Traditional, headless, or hybrid. Your architecture, your call
Modern websites are rarely just websites. If content has to reach multiple frontends, power apps, and serve channels that evolve over time, Sulu is the platform to handle that without forcing a choice between traditional and headless at the outset.
How it works
Headless without the headache
Projects often start with a website and eventually need more: a mobile app, a digital display, a second frontend for a different market. When the content layer was never designed for this, teams end up duplicating content across systems or rebuilding from scratch.
Sulu separates content from presentation at the architecture level. Editors manage structured content in one place. The platform delivers it however the project requires — server rendered, via API, or both simultaneously. The rendering approach is a configuration decision, not a constraint baked into the content model.
The decisive difference is the hybrid option. Teams are not forced to choose once and for all at the start of a project. A traditional site can expose specific routes via API without any structural change. An API first project can render selected pages server side for performance reasons. Both approaches run in a single installation, on a single content model, with a single editorial interface.
Getting started
From content model to any channel in four steps
Define your content model
Structure your content independently of how it will be presented. The way content is organised and edited stays the same regardless of whether it is delivered to a website, an app, or any other channel.
Choose your rendering approach
Decide whether pages are served traditionally, via API, or in a hybrid setup. The choice can be made per route, not for the entire project.
Connect your frontend
Any frontend framework can consume the Sulu API. Live preview works in both traditional and headless mode, so editors keep their editorial workflow regardless of the rendering approach.
Extend to new channels
Add a mobile app, a kiosk, or a new market without touching the content model or the editorial workflow. The same content, delivered to any channel.
Key Capabilities
One content model. Every channel, every architecture
The architecture decision stays with your team, not the platform. Sulu supports server-side rendering, API delivery, and a combination of both within the same installation, so the approach can evolve as project requirements change.
- Server side rendering with Twig included out of the box
- REST and JSON:API available on every route without additional setup
- Hybrid: individual routes can be served traditionally or via API
- Architecture can be changed per route, not only per project
- No migration required when requirements shift
Editors keep their workflow regardless of the frontend architecture. Live preview is available in both traditional and headless mode, so editorial teams are not affected by the technical rendering decision.
- Preview renders in the actual frontend, not a CMS internal simulation
- Available for all content types regardless of rendering approach
- Editors review content in context before publishing
- No separate preview environment required
- Publishing workflow works the same in both modes
Structure content once and deliver it to any surface. Sulu's content model is defined independently of the presentation layer, which means the same structured content can be delivered to a website, a mobile app, a digital display, or any other channel without duplication.
- All content available via API from day one
- Content model defined once, consumed by any frontend
- Assets, snippets, and structured data all accessible via the same API
- No per-channel duplication of content
- Multilingual content available on every channel
Standard protocols, no additional setup required. Both REST and JSON:API are included in the platform and available without installing additional modules or configuring a separate API layer.
- REST API covers pages, articles, navigation, search, and media
- JSON:API available for structured content delivery
- Multiple output formats supported (JSON, XML, HTML)
- Authentication and routing handled by the platform
- Extend with custom endpoints using standard Symfony patterns
Change the frontend without touching the content. Because content is structured and stored independently of how it is presented, frontend frameworks can be replaced or extended without any changes to the content model or the editorial workflow.
- No proprietary frontend components or client libraries required
- Content model survives a frontend technology change
- Editorial workflow unchanged when the rendering approach changes
- New channels access existing content immediately via API
- Editors are not affected by frontend architecture decisions
Ready to see it in action?
Book a live demo or talk to our team directly.
Ready to see it in action?
Sulu’s flexibility in both technology and content is ideal for us and our customers.
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