Transactional content management systems (T-CMS) assist in managing e-commerce transactions.

Integrated content management systems (I-CMS) assist in managing enterprise documents and content.

Digital Asset Management systems assist in managing the lifecycle of digital media (video, graphics, marketing materials, photos, multimedia presentations).

Publications management systems (P-CMS) assist in managing the publications (manuals, books, help, guidelines, references) content life cycle.

Learning management systems (L-CMS) assist in managing the web-based learning content life cycle. See also managed learning environment.

Document imaging systems are also generally considered under the family of general content management.

Enterprise content management systems (E-CMS or ECM) vary in their functionality. Some support both the web and publications content life cycle, while others support the web content life cycle and either transactional content or customer relationship management content. The definition of ECM put forth by AIIM includes methods and tools that "capture, manage, store, preserve and deliver" content across an enterprise. "Manage" contains components like document management, collaboration, business process management, records management, email management, workflow and web content management. The ECM concept is not restricted to web-based technologies but includes client/server and hosted/On-demand solutions

Platform Content Management Systems (PCMS) provide the ability to manage all objects (files, folders, programs, etc) on a given set of systems.

Web Portal Content Management Systems - Browser based software that allows concurrent users secure predetermined access to both common digital assets and individual digital dashboards.