What Is a CMS Collection?
A CMS collection is a structured group of content items that share the same fields. Think of it as a database table designed for your website.
What is a CMS collection?
A CMS collection is a reusable content structure — a template that defines what data each item contains. If you have ever used a spreadsheet, think of a collection as the column headers, and each row as an individual item.
For example, a Blog Posts collection might have fields for Title, Body, Author, Featured Image, and Publish Date. Every blog post you create follows that same structure, which means your site can display them consistently.
Why collections matter
Without collections, content lives in page builders as one-off blocks of text and images. That approach breaks down fast:
- Inconsistency — every page is manually formatted, leading to visual drift over time.
- No relationships — you cannot link a blog post to its author or a product to its category without a shared structure.
- No scalability — adding 50 new items means building 50 new pages by hand.
Collections solve all three problems. They enforce structure, enable relationships between content types, and let you add items without touching the design.
Anatomy of a collection
Every collection has:
- A name — describes the content type (e.g., "Team Members", "Events", "Blog Posts").
- Fields — the individual pieces of data each item contains. Fields have types: plain text, rich text, image, date, number, reference, and more.
- A primary field — one field that uniquely identifies each item, typically the title or name. This field is used in dropdowns, URL slugs, and admin lists.
- Display context — how items appear on your site: as standalone pages, as cards in a grid, or both.
Common first collections
Most websites start with 3-5 collections. Here are the most common starting points:
- Blog Posts — articles with title, body, featured image, date, author, and categories.
- Team Members — staff profiles with name, role, photo, bio, and department.
- Testimonials — client quotes with name, company, quote text, and rating.
- FAQ — question/answer pairs, often grouped by category.
- Events — upcoming dates with title, description, location, date, and registration link.
Next steps
Once you understand collections, the next step is planning your content structure — deciding which collections you need, what fields they contain, and how they relate to each other. Read Your First Content Structure to get started.