TrustRadius: an HG Insights company

Save this comparison

Save this comparison

Add Product

Recommended Comparisons

    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Cascade CMS

    Score8.2 out of 10
    N/ACascade CMS (formerly Cascade Server) by Hannon Hill is a content management system, with built-in tools to help users eliminate stale content, increase digital outreach, and promote end-user adoption and accountability. Cascade CMS is designed for decentralized web teams in most major industries, including higher education, government, healthcare, and technology. Included is Clive, an engagement and real-time personalization tool for collecting information and using it to craft personalized…N/A

    MODX

    Score9 out of 10
    N/AThe MODX Digital Experience Platform provides everything you need to build, host, and maintain amazing websites your way. The vendor says that with MODX CMS and cloud hosting, users have complete control over their creative vision and the experiences they deliver, without restriction or compromise. They can focus more on building great digital experiences, and less on hosting and maintaining. If you ever need help, MODX Professionals are available worldwide and direct support from…

    $39

    per month

    Pricing
    Cascade CMSMODX
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    Free
    $0
    Base
    $39
    per month
    Pro
    $99
    per month
    Business
    $349
    per month
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Cascade CMSMODX
    Free Trial
    YesYes
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoYes
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    YesYes
    Entry-level Setup FeeOptionalOptional
    Additional Details—PAYMENT FORMS MODX Cloud accepts major credit cards and PayPal for your hosting subscription. We can only accept check (cheque) payments on the Enterprise Plan, annually. CANCELLATION You may cancel your MODX Cloud account at any time. Before you cancel you'll be reminded to backup and remove all your live websites and then follow the instructions for cancellation. If you cancel within the first month, we'll provide you with a full refund. REFUNDS If you cancel within the first month, we'll provide you with a full refund. All other cancellations will be effective at the end of your current billing period. We do not provide refunds for remaining days or months on monthly or annual billing.
    More Pricing Information
    Features
    Cascade CMSMODX
    Security
    Comparison of Security features of Cascade CMS and MODX
    Feature
    Cascade CMS
    8.0
    19 Ratings
    3% below category average
    MODX
    9.9
    3 Ratings
    18% above category average
    Role-based user permissions8.019 Ratings9.93 Ratings
    Platform & Infrastructure
    Comparison of Platform & Infrastructure features of Cascade CMS and MODX
    Feature
    Cascade CMS
    7.1
    13 Ratings
    9% below category average
    MODX
    8.0
    3 Ratings
    2% above category average
    API7.012 Ratings6.13 Ratings
    Internationalization / multi-language7.37 Ratings9.92 Ratings
    Web Content Creation
    Comparison of Web Content Creation features of Cascade CMS and MODX
    Feature
    Cascade CMS
    7.1
    19 Ratings
    10% below category average
    MODX
    9.4
    3 Ratings
    18% above category average
    WYSIWYG editor6.119 Ratings9.83 Ratings
    Code quality / cleanliness6.018 Ratings9.93 Ratings
    Admin section8.019 Ratings8.93 Ratings
    Page templates9.017 Ratings9.93 Ratings
    Library of website themes5.52 Ratings7.03 Ratings
    Mobile optimization / responsive design7.015 Ratings9.93 Ratings
    Publishing workflow9.019 Ratings9.93 Ratings
    Form generator6.47 Ratings9.93 Ratings
    Web Content Management
    Comparison of Web Content Management features of Cascade CMS and MODX
    Feature
    Cascade CMS
    6.9
    18 Ratings
    8% below category average
    MODX
    9.5
    3 Ratings
    23% above category average
    Content taxonomy8.013 Ratings9.93 Ratings
    SEO support7.014 Ratings10.03 Ratings
    Bulk management9.014 Ratings9.03 Ratings
    Availability / breadth of extensions6.011 Ratings8.93 Ratings
    Community / comment management4.85 Ratings9.93 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    Cascade CMSMODX
    Small Businesses
    Umbraco CMS
    Score7 out of 10
    Umbraco CMS
    Score7 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Square Online
    Score7.7 out of 10
    Square Online
    Score7.7 out of 10
    Enterprises
    RWS Tridion Sites
    Score9 out of 10
    RWS Tridion Sites
    Score9 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    Cascade CMSMODX
    Likelihood to Recommend
    9.9
    (44 ratings)
    9.9
    (3 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    9.1
    (26 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    Usability
    9.1
    (4 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    Availability
    6.7
    (4 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    Performance
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    Support Rating
    9.1
    (5 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    In-Person Training
    7.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Online Training
    5.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    9.1
    (4 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    Configurability
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    Ease of integration
    6.0
    (1 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    5.0
    (1 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    Vendor post-sale
    6.0
    (1 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    Vendor pre-sale
    5.0
    (1 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Cascade CMSMODX
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Hannon Hill
    Cascade Server is well suited with it's WYSIWYG editor being better than most editors that I have used in other systems. In context, editing makes adding content easy compared to the last CMS I used where you had to wing it and view the page outside of the CMS to see if it was correct. The ability mix HTML, CSS, and the Script of your choice anywhere and with ease.
    The scenarios were Cascade Server is less appropriate would be in the use of compilers or programs like Visual studio. You need to go out of Cascade Server and go to other environments to perform tasks and then copy the result to Cascade Server. You can write directly in Cascade Server, but it's easier to do in and editor that is specific to a function.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    MODX
    [MODX is well suited for] all websites, from blogs to corporate sites. It is fast scalable and really good. A small site can be build really fast, and a large site can be made extremely scalable. A website redesign is easy to implement with a new template, without having to redo the content. It got great user groups and users and back-office access can be completely customized.
    While ecommerce is possible with some really good plugins I would only use MODX with ecommerce for sites where ecommerce is not the primary role. For pure ecommerce sites rather use a dedicated system like e.g. PrestaShop (i would say the same thing with other ecommerce plugins e.g. WP woo commerce don't do it unless its a site add on.)
    Read full review
    Pros
    Hannon Hill
