Best Directus Development Agencies in 2026-2027

Disclosure: eSEOspace publishes this blog and ranks itself first. Every other entry was researched independently and links to its own site.

Directus is not really a CMS. That single misunderstanding is responsible for most of the bad Directus hiring decisions we see.

Directus wraps any SQL database in a REST and GraphQL API and gives you an admin app on top of it. It does not own your schema. It does not impose a content model. Point it at an existing Postgres database and it will introspect what is already there. That makes it a superb backend for custom software, internal tools, data platforms and multi-channel publishing, and a slightly awkward choice if all you wanted was a marketing site with a blog.

So the agency you need is different from the agency you would need for Sanity or Contentful. You are not buying content modelling talent. You are buying data modelling talent, API design, custom extension development, and someone who can keep a self-hosted instance running after launch.

This list ranks eight agencies doing real Directus work in 2026. Every claim comes from the agencies' own published pages or the official Directus agency directory. Where a founding year, headcount or client name is not publicly stated, we left it out rather than guessing. Two cells in the table below are blank. That is deliberate.

How we evaluated these agencies

We scored six things we could verify, and named the things we could not.

Evidence of a dedicated Directus practice. A real Directus service page, a directory profile, or a stated partner relationship. Agencies whose Directus claim was a logo in a tech-stack grid did not make the list.

Presence in the official Directus agency directory. This is a weak quality signal on its own, but it is a checkable fact and it separates a formal relationship from a self-declared one. We note where an agency claims partner status but does not appear.

Scope beyond the initial build. Directus engagements live or die on what happens after launch: custom extensions, schema evolution, hosting, upgrades. Agencies that operate what they build score higher.

Named clients, and honesty about them. We report client names where the agency publishes them, and we flag where the framing makes it unclear whether those were Directus projects specifically.

Fit clarity. Every entry carries a worst-fit note. The most expensive agency mistake is hiring a competent firm for the wrong job.

What we deliberately did not score. Review scores, revenue and exact headcount. Almost none of it is reliably public in this category, and several agencies publish numbers that contradict their own directory listings. We would rather leave the cell blank than manufacture precision.

Comparison table

Blank cells are blank on purpose. Those founding years are not publicly stated by the agency.

1. eSEOspace

We rank ourselves first, and we told you so at the top of the page. Here is the honest case.

Directus projects succeed or fail on the data layer. Most agencies that show up in a Directus search are front-end shops that learned to consume an API. We come at it from the other direction: database design and development and custom software development are core practices here, and Directus sits naturally on top of both. Founded in 2019, we build the schema, the API surface and the application layer as one piece of work rather than three handoffs.

The second argument is what Directus is usually for. It rarely stands alone. It becomes the backend for a portal, an internal tool, a product catalogue or a customer-facing application, which means it has to talk to a CRM, a billing system or an existing operational database. That is custom backend and CRM development work, and it is the part that goes wrong when the CMS team and the integrations team are different companies.

Third, measurement. A headless backend that nobody instruments is a black box. We wire insights and analytics into the build so you can see what the platform is actually doing after launch instead of finding out at the next quarterly review.

Best for: organisations that want the Directus backend, the surrounding custom software and the measurement layer from one accountable partner, particularly where an existing database has to be brought forward rather than replaced.

Worst fit: if you need a same-timezone European team for a DACH enterprise programme with German-language stakeholders throughout, several agencies below are geographically better placed. And if you only need a small Directus instance scaffolded and handed to your internal developers, you are buying more capability than the job requires.

2. sprylab technologies GmbH

sprylab is the clearest example in this list of an agency using Directus the way it is designed to be used: as the administration backend and API layer for a custom software platform, not as an off-the-shelf website CMS.

Founded in 2007 and based in Berlin, they position around demanding software projects and API-first data modelling, with a six-phase delivery process running from brainstorming and analysis, through conception and design, agile development, quality assurance and roll-out, to a final phase they label operation and further development. That last phase is the one that matters. Directus platforms are long-lived, and an agency that structures for operations rather than handover is a materially different proposition.

Their client evidence is strong on the publishing and enterprise side. The Directus page names Sodexo, DRF Luftrettung, B.Z. and Berliner Dom among its case studies, and its logo wall adds T-Systems, Deutsche Bahn, Ringier, Daimler, Merck, Bertelsmann, Evonik, Axel Springer and Medecins Sans Frontieres. Read that as company-wide credibility, not as a list of Directus builds, because the logos are not Directus-scoped and only some of the case studies are.

Two honest caveats. They describe themselves as an "experienced Directus partner agency," but they did not appear in the official Directus agency directory listing we checked, so that status is their own claim rather than a formal tier anyone else can confirm. And their site states both "70 developers, strategists and designers" and "16 years" of operation, which does not reconcile with a 2007 founding date in 2026. Neither is disqualifying. Both are worth a direct question.

