Cobalt vs JBake
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted blogging platforms options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Cobalt | JBake |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 81 · Excellent | 54 · Fair |
| Category | Blogging Platforms | Blogging Platforms |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | Rust | Java |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 1,538 | ★ 1,159 |
| First released | 2015 | 2013 |
| Replaces | Jekyll, Hugo | Jekyll, WordPress |
What are Cobalt and JBake?
Cobalt
Cobalt is a static site generator written in Rust that builds blogs and websites from Markdown and Liquid templates. It produces fast, self-contained static output and ships as a single binary.
- Single-binary tool
- Liquid templating
- Markdown content
- Fast builds
JBake
JBake is a static site and blog generator written in Java that is geared towards developers wanting to produce documentation, websites, and blogs. It supports multiple markup and template engines.
- JVM-based generation
- Multiple template engines
- Markdown and AsciiDoc support
- Static output
Cobalt vs JBake: key differences
Cobalt is written in Rust, while JBake is built with Java. Cobalt is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 256 MB for JBake. JBake is the more established project (first released 2013), while Cobalt arrived in 2015.
Why pick each one
Choose Cobalt if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Active community (1.5k GitHub stars)
- Written in Rust
Choose JBake if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Active community (1.2k GitHub stars)
- Written in Java
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Cobalt or JBake better?
Cobalt is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider JBake if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Cobalt and JBake free and open-source?
Yes. Cobalt is licensed under MIT and JBake under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Cobalt and JBake with Docker?
Cobalt: check the project docs for container support. JBake: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Cobalt or JBake?
Cobalt has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for JBake. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.