Craft CMS vs Grav
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted content management systems options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Grav
Fast flat-file CMS with no database required
| Feature | Craft CMS | Grav |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 88 · Excellent | 95 · Excellent |
| Category | Content Management Systems | Content Management Systems |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | PHP | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 3,608 | ★ 15,671 |
| First released | 2013 | 2014 |
| Replaces | WordPress, Sitecore | WordPress, Squarespace |
What are Craft CMS and Grav?
Craft CMS
Craft CMS is a content management system focused on giving developers and designers complete control over content structure and markup. The core product is open source with optional commercial editions.
- Flexible content modeling
- Twig templating
- GraphQL API
- Plugin store
Grav
Grav is a modern open-source flat-file CMS that requires no database, storing content in Markdown files. It is fast to deploy and well suited to blogs, documentation, and small to medium websites.
- No database needed
- Markdown-based content
- Plugin and theme ecosystem
- Fast page rendering
Craft CMS vs Grav: key differences
Both projects are written in PHP. Grav is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Craft CMS. Grav has the considerably larger community, at 15,671 GitHub stars versus 3,608.
Why pick each one
Choose Craft CMS if…
- Excellent for bespoke sites
- Clean control panel
Watch out for
- Pro edition is paid
- Not ideal for non-developers
Choose Grav if…
- Trivial to back up and migrate
- Quick to set up
Watch out for
- Less ideal for very large sites
- Admin plugin needed for GUI editing
Frequently asked questions
Is Craft CMS or Grav better?
Grav is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Craft CMS if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Craft CMS and Grav free and open-source?
Yes. Craft CMS is licensed under MIT and Grav under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Craft CMS and Grav with Docker?
Craft CMS: yes. Grav: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Craft CMS or Grav?
Grav has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Craft CMS. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.