    • Cascade CMS makes no assumptions about your content. Templates control how the content gets displayed.
    • Workflows are intuitive and allow for one or more people to review content before it is published.
    • The published site is static (no database connection) which allows for faster page loads and reduced risk of attack.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    MODX
    • Ease of use - the MODX platform is very easy to use for someone who may have limited experience in content management.
    • Content blocks - the content blocks within MODX add to the usability and customization of the website being managed.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Hannon Hill
    • Cascade CMS is not an out-of-the-box pre-built system that you can install, turn on and expect to be serving sites and pages on day one. It's not a blogging system like WordPress, or a drag-and-drop system like SquareSpace (both of which I've used for their own purposes). You need to have someone tasked with management and system administration – and if you implement the on-premise self-hosted version, you ought to have several people. We have the university's IT shop handling infrastructure (server hardware, containers, clustering, operating systems, load-balancing, DNS, database servers, NAS/SAN drives), our Web & Design team managing Cascade CMS (system settings, sites, templates, permissions) and managers coordinating each respective academic unit (A&S, business, education, law, marine science).
    Read full review
    MODX
    • The user interface was confusing at times.
    • Not a plug and play CMS system.
    • The site manager doesn't always run fast.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Hannon Hill
    Changing systems would require too much effort. Our institution is using Cascade Server, WordPress and Drupal but we only serve 2200 students so we have 1 too many content management systems. Reflecting on current technical resources we would like to drop down to 2. This effort hasn't moved forward because of the extensive work required to migrate content and train users in a new system.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    MODX
    It is the CMS we use the most, not because we know it well but because we literally tried many of other CMS and this one did it for us.
    However having said we really do not like the one shoe fits all approach. E..g for eCommerce we usually use PrestaShop etc. if a specialized CMS can do a task rather use that.
    However for a general CMS [MODX] is hard to beat.
    Read full review
    Usability
    Hannon Hill
    Cascade CMS is completely usable on mobile devices, we can train our content editors in a single 2-hour session, and we support 1,000 users with a very small team.
    There is a level of complexity for the system administrators, site managers and web programmers who implement templates and content types. But the complexity is neither arbitrary nor inconsistent – and once learned provides a powerful environment within which we can develop robust sites that are beautiful and powerful, yet easy for our content editors to manage.
    Read full review
    MODX
    Great and easy to use for both the coder and the end user. Especially if setup correctly by the coder.
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    Hannon Hill
    Amazing customer service and VERY customizable.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    MODX
    We have not had it go down due to bugs etc. especially when comparing it to other cms out there.
    Read full review
    Performance
    Hannon Hill
    Does a great job.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    MODX
    Damn its fast. really good page speed out of the box.
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    Hannon Hill
    They have always regarded any question or problem we encountered as very important. We have never felt that they ignore or downplay any issue and not once has anything been left unresolved. They also hold an annual conference where users are invited to attend and share their experiences and wisdom with the entire Cascade community. And with the care and support the provide, we all feel a part of that community.
    Read full review
    MODX
    Great community support on slack.
    If you have a paid plugin great support also esp from modmore
    If you have cloud hosting MODX support is fast and all servers are optimized for MODX
    Read full review
    In-Person Training
    Hannon Hill
    Training was helpful.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    MODX
    No answers on this topic
    Online Training
    Hannon Hill
    Still needed that physical help
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    MODX
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation Rating
    Hannon Hill
    The key to any CMS implementation is PLAN, PLAN, PLAN. Proper planning with Cascade can increase your satisfaction exponentially once the site migration/creation is complete. When all is said and done, your implementation can make your site run like a Yugo or Maserati. Be smart and deliberate in your decisions. Drive the Maserati. It is already paid for.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    MODX
    Good system
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    Hannon Hill
    We selected Cascade server seven years ago, and the CMS environment at the time was clearly different than it is today. We decided to go with a vendor solution rather than a free solution because the long term cost in hosting a free solution is not, in fact, free; we've found Cascade to have been an excellent choice for us.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    MODX
    The other company that we looked into was WordPress and all of the features that it offered our organization. What MODX offered to us from development to everyday use just made more sense for our organization as a whole. WordPress is still a great CMS platform, just not exactly what we were looking for.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Scalability
    Hannon Hill
    I used it only a few times.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    MODX
    Very scalable. e.g. in the [MODX] manager you can manage multiple websites at once without having to login else where. it is very convenient and this way resources and be easily managed and shared.
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    Hannon Hill
    • Initially, ROI was positive - because we completely redesigned the website when we implemented Cascade.
    • Over time, the inability to keep up with the latest interactive tools has reduced visitors time on site.
    • Also over time, the difficulty of use has led to less buy-in by backend users, leading to outdated pages, little timely information, and lower visitors.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    MODX
    • Increased security permissions of the users and freelancers who worked on our website.
    • Gave our developers the ability to create any page that they wanted with custom code.
    • Hindered our Marketing team's ability to stay on top of our content strategy with changes.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    MODX Screenshots

    Screenshot of MODX Manager InterfaceScreenshot of SEO Management - page levelProduct screenshotScreenshot of Easy editing landing pageScreenshot of Edit files directlyScreenshot of Create & edit custom fields