Hamed Pakdaman

Full-stack engineer, 10+ years building and scaling web apps. Creator of UnfoldCMS, an open-source Laravel CMS built for modern developer workflows.

267 posts

CMS

WordPress Alternatives for Blogs: Honest 2026 Guide

WordPress isn't the only option for blogs. Here's an honest 2026 guide to Ghost, Substack, Hashnode, and self-hosted alternatives — with real tradeoffs, not marketing copy.

May 20, 2026 · 11 min read

CMS

Avoiding Vendor Lock-In With Self-Hosted CMS

Lock-in isn't about contracts — it's about proprietary data, vendor APIs, and rebuild costs. Here's what enterprise SaaS CMS actually costs and how self-hosting changes the math.

May 20, 2026 · 9 min read

CMS

Headless CMS for Small Business: Is It Worth the Complexity?

Headless CMS isn't too complex — it's just not right for every business. Here's an honest look at when it makes sense for small teams, and when it doesn't.

May 20, 2026 · 10 min read

Web Development

How to Add a Custom shadcn Component to Your CMS

Three tutorials for adding, customizing, and composing shadcn/ui components in the UnfoldCMS admin — no plugin API, just edit the file.

May 18, 2026 · 13 min read

Web Development

From shadcn Dashboard Template to Full CMS: Migration Guide

You built the shadcn dashboard. Now you need a blog, SEO meta, media uploads, and RBAC. Here is what you will build by hand - and why UnfoldCMS already ships it all.

May 18, 2026 · 9 min read

Self-Hosted CMS

Self-Hosted CMS on Shared Hosting: What Works in 2026

A practical guide to running a self-hosted CMS on shared hosting — covering limitations, workarounds, and when a VPS is the better choice.

May 13, 2026 · 8 min read

Headless CMS

Headless CMS Architecture: How the Frontend-Backend Split Works

A clear breakdown of headless CMS architecture — the 3 layers, how requests flow, content modeling, caching, and the real tradeoffs.

May 13, 2026 · 9 min read

Headless CMS

shadcn/ui Headless CMS: Why the Admin Matters as Much as the API

A headless CMS has two sides: the API and the admin. Most platforms neglect the admin. Here's why that matters and how shadcn/ui changes it.

May 13, 2026 · 11 min read

CMS

When to Stay on WordPress: Honest Advice (2026)

Not every WordPress site should migrate. An honest breakdown of when staying on WordPress makes sense — and the 5 signs it's time to move on.

May 12, 2026 · 13 min read

Web Development

shadcn/ui vs Ant Design vs Material UI: Which Admin Library Wins in 2026?

We tested shadcn/ui, Ant Design, and Material UI on real CMS projects. Here is the honest 2026 breakdown — bundle size, customization, accessibility, and when each one actually wins.

May 11, 2026 · 12 min read