Hexo vs Serendipity
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted blogging platforms options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Hexo
Fast and simple blog framework powered by Node.js
VS
Serendipity
PHP-powered weblog application with strong spam control
| Feature | Hexo | Serendipity |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Blogging Platforms | Blogging Platforms |
| License | MIT | BSD-3-Clause |
| Language | TypeScript | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 41,769 | ★ 226 |
| First released | 2012 | 2003 |
| Replaces | WordPress, Blogger | WordPress, Blogger |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is Hexo or Serendipity better?
Neither is universally better. Hexo has the larger community, while Serendipity is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Hexo and Serendipity free and open-source?
Yes. Hexo is licensed under MIT and Serendipity under BSD-3-Clause. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Hexo and Serendipity with Docker?
Hexo: check the project docs for container support. Serendipity: yes.