Webiny JS is an open-source, serverless enterprise content management system designed specifically for AWS. It provides a full-stack solution including a headless CMS, visual page builder, form builder, and file manager—all deployed as serverless applications using AWS Lambda, API Gateway, and DynamoDB. Built with React and TypeScript, Webiny enables teams to create scalable, secure, and customizable content platforms without managing servers. It’s ideal for enterprises that need granular control over content workflows, multi-tenant architectures, and cloud-native deployment.
Unlike traditional CMS platforms, Webiny is designed as a collection of microservices that can be extended and customized through plugins and extensions. Its serverless architecture ensures automatic scaling, cost efficiency, and high availability while integrating seamlessly with AWS services like S3, Cognito, and CloudFront. Developers can deploy the entire system using the Webiny CLI with a single command, making it accessible for both small teams and large organizations requiring enterprise-grade features.
What You Get
- Headless CMS - A fully customizable content management backend with GraphQL API, versioning, workflows, and multi-tenant support. Content is stored in DynamoDB and delivered via GraphQL endpoints for any frontend.
- Visual Page Builder - Drag-and-drop page creation with reusable components, real-time preview, and SEO metadata controls. Pages are rendered as React components and deployed to CloudFront for fast global delivery.
- Form Builder - Create custom forms with drag-and-drop fields, validation rules, and integrations to email services or external APIs. Submissions are stored in DynamoDB and can trigger Lambda functions.
- File Manager - Upload, organize, and manage files (images, documents) with versioning and access controls. Files are stored in S3 with automatic optimization and CDN delivery via CloudFront.
- Serverless Deployment to AWS - Full infrastructure-as-code deployment using Serverless Framework. All components (CMS, page builder, forms) deploy as Lambda functions with automated CI/CD pipelines.
Common Use Cases
- Building a multi-tenant SaaS dashboard with custom content per client - Enterprises use Webiny to power different brand portals under one platform, where each tenant has isolated content, users, and assets while sharing the same codebase.
- Creating a marketing website with dynamic content and forms for high-traffic campaigns - Marketing teams design landing pages using the visual page builder, embed lead forms, and publish without developer help—all backed by serverless infrastructure that scales during traffic spikes.
- Problem: Managing content across multiple regions with low latency → Solution: Webiny deploys static pages to CloudFront and uses AWS Lambda@Edge for personalized content delivery, reducing latency globally while maintaining centralized content management.
- DevOps teams managing microservices across multiple AWS accounts - Webiny’s infrastructure-as-code approach allows teams to define, version, and deploy CMS environments (dev/staging/prod) using YAML configurations and CI/CD pipelines via GitHub Actions.
Under The Hood
Webiny is a modular, serverless-first framework designed for building scalable web applications with a strong emphasis on admin UIs, headless CMS capabilities, and extensible architecture. It enables developers to construct flexible, domain-driven systems through a well-organized monorepo structure and reusable component libraries.
Architecture
Webiny adopts a layered, modular architecture that promotes loose coupling and clear separation of concerns across its various domains.
- The system is organized into distinct packages for APIs, UI components, and core utilities, enabling scalable feature development.
- Modules are structured by functionality and domain, supporting extensive reuse and plugin-based extensibility.
- Common design patterns such as decorators, strategy implementations, and component composition are used to enhance flexibility.
Tech Stack
The framework is built with TypeScript and React, leveraging modern web development practices and tooling for robust application construction.
- Built primarily with TypeScript and React, utilizing a monorepo approach to manage multiple interconnected packages.
- Integrates with the React ecosystem, including MobX for state management and Tailwind CSS for styling.
- Employs Vite, Webpack, and custom automation scripts to support efficient builds and deployments.
- Vitest and Cypress are used for unit and end-to-end testing, complemented by ESLint and Prettier for code consistency.
Code Quality
Webiny maintains a solid foundation in testing and code quality, with a focus on maintainability and error resilience.
- Comprehensive test coverage ensures that UI components and core functionalities are thoroughly validated.
- Error handling is consistently implemented using try/catch blocks and explicit error propagation in utility functions.
- Code follows consistent naming conventions and architectural patterns, though some technical debt is present in test file structure.
What Makes It Unique
Webiny distinguishes itself through its extensible architecture and developer-centric tooling that support rapid customization.
- Offers a plugin-based extension system allowing developers to override or augment core features without forking the codebase.
- Provides built-in support for custom identity providers and authentication flows, enabling integration with third-party IDPs like Okta.
- Comes with a rich admin UI toolkit and storybook integration that promotes consistent design and component reuse.
- Emphasizes developer experience with pre-configured testing utilities, E2E support, and tooling that reduce boilerplate.