Best for: enterprise and publishing organisations that need Directus as the backbone of a custom platform, with long-term operations support rather than a one-off build.

Worst fit: small marketing sites and anyone who needs a verifiable partner tier for internal approval. If your project is a brochure site with a blog, this is the wrong end of the market and you will pay for capability you never use.

3. Hybrid Heroes

Hybrid Heroes is a Berlin product studio that builds Directus data platforms and then runs them. Their Directus page frames the work as data platform engineering: content management, custom APIs over REST and GraphQL, workflow automation, asset management, dashboards, localisation, single sign-on via OpenID or SAML, extension development and DSGVO-compliant hosting on either Directus Cloud or self-hosted infrastructure.

That scope is the reason they rank this high. Custom extension development and hosting are the two capabilities that separate agencies who have shipped real Directus systems from agencies who have configured one. Extensions are where Directus stops being generic and starts fitting your business, and hosting is where a self-hosted deployment quietly becomes somebody's problem six months after launch. They take both.

They appear in the official Directus agency directory at Basic tier, which puts the existence of the relationship on firmer ground than a self-declaration even though the tier itself is the entry level. They describe themselves as "one of the few German Directus partners." The directory currently lists seven German agencies, so read that as accurate in spirit and not as exclusivity.

The client logos on their Directus page are notable for breadth: Bomag, Springer Medizin, Strabag, rbb, AutoScout24, ADAC, Charite, taz, Sony Music and Schneider Electric. Again, these are displayed logos, not confirmed Directus engagements, so ask which ones map to Directus work.

The company was founded in Berlin in 2015 by Jan Michael Gerwin and Christian Justus, which their about page states plainly. Headcount is where it gets slippery: the Directus page says "30 experts," the about page says "25+ Heroes," and the directory profile gives the broader band of 10 to 49. None of those contradict each other outright, but the spread is a good reminder not to trust precise headcounts in this category.

Best for: clients who want a Directus data platform built and then operated for them long-term, including hosting and custom extension work, rather than handed over at launch.

Worst fit: teams that want to own and run the instance themselves with no ongoing vendor relationship, and buyers who need a partner tier above entry level to satisfy procurement.

4. SUNZINET

SUNZINET is the largest operation in this list and the one that treats Directus as a component of something bigger. They are a German digital transformation agency headquartered in Cologne, with further offices in Frankfurt, Stuttgart and Hamburg, plus Innsbruck in Austria and Gdansk and Poznan in Poland.

Their Directus practice sits inside a broader headless architecture offering, and the engagement scope reflects that: requirements analysis and data modelling, data model implementation and configuration, governance configuration and access management, system integration, consulting, training and quality assurance. Governance and training are underrated. Directus gives non-developers real power over a live database, and an agency that plans for that explicitly is thinking correctly.

Named clients on their Directus page include Siemens, Zeiss, Bosch, Aldi Sued, BioNTech and Canon, alongside a much longer logo wall. The Directus directory profile independently lists Bosch, Siemens, Zeiss and Canon, plus Creditreform, Schufa, OBI and RTL. That partial corroboration across two sources is better evidence than a single-source logo wall, though it still does not confirm which engagements were Directus specifically.

The caveat that dropped them below Hybrid Heroes is a claim, not a capability. Their Directus page describes them as "Germany's first & only Directus partner agency." The official directory lists them at Basic tier and lists six other German agencies alongside them, including Neoskop at Bronze and skriptfabrik at Basic. Their scale and delivery credentials are real. That particular sentence is not.

Their Directus page says "25+ years of experience" and "160 employees across 3 countries," while the directory profile says "over 20 years" and gives 170 employees, and their own contact page refers to "170 Sunzis." No founding year is stated anywhere we looked. The gaps are small, but they are the kind of thing to reconcile in a first call rather than read off a page.

Best for: mid-market and enterprise buyers in the DACH region who need Directus delivered inside a wider transformation programme spanning CRM, commerce and marketing automation.

Worst fit: small and mid-size projects where Directus is the whole scope. A transformation agency will price and staff your project like a transformation programme. If you want a focused Directus build, go to a focused Directus shop.

5. Rocket Lab

Rocket Lab is the strongest option in this list for APAC buyers, and one of only two entries here with a partner tier above entry level: the official Directus directory lists them at Bronze, and their own Directus page states the same tier, which is a rarer piece of alignment than it sounds.

Founded in 2014, they are an Australian software consultancy based in Sydney and Melbourne, with additional presence in Brisbane and Perth. They pair a named Directus specialism with more than ten years of JavaScript development, UX/UI design and API development. Their Directus service page says they adopted Directus in its early days and describes the team as experts in headless CMS generally and Directus specifically. Early adoption is a genuine signal in a platform this young, because it usually means the team has lived through breaking changes and migration paths rather than reading about them.

