Source: https://seerepo.com/compare/ianstormtaylor/slate/vs/payloadcms/payload
Markdown source: https://seerepo.com/compare/ianstormtaylor/slate/vs/payloadcms/payload.md
Description: slate and payload share 3 technologies: React, Next.js, and react-error-boundary. Both are written in TypeScript.

# slate vs payload

slate and payload share 3 technologies: React, Next.js, and react-error-boundary. Both are written in TypeScript.

- [ianstormtaylor/slate](https://seerepo.com/r/ianstormtaylor/slate): A completely customizable framework for building rich text editors. (Currently in beta.)
- [payloadcms/payload](https://seerepo.com/r/payloadcms/payload): Payload is the open-source, fullstack Next.js framework, giving you instant backend superpowers. Get a full TypeScript backend and admin panel instantly. Use Payload as a headless CMS or for building powerful applications.

## What they share and what sets them apart

- In common: React, Next.js, react-error-boundary
- Only in slate: @fontsource/roboto, @fontsource/material-icons, scroll-into-view-if-needed
- Only in payload: TanStack, Sentry, MongoDB, Postgres, SQLite, graphql-scalars, graphql-http, Redis, Vue, @aws-sdk/lib-storage, AWS S3, bson-objectid, Stripe, MCP, @azure/storage-blob, Google Cloud, aws-sdk, Vercel, Vite, @clack/prompts, Drizzle, prompts, nodemailer, @aws-sdk/credential-providers, @monaco-editor/react, react-datepicker, jose, file-type, sanitize-filename, image-dimensions, sax, Zod, @standard-schema/spec, pino, pino-pretty, escape-html, csv-parse, csv-stringify, lexical, @lexical/markdown, mdast-util-from-markdown, mdast-util-mdx-jsx, micromark-extension-mdx-jsx, sharp, sonner, dnd-kit, react-select, monaco-editor, @floating-ui/dom, react-image-crop

## Side by side

| | slate | payload |
|---|---|---|
| Size | 87,522 lines written, 274 code files | 1,066,210 lines written, 4,867 code files |
| Who writes it | 0.2% of its commits signed by AI. With Claude Code and Cursor | 0.6% of its commits signed by AI. With GitHub Copilot, Claude Code, and Cursor |
| Activity | Last push November 7, 2026, 4,511 commits, 31,745 stars | Last push November 6, 2026, 14,788 commits, 45,682 stars |
| Tests | 1,372 test files. 5.5% of its code files have a test that imports them | 2,460 test files. 12.6% of its code files have a test that imports them |

- Size: Lines written by people and agents, without generated ones; code files, without tests.
- Who writes it: A commit counts as AI's when it carries its signature: a Co-Authored-By line, its author name or the merge of its branch.
- Activity: From GitHub and its history, on the day SeeRepo read it.
- Tests: The files that test the code, and the share of code files a test imports.

## Frequently asked questions

### Which is bigger, slate or payload?

payload, with 1,066,210 lines written; slate has 87,522.

The proof: [payloadcms/payload's code at commit fac8196](https://github.com/payloadcms/payload/tree/fac81961b76c0d0e15545ec8aeda3e099aca8f03)

### Which has more GitHub stars, slate or payload?

payload, with 45,682 stars; slate has 31,745.

The proof: [payloadcms/payload on GitHub](https://github.com/payloadcms/payload)

### Which has more tests, slate or payload?

payload, with 2,460 test files; slate has 1,372.

The proof: [payloadcms/payload's code at commit fac8196](https://github.com/payloadcms/payload/tree/fac81961b76c0d0e15545ec8aeda3e099aca8f03)

### Which was updated more recently, slate or payload?

slate: its last push was on November 7, 2026, and payload's on November 6, 2026.

The proof: [ianstormtaylor/slate's commits on GitHub](https://github.com/ianstormtaylor/slate/commits)

### Which has more commits signed by AI, slate or payload?

payload: an AI signed 0.6% of its commits, with GitHub Copilot, Claude Code, and Cursor; in slate, 0.2%.

The proof: [the commits each tool signed in payloadcms/payload](https://seerepo.com/r/payloadcms/payload/ai)

## Sources

- ianstormtaylor/slate: Read on November 7, 2026, at commit 9e0afa5 (https://github.com/ianstormtaylor/slate/tree/9e0afa548422cc610928d4932e604a20c50f0461)
- payloadcms/payload: Read on November 6, 2026, at commit fac8196 (https://github.com/payloadcms/payload/tree/fac81961b76c0d0e15545ec8aeda3e099aca8f03)

## What is your repo built with?

Any public repo, with no account: https://seerepo.com/r/owner/repo/built, with the owner and name it has on GitHub.