There are many reasons why we love to work with Sanity from a developer perspective. Below are some of the main benefits for our clients and their editors.
1. The best and most flexible editorial interface
We are free to design and develop the editor interface in the same way that we do with the user-facing web application. Each instance of the "Sanity Studio" (where the content work is done) is unique and custom-made for each client we work with. The flexibility opens up a whole new world when it comes to developing engaging editorial experiences and workflows.
In 2024 Sanity introduced "Presentation". It allows the editor to split the Sanity Studio into a preview on one side and the content editing panel on the other, and then click any content on the website preview to open up the correct field to edit that content. Read more about Sanity Presentation and see a demo video in this article.
2. Sanity is FAST!
We develop super-fast and user-friendly websites when we combine Sanity with Next.js (modern React framework), hosted with Vercel. Nothing kills sales faster than a slow site, especially on mobile. Google: 53% of mobile users abandon sites that take over 3 seconds to load.
The above is a performance review using Lighthouse, from our project with Vitamail.
3. Reasonable pricing that scales well
Sanity has a free plan including 3 editors and a certain quota of use. The pricing structure is relatively complex to decode as the price depends on a lot of variables linked to the usage. Here's an attempt to simplify and exemplify:
- FREE: Somewhere between 150,000 - 250,000 page views pr month (depending on the size/content of the pages).
- FREE: Unlimited administrators
- $3 pr 25,000 page views for usage over the above quota.
- $15 / month pr extra editor
- The next level after the Free plan is the Team plan at $99 / month which includes 10 editors and about 4 x the usage quote.
4. Content as structured data
With a headless CMS like Sanity, the content is structured and stored separately from the website presentation. It can be used across websites, apps, newsletters, and more. You can also save a lot of effort when it's time to restructure or redesign your website, as the content can live on in Sanity for multiple iterations of your website.
5. Superior collaboration and editorial workflow
Sanity really shines in organizations with several editors working with different content at the same time. The level of control and the usability of version control in the editor is in a class of their own.
To take the editorial flow to the next level, Sanity offers custom editorial workflows where we can build out Trello-style "kanban" boards where editors can move content along between phases in the editorial workflow.
All documents (what we call pages and any other piece of content in Sanity) can be edited and published individually. Editors can be assigned custom roles with custom permissions to assure that content is only published after it has been reviewed and approved.
6. User-friendly image handling
Sanity handles images really well. Both on the website with lightweight images in the right sizes pr device and also in the Sanity Studio where editors can set a hotspot and crop while previewing different crops.
7. Custom integrations
We can integrate Sanity with just about any system that allows integration. Here are a few examples of how custom integrations we have developed to exchange data between Sanity and other platforms:
- Mailchimp integration to compose and send newsletters with related articles without ever leaving the Sanity Studio.
- Dashboard in Sanity Studio displaying data from Memberful (memberships/sales), Google Analytics (web usage statistics), and Mailchimp (newsletters) in a single view for a glance at how the entire content business is doing across platforms.
- Two-way integration between Hubspot and Sanity to move leads through a sales funnel.
8. Responsive videos
When we design rich articles with background videos, it's crucial to serve the user high quality video in the right size for their device for the fastest possible load times.
Using the MUX plugin, the editor uploads videos directly in the Sanity Studio. The video is then uploaded to MUX in the background, which processes the video, and makes source files in different sizes for different device types automatically that we can access and display on the website.
9. Localization - languages and markets
Sanity supports content in multiple languages. Even simple low-budget websites like the non-profit Support not Protect feature the option to speak to their audience in their native language.
10. Build like the best, no matter the size of your company
Sanity works well for websites of all sizes, from simple websites to enterprise solutions with content served to multiple websites and other channels in a single instance of the Sanity Studio. Successful brands like Nike, reMarkable, and Sonos build their site on Sanity - the best modern CMS.