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Directus vs Thesys
Directus is a headless CMS, not a generative UI service for AI.
Which to pick
Pick Directus if you want…
- Headless CMS with AI-enabled data actions
- Content management
- Integrations with Next.js, Nuxt or Astro (on Directus' list, not Thesys')
Pick Thesys if you want…
- Generative UI for AI apps
- The lower starting price: $49/month against $499/month
- Integrations with OpenAI, Anthropic or OpenRouter (on Thesys' list, not Directus')
Side by side
- What it is
- Directus:Directus is a self-hostable headless CMS and data platform that adds instant REST/GraphQL APIs and AI-driven workflows to any SQL database.
- Thesys:Thesys provides a Generative UI API that lets AI applications return interactive dashboards, forms, charts and reports in real time.
- Best for
- Directus:Headless CMS with AI-enabled data actions
- Thesys:Generative UI for AI apps
- Who it’s for
- Directus:Developers, content teams, and ops who need a collaborative backend over existing databases.
- Thesys:AI product teams building interactive interfaces for copilots, internal tools, and assistants.
- Pricing
- Directus:Freemium
- Thesys:Freemium
- Plans
- Directus:Core $0 per month · Team $499 per month · Open Innovation Grant Free
- Thesys:Free $0/mo. · Build $49/mo. per month · Grow $499/mo. per month
- Open source
- Directus:Yes, 38,004 GitHub stars
- Thesys:Yes
- Works with
- Directus:Next.js, Nuxt, Astro, SvelteKit, React, Angular, Laravel, Django
- Thesys:OpenAI, Anthropic, OpenRouter
Directus features
- Instant API generation. Creates production-ready REST and GraphQL endpoints directly from your SQL schema.
- No-code admin interface. Provides a visual studio for content editors, asset management, and live preview without coding.
- AI Assistant & MCP. Embedded conversational AI can write, translate, tag, and create records via Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, etc.
- Role-based access control. Granular permissions govern both human users and AI agents.
- Realtime & WebSockets. Subscribe to collections for live updates, enabling collaborative apps and dashboards.
- Digital Asset Manager. Upload, transform, and serve media with on-the-fly resizing and CDN readiness.
Thesys features
- Generative UI API. C1 API returns rich UI components (dashboards, forms, charts) instead of plain text.
- Real-time rendering. UI updates adapt instantly to each query and context.
- Model-agnostic. Works with any LLM key or OpenRouter models, including free models.
- Style customization. Customize visual style of generated components.
- API key management. Generate and manage keys per plan with usage limits.
- Artifacts API. Generate slides and reports; first 100 pages free, $0.01 per page thereafter.
Directus vs Thesys FAQ
Is Directus or Thesys free?+
Directus has a free plan (Core); paid plans start at $499/month (Team). Thesys has a free plan; paid plans start at $49/month (Build).
Which is cheaper, Directus or Thesys?+
Thesys is cheaper to start with: Thesys' Build plan ($49/month) against Directus' Team plan ($499/month).
Is Directus or Thesys open source?+
Yes, both are open source: Directus (directus/directus on GitHub) and Thesys (orgs/thesysdev on GitHub).
Do Directus and Thesys integrate with the same tools?+
Their integration lists don't overlap: Directus lists Next.js, Nuxt, Astro, SvelteKit and 10 more; Thesys lists OpenAI, Anthropic and OpenRouter.
On DevHunt
Based on each tool's website and DevHunt data. Details may change; check the official sites.