Source: https://seerepo.com/compare/payloadcms/payload/vs/prisma/orm
Markdown source: https://seerepo.com/compare/payloadcms/payload/vs/prisma/orm.md
Description: payload and orm share 5 technologies: MongoDB, Postgres, Vite, jose, and @standard-schema/spec. Both are written in TypeScript.

# payload vs orm

payload and orm share 5 technologies: MongoDB, Postgres, Vite, jose, and @standard-schema/spec. Both are written in TypeScript.

- [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.
- [prisma/orm](https://seerepo.com/r/prisma/orm): The Prisma ORM: write your application in TypeScript with human-readable queries instead of SQL. Host your database on Prisma Postgres and your app on Prisma Compute.

## What they share and what sets them apart

- In common: MongoDB, Postgres, Vite, jose, @standard-schema/spec
- Only in payload: TanStack, Next.js, React, Sentry, 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, @clack/prompts, Drizzle, prompts, nodemailer, @aws-sdk/credential-providers, @monaco-editor/react, react-datepicker, file-type, sanitize-filename, image-dimensions, sax, Zod, pino, pino-pretty, escape-html, csv-parse, csv-stringify, lexical, react-error-boundary, @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
- Only in orm: MySQL, bson, @electric-sql/pglite, gray-matter, codingame, arktype, Ajv

## Side by side

| | payload | orm |
|---|---|---|
| Size | 1,066,210 lines written, 4,867 code files | 1,173,488 lines written, 2,189 code files |
| Who writes it | 0.6% of its commits signed by AI. With GitHub Copilot, Claude Code, and Cursor | 8.4% of its commits signed by AI. With Claude Code, Cursor, and CodeRabbit |
| Activity | Last push November 6, 2026, 14,788 commits, 45,682 stars | Last push November 5, 2026, 8,368 commits, 47,658 stars |
| Tests | 2,460 test files. 12.6% of its code files have a test that imports them | 3,946 test files. 59.2% 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, payload or orm?

orm, with 1,173,488 lines written; payload has 1,066,210.

The proof: [prisma/orm's code at commit a405bd9](https://github.com/prisma/orm/tree/a405bd928ad3bbc10132ed8fb85187e129f8c85c)

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

orm, with 47,658 stars; payload has 45,682.

The proof: [prisma/orm on GitHub](https://github.com/prisma/orm)

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

orm, with 3,946 test files; payload has 2,460.

The proof: [prisma/orm's code at commit a405bd9](https://github.com/prisma/orm/tree/a405bd928ad3bbc10132ed8fb85187e129f8c85c)

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

payload: its last push was on November 6, 2026, and orm's on November 5, 2026.

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

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

orm: an AI signed 8.4% of its commits, with Claude Code, Cursor, and CodeRabbit; in payload, 0.6%.

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

## Sources

- payloadcms/payload: Read on November 6, 2026, at commit fac8196 (https://github.com/payloadcms/payload/tree/fac81961b76c0d0e15545ec8aeda3e099aca8f03)
- prisma/orm: Read on November 5, 2026, at commit a405bd9 (https://github.com/prisma/orm/tree/a405bd928ad3bbc10132ed8fb85187e129f8c85c)

## 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.