Eleventy vs Gridsome
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted blogging platforms options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Eleventy
Simpler static site generator for fast websites
VS
Gridsome
Vue.js static site generator with a GraphQL data layer
| Feature | Eleventy | Gridsome |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 95 · Excellent | 29 · At risk |
| Category | Blogging Platforms | Blogging Platforms |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | JavaScript | JavaScript |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | source, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 19,929 | ★ 8,464 |
| First released | 2018 | 2018 |
| Replaces | WordPress, Medium | Gatsby, WordPress |
What are Eleventy and Gridsome?
Eleventy
Eleventy is a flexible open-source static site generator written in JavaScript that works with many templating languages. It is popular for blogs and documentation due to its simplicity and speed.
- Supports many template languages
- Fast incremental builds
- Zero client-side JavaScript by default
- Flexible data cascade
Gridsome
Gridsome is a free and open-source Vue.js-powered framework for building static generated websites and apps that are fast by default. It pulls data from any source into a unified GraphQL layer for use in pages and templates.
- Unified GraphQL data layer
- Vue single-page experience
- Plugin sources
- Static prerendering
Eleventy vs Gridsome: key differences
Both projects are written in JavaScript. Eleventy is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Gridsome. Eleventy has the considerably larger community, at 19,929 GitHub stars versus 8,464.
Why pick each one
Choose Eleventy if…
- Very flexible templating
- Lean output
Watch out for
- No built-in admin
- Requires Node tooling
Choose Gridsome if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Mature project with 8.5k GitHub stars
- Written in JavaScript
- Lightweight — runs in 512 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Eleventy or Gridsome better?
Neither is universally better. Eleventy has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Eleventy and Gridsome free and open-source?
Yes. Eleventy is licensed under MIT and Gridsome under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Eleventy and Gridsome with Docker?
Eleventy: check the project docs for container support. Gridsome: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Eleventy or Gridsome?
Eleventy has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Gridsome. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.