Anchor CMS vs Mezzanine
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted content management systems options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Anchor CMS | Mezzanine |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 15 · At risk | 66 · Good |
| Status | Archived | Actively maintained |
| Category | Content Management Systems | Content Management Systems |
| License | GPL-3.0 | BSD-2-Clause |
| Language | PHP | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, docker, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,293 | ★ 4,816 |
| First released | 2012 | 2010 |
| Replaces | WordPress | WordPress |
What are Anchor CMS and Mezzanine?
Anchor CMS
Anchor CMS is a super-simple, lightweight open-source blogging platform and CMS written in PHP. It focuses on minimalism and getting out of the writer's way.
- Minimal and lightweight
- Markdown editing
- Simple theming
- Quick setup
Mezzanine
Mezzanine is an open-source content management platform built on Django that provides a simple yet flexible CMS out of the box. It includes a blog engine, in-line editing, and rich content tools.
- Built-in blog engine
- In-line content editing
- Hierarchical page tree
- Django integration
Anchor CMS vs Mezzanine: key differences
The biggest difference is maintenance: Anchor CMS's repository is archived and no longer developed, while Mezzanine is actively maintained. Anchor CMS is written in PHP, while Mezzanine is built with Python. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0 for Anchor CMS versus BSD-2-Clause for Mezzanine. Anchor CMS is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Mezzanine. Mezzanine is the more established project (first released 2010), while Anchor CMS arrived in 2012.
Why pick each one
Choose Anchor CMS if…
- Very lightweight
- Easy installation
Watch out for
- Limited features
- Development inactive
Choose Mezzanine if…
- Quick to get a Django site running
- Includes blogging out of the box
Watch out for
- Development has slowed
- Smaller community now
Frequently asked questions
Is Anchor CMS or Mezzanine better?
Neither is universally better. Mezzanine has the larger community, while Anchor CMS is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Anchor CMS and Mezzanine free and open-source?
Yes. Anchor CMS is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Mezzanine under BSD-2-Clause. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Anchor CMS and Mezzanine with Docker?
Anchor CMS: yes. Mezzanine: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Anchor CMS or Mezzanine?
Anchor CMS has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Mezzanine. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.