Jekyll vs Publii
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
VS
Publii
Desktop CMS for building static blogs and sites
| Feature | Jekyll | Publii |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 85 · Excellent | 91 · Excellent |
| Category | Blogging Platforms | Blogging Platforms |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | Ruby | HTML |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | binary, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 51,683 | ★ 7,318 |
| First released | 2008 | 2017 |
| Replaces | WordPress, Blogger | WordPress, Squarespace |
What are Jekyll and Publii?
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
Publii
Publii is an open-source desktop application for building fast, secure static websites and blogs. It provides a friendly graphical interface and publishes the generated site to hosting or Git.
- Desktop GUI for static sites
- One-click publishing
- Built-in themes
- No server runtime needed
Jekyll vs Publii: key differences
Jekyll is written in Ruby, while Publii is built with HTML. Licensing differs — MIT for Jekyll versus GPL-3.0 for Publii. Jekyll is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Publii. Jekyll is the more established project (first released 2008), while Publii arrived in 2017. Jekyll has the considerably larger community, at 51,683 GitHub stars versus 7,318.
Why pick each one
Choose Jekyll if…
- Mature and well documented
- Great for personal blogs
Watch out for
- Slower builds on large sites
- Ruby toolchain required
Choose Publii if…
- Very approachable for non-developers
- Secure static output
Watch out for
- Single-author workflow
- Desktop app required to edit
Frequently asked questions
Is Jekyll or Publii better?
Neither is universally better. Jekyll has the larger community, while Publii is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Jekyll and Publii free and open-source?
Yes. Jekyll is licensed under MIT and Publii under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Jekyll and Publii with Docker?
Jekyll: check the project docs for container support. Publii: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, Jekyll or Publii?
Jekyll has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Publii. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.