Eleventy vs Halo
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
Halo
Powerful and easy-to-use open-source website builder
| Feature | Eleventy | Halo |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 95 · Excellent | 99 · Excellent |
| Category | Blogging Platforms | Blogging Platforms |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | JavaScript | Java |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 19,929 | ★ 39,879 |
| First released | 2018 | 2018 |
| Replaces | WordPress, Medium | WordPress, Medium |
What are Eleventy and Halo?
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
Halo
Halo is a modern open-source blogging and website platform written in Java. It offers a clean admin interface, a plugin and theme marketplace, and an extensible architecture.
- Modern admin interface
- Plugin and theme marketplace
- REST API
- Markdown editor
Eleventy vs Halo: key differences
Eleventy is written in JavaScript, while Halo is built with Java. Licensing differs — MIT for Eleventy versus GPL-3.0 for Halo. Eleventy is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Halo. Halo has the considerably larger community, at 39,879 GitHub stars versus 19,929. Halo lists first-class Docker deployment; Eleventy does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Eleventy if…
- Very flexible templating
- Lean output
Watch out for
- No built-in admin
- Requires Node tooling
Choose Halo if…
- Polished modern UI
- Active development
Watch out for
- Higher memory needs from Java
- Docs strongest in Chinese
Frequently asked questions
Is Eleventy or Halo better?
Neither is universally better. Halo has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Eleventy and Halo free and open-source?
Yes. Eleventy is licensed under MIT and Halo under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Eleventy and Halo with Docker?
Eleventy: check the project docs for container support. Halo: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Eleventy or Halo?
Eleventy has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Halo. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.