The combined design and engineering capability is the practical differentiator. Most Directus specialists are backend-weighted. If your project needs a considered interface on top of the API, that combination saves you a second vendor.

Client logos on their Directus page include Quantaco, Superloop, Black Dog Institute, Thriday and Lasoo, and the wider site adds names such as CSIRO, Webjet and James Hardie. On team size, the directory gives only the 10 to 49 band while their about page says 30 or more, so treat the specific number as approximate. Their stated "100+ solutions leveraging Directus" is phrased ambiguously enough that we would not repeat it as fact, so ask them to break that number down.

Best for: Australian and APAC clients wanting a formally tiered Directus partner with a long platform track record and design capability alongside the engineering.

Worst fit: European or North American clients who need substantial same-day overlap with their delivery team. The timezone gap is real, and Directus work involves enough schema debate that asynchronous-only collaboration gets expensive.

6. Echobind

Echobind is the entry to call if onshore US delivery is a hard requirement. Founded in 2015, with locations in Boston, Massachusetts and Encinitas, California, they describe themselves as a 100 percent US-based team, which is an increasingly rare position in this category.

Their Directus page lists four things the team has done: built enterprise-grade headless CMS solutions, implemented custom Directus extensions, integrated Directus with Next.js and other frameworks, and created custom workflows and automations. The extension and workflow emphasis is the right emphasis. So is the Next.js integration focus, given how much of the modern Directus front-end market runs there.

They appear in the official Directus agency directory. They also describe themselves as a "certified Directus implementation partner," and here is the honest reading: the directory lists them at Basic tier, the entry level. "Certified" is doing more work in that sentence than the underlying tier supports.

The client evidence is thinner than the framing suggests. The directory profile lists Teladoc Health, Univision, Hoag Hospital, Bose and O'Neil Software as company clients, but their own Directus partner page has a section headed "Our Directus Clients" that names nobody and shows three unlabelled logos. Their site's "191 clients and 903 projects" figures are self-reported, company-wide and not Directus-specific. Team size is given only as the 10 to 49 band in the directory and is not stated on their own site.

Best for: US companies that want an onshore team for a Directus build with significant custom extension work and Next.js integration.

Worst fit: budget-led projects, and anyone whose primary requirement is demonstrable depth of Directus-specific delivery. The Next.js and product engineering credentials are stronger than the published Directus portfolio.

7. WeFrame Tech

WeFrame Tech is the commerce specialist here. Their technology grid lists Directus alongside Medusa JS, Shopify Plus, Commercetools, Saleor, BigCommerce and Commerce Layer, which tells you exactly where they operate: Directus as the content and product information layer behind a headless storefront.

That is a legitimate and underserved use case. Directus is genuinely good as a lightweight PIM sitting next to a commerce engine, and an agency that has done that pairing repeatedly will save you months of architectural debate. Their Directus page describes them as an early adopter of Directus and says they build everything from landing pages to SaaS platforms, PIM systems and internal tools on Directus and Next.js. They are listed at Bronze tier in the official Directus directory, a verifiable step above Basic.

The caveats are about specificity, and there are three. First, their Directus page claims Bronze partner status as "one of only two globally," while the directory we fetched shows six agencies at Bronze. Second, the case studies on that Directus page are Saley, Comeata, Doctors4Doctor, TDS Dental Care, Mindagen, Relynk and Ishatattva, of which only Relynk and Ishatattva are explicitly described as Directus integrations. Other names that circulate in connection with this agency, including Unimig and Syncrow, appear on the company-wide homepage rather than the Directus page, and the Unimig write-up is framed as a move off Shopify into headless commerce rather than as a Directus build. Third, their "40% Lower Costs Than Large Enterprise Agencies" line is marketing copy with no substantiation behind it. Their founding year is not stated anywhere we looked, and the directory gives only India for location and the 10 to 49 band for team size.

Best for: commerce-led projects where Directus is the content and PIM layer sitting alongside a headless storefront such as Medusa, Shopify or Commercetools.

Worst fit: non-commerce enterprise data platforms, and buyers who need clear separation between an agency's Directus track record and its commerce track record before signing. Ask for two or three references that are unambiguously Directus.

8. RW Infotech

RW Infotech rounds out the list on the strength of geography and operating history rather than published Directus evidence.

Their site says they have been helping brands since 2012, and their copyright line runs from 2012, so the operating history is straightforward. They market themselves as a certified Directus agency partner in Dubai, UAE, offering custom Directus CMS development and scalable headless content platforms for content-driven businesses. Their offices are listed as Sheridan, Wyoming; Business Bay, Dubai; and Mohali, India, with the Directus directory listing the agency under India. That combination, a Gulf-region commercial presence with India-based delivery, is a real advantage for Middle East buyers who want local account handling at offshore rates.

