Comparing editorial workflows in CMS products: corrections

Compare a correction by asking three questions: which editorial state it occupies, who can make the next transition, and which version readers see while work is pending. Drupal explicitly keeps a published version live beside a working copy; WordPress provides role and revision details, Contentful has a staged workflow example, and Webflow's named publishing areas leave the correction path unclear.

Draw the route

Use a correction to a published article or campaign page: create a draft, check it, return it for changes, then release it. For each CMS, distinguish what its stated workflow establishes from what remains unspecified.

Keep status, permission and version separate. Status is the item's place in the process, permission determines who can act, and version identifies the content saved or visible to readers. A review label alone does not show whether approval applies to the exact revision eventually released.

Compare documented routes

WordPress has six pre-defined roles: Super Admin, Administrator, Editor, Author, Contributor and Subscriber. Capabilities can be added or removed, and roles can be introduced or removed. An Editor can publish and manage posts; a Subscriber has only the read capability.

WordPress revisions record each saved draft or published update, show what was added, unchanged or removed, and allow a revision to be restored. These role and revision details do not establish the review hand-off or which version readers see while a correction is pending.

Drupal Content Moderation allows a published version to remain live while a separate working copy undergoes review before publication. The default Editorial workflow is created with the standard Drupal installation profile and can be customised.

Workflow states such as draft, ready for review or approved are defined using the Workflows module. Another Drupal workflow example names states including Draft, Review, Ready to Publish, Published and Archive, and transitions such as Needs work, Needs review and Publish; the sources do not present these as the default Editorial states.

Workflows defines a set of states and transitions that Content Moderation then attaches to content, applying different states and transitions to entities as needed.

Non-administrator participation requires permissions at People > Permissions, where roles can be allowed to make workflow moves.

A Contentful workflow example moves content through Draft, Review, Approved and Published. Submit for review is an example of moving an entry from Draft to Review; transitions can be user-driven or system-driven.

In the Contentful example, a Contributor may create drafts and an Editor may approve and publish. Specific roles or teams can be assigned to workflow steps through space roles and the Workflows app.

Webflow identifies saving and publishing Collection items, a Publishing workflow, and Site roles and permissions. Those named areas do not establish item states, review transitions, staging behaviour, approval roles or which version readers see during a correction.

Across the four products, Drupal describes a live published version beside a review copy. WordPress details roles and revision history; Contentful provides example states, transitions and role assignments; Webflow's named publishing areas leave the correction route and reader visibility unclear.

Editorial Workflow Features Across CMS Platforms

Use an exception to expose the boundary

A Contentful workflow example can move an entry from Draft to Review with Submit for review, then through Approved to Published. A Contributor may create drafts and an Editor may approve and publish. The example does not specify a send-back transition.

For a correction to content already live, Drupal explicitly keeps the published version live while a separate working copy undergoes review. The Drupal overview describes this through Workflows, which apply different states and transitions to entities as needed.

WordPress revision history lets users inspect and restore saved versions, but those details do not identify which version readers see while a correction awaits review. Contentful's workflow example and Webflow's named publishing areas likewise do not specify whether readers see the old or pending version.

Keep a decision record

Record the configured states and transitions, who can make each move, what readers see during review, and which revision is released. Drupal exposes configurable states, transitions and role permissions; WordPress roles and revisions answer different parts of the check. Contentful's role-assigned steps provide a workflow example, while Webflow's named areas leave the correction path and visibility unanswered.

Key Workflow Capabilities by CMS