REST and enabling deeper integration with app frameworks like Next.js, it opens a new path that doesn’t fully conform to MACH orthodoxy — but still supports modular, scalable architecture.
Will Figma keep Payload open-source and independent?
Figma has said it intends to keep Payload open and independently usable. But the future will depend on how governance, pricing and feature access evolve. Community trust will hinge on how Figma balances enterprise scale with the flexibility and ethos that made Payload attractive in the first place.
What does this mean for digital teams and marketing leaders?
This move signals a broader convergence: content, design and deployment are no longer siloed. Marketers and digital teams may soon manage CMS, content modeling and site deployment all from within design-centric platforms. The next CMS you adopt might be embedded in your design tool — and that could be a very good thing.
