Hexo 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 | Hexo | Typecho |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 98 · Excellent | 85 · Excellent |
| Category | Blogging Platforms | Blogging Platforms |
| License | MIT | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | TypeScript | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | bare-metal, docker, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 41,774 | ★ 12,446 |
| First released | 2012 | 2008 |
| Replaces | WordPress, Blogger | WordPress, Blogger |
What are Hexo and Typecho?
Hexo
Hexo is an open-source static blog framework built with Node.js that turns Markdown into a fast static site. It is widely used by developers for personal blogs with a rich plugin ecosystem.
- Fast Markdown-based builds
- Large plugin and theme ecosystem
- One-command deployment
- Highly extensible
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
Hexo vs Typecho: key differences
Hexo is written in TypeScript, while Typecho is built with PHP. Licensing differs — MIT for Hexo versus GPL-2.0 for Typecho. Typecho is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 256 MB for Hexo. Typecho is the more established project (first released 2008), while Hexo arrived in 2012. Hexo has the considerably larger community, at 41,774 GitHub stars versus 12,446. Typecho lists first-class Docker deployment; Hexo does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Hexo if…
- Popular with developers
- Rich plugin ecosystem
Watch out for
- No admin UI
- Node toolchain required
Choose Typecho if…
- Very lightweight
- Clean codebase
Watch out for
- Documentation mostly in Chinese
- Smaller global community
Frequently asked questions
Is Hexo or Typecho better?
Neither is universally better. Hexo 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 Hexo and Typecho free and open-source?
Yes. Hexo is licensed under MIT and Typecho under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Hexo and Typecho with Docker?
Hexo: check the project docs for container support. Typecho: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Hexo or Typecho?
Typecho has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for Hexo. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.