Joomla vs Mezzanine
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted content management systems options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Joomla
Versatile CMS balancing power and ease of use
VS
Mezzanine
Lightweight content management framework for Django
| Feature | Joomla | Mezzanine |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Content Management Systems | Content Management Systems |
| License | GPL-2.0 | BSD-2-Clause |
| Language | PHP | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 5,122 | ★ 4,822 |
| First released | 2005 | 2010 |
| Replaces | Wix, Squarespace | WordPress |
Why pick each one
Choose Mezzanine if…
- Quick to get a Django site running
- Includes blogging out of the box
Frequently asked questions
Is Joomla or Mezzanine better?
Neither is universally better. Joomla has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Joomla and Mezzanine free and open-source?
Yes. Joomla is licensed under GPL-2.0 and Mezzanine under BSD-2-Clause. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Joomla and Mezzanine with Docker?
Joomla: yes. Mezzanine: yes.