Automad 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.
Automad
Flat-file CMS and template engine in one
VS
Mezzanine
Lightweight content management framework for Django
| Feature | Automad | Mezzanine |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 82 · Excellent | 66 · Good |
| Category | Content Management Systems | Content Management Systems |
| License | MIT | BSD-2-Clause |
| Language | TypeScript | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 937 | ★ 4,816 |
| First released | 2014 | 2010 |
| Replaces | WordPress | WordPress |
What are Automad and Mezzanine?
Automad
Automad is a flexible flat-file content management system with a built-in template engine and an in-page editing dashboard. It stores all content in text files for easy version control.
- Flat-file content
- Built-in template engine
- In-page editing dashboard
- Git-friendly
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
Automad vs Mezzanine: key differences
Automad is written in TypeScript, while Mezzanine is built with Python. Licensing differs — MIT for Automad versus BSD-2-Clause for Mezzanine. Automad 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 Automad arrived in 2014. Mezzanine has the considerably larger community, at 4,816 GitHub stars versus 937.
Why pick each one
Choose Automad if…
- No database to manage
- Self-contained and portable
Watch out for
- Small community
- Limited extensions
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 Automad or Mezzanine better?
Neither is universally better. Mezzanine has the larger community, while Automad is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Automad and Mezzanine free and open-source?
Yes. Automad is licensed under MIT and Mezzanine under BSD-2-Clause. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Automad and Mezzanine with Docker?
Automad: yes. Mezzanine: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Automad or Mezzanine?
Automad 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.