FlatPress vs Jekyll
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted blogging platforms options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Jekyll
Simple, blog-aware static site generator
| Feature | FlatPress | Jekyll |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 73 · Good | 85 · Excellent |
| Category | Blogging Platforms | Blogging Platforms |
| License | GPL-2.0 | MIT |
| Language | PHP | Ruby |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal, source | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 215 | ★ 51,683 |
| First released | 2005 | 2008 |
| Replaces | WordPress, Blogger | WordPress, Blogger |
What are FlatPress and Jekyll?
FlatPress
FlatPress is an open-source blogging engine that requires no database, storing all content in flat files. It is designed to be simple, fast, and easy to deploy on minimal hosting.
- No database required
- Flat-file storage
- Plugin and theme support
- Lightweight
Jekyll
Jekyll is a popular open-source static site generator that transforms Markdown and Liquid templates into static blogs and websites. It pioneered the modern static-site approach and integrates with GitHub Pages.
- Blog-aware by design
- Markdown and Liquid templating
- Large plugin ecosystem
- GitHub Pages support
FlatPress vs Jekyll: key differences
FlatPress is written in PHP, while Jekyll is built with Ruby. Licensing differs — GPL-2.0 for FlatPress versus MIT for Jekyll. FlatPress is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 256 MB for Jekyll. FlatPress is the more established project (first released 2005), while Jekyll arrived in 2008. Jekyll has the considerably larger community, at 51,683 GitHub stars versus 215.
Why pick each one
Choose FlatPress if…
- Trivial to install and back up
- Runs on minimal hosting
Watch out for
- Small community
- Basic feature set
Choose Jekyll if…
- Mature and well documented
- Great for personal blogs
Watch out for
- Slower builds on large sites
- Ruby toolchain required
Frequently asked questions
Is FlatPress or Jekyll better?
Neither is universally better. Jekyll has the larger community, while FlatPress is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are FlatPress and Jekyll free and open-source?
Yes. FlatPress is licensed under GPL-2.0 and Jekyll under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run FlatPress and Jekyll with Docker?
FlatPress: check the project docs for container support. Jekyll: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, FlatPress or Jekyll?
FlatPress has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for Jekyll. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.