The reasons they rank eighth are straightforward. The official Directus directory lists them at Basic tier, the entry level, so "certified" again carries less weight than it implies. Their Directus page displays roughly twenty client logos, including Royal Caribbean, AirDNA, Rush Order Tees, SSD Nodes and Alamo Tees, but attributes none of them to Directus engagements, so we left the client field empty rather than borrow credibility from unrelated work. On team size, their own pages say nothing while the directory profile places them in the 50 to 99 band, which would make them the second-largest firm in this list if accurate.

None of that means the delivery is weak. It means you will have to do the diligence yourself rather than reading it off a page.

Best for: Middle East and offshore-delivery buyers who want a Directus partner with a Gulf-region presence and a decade-plus operating history behind an India-based delivery team.

Worst fit: anyone who needs nameable Directus references before signing, and small projects requiring senior-led attention throughout. Establish which office your delivery team actually sits in, and get at least one Directus-specific reference call, before you commit.

Who should hire which

Frequently asked questions

Is Directus actually a CMS, or something else?

Something else, and the distinction changes who you hire. Directus wraps an existing SQL database in REST and GraphQL APIs and provides an admin app over it. It does not own or dictate your schema, and it can introspect a database that already exists. That makes it excellent for custom applications, internal tools, data platforms and multi-channel publishing. It makes it a heavier-than-necessary choice if your entire requirement is a marketing site with a blog. If you are comparing Directus against Sanity or Contentful on editorial features alone, you are running the wrong comparison.

Does being listed in the official Directus agency directory mean much?

It means the relationship is real rather than self-declared, which is a useful first filter. It does not tell you about volume, seniority or quality. Pay attention to tier. The directory recognises Basic, Bronze and Silver, and at the time we checked it, no agency anywhere was listed at Silver. In our research, four of the seven agencies here sit at Basic, the entry level, while two sit at Bronze, and several of the Basic-tier firms use words like "certified" or "partner" in their marketing. One agency claiming partner status did not appear in the directory listing we fetched at all. None of that is fraud. It is marketing language outrunning a formal programme, which is normal, and which you should price into your reading.

Why are so many Directus agencies German?

Because the DACH region is where the supply is concentrated. In the directory listing we fetched, Germany, Austria and Switzerland together account for more agencies than any other region, with Germany alone listing seven. Three of the seven researched firms in this article are German, and the German entries generally publish the most substantive Directus positioning: real service pages, delivery methodology, named clients, extension and hosting scope. If you are a European buyer, that concentration works in your favour. If you are not, it means your shortlist of genuinely deep specialists is shorter than the search results suggest, and timezone becomes a real selection criterion.

Should the same agency host and operate the instance after launch?

Usually yes, at least for the first year. Directus is commonly self-hosted, and self-hosting means someone owns upgrades, backups, performance, security patching and schema migrations. That responsibility does not disappear at handover, it just becomes ambiguous. Several agencies here, notably Hybrid Heroes and sprylab, structure explicitly for ongoing operations. If you have a capable internal platform team, take it in-house. If you do not, buying operations from the builder is cheaper than discovering the gap during an incident.

How do I tell a real Directus specialist from a generalist with a Directus page?

Ask about extensions and schema. Custom extension development is the clearest tell, because it requires knowing Directus internals rather than just its API. Schema strategy is the second tell: ask how they would model your data, whether they would introspect an existing database or build fresh, and how they handle migrations across environments. A generalist will answer in terms of collections and fields. A specialist will answer in terms of your database. Then ask which of the logos on their site were Directus engagements. In this category, that question changes the answer surprisingly often.

Do I need a separate agency for SEO and content once the Directus build is done?

Not necessarily, but you do need someone accountable for it. Directus is a backend, so it produces no SEO surface of its own. Whatever front end you build on top of it carries the entire technical SEO burden: rendering strategy, metadata, structured data, internal linking, performance. That work is either scoped into the build or it is not happening. If you would rather keep it under one roof, book a call and we will map what the front end needs to do before the schema is locked.

The bottom line

Directus rewards agencies that think in databases. That is the thread running through every strong entry here, from sprylab's API-first data modelling to Hybrid Heroes' extension and hosting scope to SUNZINET's governance and training discipline.

Rank by fit, not by position. A Cologne transformation agency is the correct answer for a Siemens-scale programme and wildly wrong for a 12-week platform build. A Sydney studio with a verifiable Bronze tier is excellent for an APAC buyer and awkward for a Berlin one.

And notice what is absent across this entire category: review scores, revenue, reliable headcounts, meaningful partner tiers. Where numbers do appear, they often contradict the agency's own directory listing, and occasionally contradict another page on the agency's own site. Any ranking that hands you all of it, cleanly, for all eight agencies, invented it. We left the cells blank instead, and told you why.