Gatsby vs Typecho
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted blogging platforms options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Gatsby | Typecho |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 96 · Excellent | 85 · Excellent |
| Category | Blogging Platforms | Blogging Platforms |
| License | MIT | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | JavaScript | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 1,024 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | bare-metal, docker, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 55,942 | ★ 12,446 |
| First released | 2015 | 2008 |
| Replaces | WordPress, Medium | WordPress, Blogger |
What are Gatsby and Typecho?
Gatsby
Gatsby is an open-source React-based framework for building fast static websites and blogs. It pulls content from many sources via a GraphQL data layer and produces highly optimized output.
- React-powered sites
- GraphQL data layer
- Rich plugin ecosystem
- Performance-optimized output
Typecho
Typecho is an open-source blogging platform written in PHP, focused on being simple, lightweight, and fast. It is especially popular among developers in the Chinese-speaking community.
- Lightweight and fast
- Markdown support
- Plugin and theme ecosystem
- Simple installation
Gatsby vs Typecho: key differences
Gatsby is written in JavaScript, while Typecho is built with PHP. Licensing differs — MIT for Gatsby versus GPL-2.0 for Typecho. Typecho is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for Gatsby. Typecho is the more established project (first released 2008), while Gatsby arrived in 2015. Gatsby has the considerably larger community, at 55,942 GitHub stars versus 12,446. Typecho lists first-class Docker deployment; Gatsby does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Gatsby if…
- Great for React developers
- Pulls content from many sources
Watch out for
- Heavier build process
- Steeper learning curve
Choose Typecho if…
- Very lightweight
- Clean codebase
Watch out for
- Documentation mostly in Chinese
- Smaller global community
Frequently asked questions
Is Gatsby or Typecho better?
Neither is universally better. Gatsby has the larger community, while Typecho is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Gatsby and Typecho free and open-source?
Yes. Gatsby is licensed under MIT and Typecho under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Gatsby and Typecho with Docker?
Gatsby: check the project docs for container support. Typecho: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Gatsby or Typecho?
Typecho has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for Gatsby. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.