What is Spina CMS used for?

Spina CMS is a Ruby on Rails CMS gem with a clean, distraction-free admin interface that you add to a Rails app and reach at the /admin path. It is a good fit for adding a CMS to an existing Rails application and small business websites built on Rails.

Is Spina CMS open source?

Yes. Spina CMS is open source under a custom licence. Its source code is on GitHub at SpinaCMS/Spina and is written mainly in JavaScript.

Yes. Spina CMS is open source, so the software itself is free to use under the terms of its own licence.

Can I self-host Spina CMS?

Yes. Spina CMS can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure.

What are some alternatives to Spina CMS?

Similar open-source tools in the CMS category include Fae, Sulu and AlchemyCMS. SaaS products in the same category include Adobe Experience Manager, Contentful and Sitecore.

Is Spina CMS actively maintained?

Yes. The most recent commit to Spina CMS was on 2 October 2026, and the latest release is v2.21.0, published on 22 May 2026. The project has 2.3k stars on GitHub.

Spina CMS: open-source CMS

About Spina CMS

Spina is a content management system packaged as a gem for Ruby on Rails. It aims to be easy to use, with a clean interface that avoids distractions. Rather than being a standalone product, it is added to a Rails application, so developers keep the Rails stack they already know. The input lists its license only as other.

Setup is short: add the gem to the Gemfile, run the installer with rails spina:install, which helps create the first user interactively, and then start the server and open the admin area at /admin. The admin interface needs a browser with import map support, meaning Chrome or Edge 89 and later, or Safari and Firefox with basic ES module support, in line with the default approach in Rails 7.

A guide describes how to use and customize it. Spina suits Rails developers building marketing sites, small business websites, and content-managed applications who prefer an embedded CMS over a separate platform.

Key features

Rails gem installed with a single command
Clean admin interface at /admin
Interactive creation of the first user
Built for Ruby on Rails apps
Uses import maps and modern browser features

Good fit for

→Adding a CMS to an existing Rails application
→Small business websites built on Rails

Built with: JavaScript; Rails; Ruby
Tags: cms; rails; ruby; gem; website; content-management; admin; self-hosted

Spina CMS: questions and answers

What is Spina CMS used for?: Spina CMS is a Ruby on Rails CMS gem with a clean, distraction-free admin interface that you add to a Rails app and reach at the /admin path. It is a good fit for adding a CMS to an existing Rails application and small business websites built on Rails.
Is Spina CMS open source?: Yes. Spina CMS is open source under a custom licence. Its source code is on GitHub at SpinaCMS/Spina and is written mainly in JavaScript.
Is Spina CMS free?: Yes. Spina CMS is open source, so the software itself is free to use under the terms of its own licence.
Can I self-host Spina CMS?: Yes. Spina CMS can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure.
What are some alternatives to Spina CMS?: Similar open-source tools in the CMS category include Fae, Sulu and AlchemyCMS. SaaS products in the same category include Adobe Experience Manager, Contentful and Sitecore.
Is Spina CMS actively maintained?: Yes. The most recent commit to Spina CMS was on 2 October 2026, and the latest release is v2.21.0, published on 22 May 2026. The project has 2.3k stars on GitHub.