Mezzanine vs Pico
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted content management systems options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | Mezzanine | Pico |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 66 · Good | 65 · Good |
| Category | Content Management Systems | Content Management Systems |
| License | BSD-2-Clause | MIT |
| Language | Python | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | bare-metal, docker, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 4,816 | ★ 3,905 |
| First released | 2010 | 2012 |
| Replaces | WordPress | WordPress |
What are Mezzanine and Pico?
Mezzanine
Mezzanine is an open-source content management platform built on Django that provides a simple yet flexible CMS out of the box. It includes a blog engine, in-line editing, and rich content tools.
- Built-in blog engine
- In-line content editing
- Hierarchical page tree
- Django integration
Pico
Pico is a minimal, fast flat-file content management system that uses Markdown files for content and Twig templates for layout. It needs no database and no admin backend.
- No database required
- Markdown content
- Twig templating
- Tiny footprint
Mezzanine vs Pico: key differences
Mezzanine is written in Python, while Pico is built with PHP. Licensing differs — BSD-2-Clause for Mezzanine versus MIT for Pico. Pico is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Mezzanine. Mezzanine is the more established project (first released 2010), while Pico arrived in 2012.
Why pick each one
Choose Mezzanine if…
- Quick to get a Django site running
- Includes blogging out of the box
Watch out for
- Development has slowed
- Smaller community now
Choose Pico if…
- Extremely lightweight
- Zero configuration to start
Watch out for
- No admin UI by default
- Not for large dynamic sites
Frequently asked questions
Is Mezzanine or Pico better?
Neither is universally better. Mezzanine has the larger community, while Pico is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Mezzanine and Pico free and open-source?
Yes. Mezzanine is licensed under BSD-2-Clause and Pico under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Mezzanine and Pico with Docker?
Mezzanine: yes. Pico: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Mezzanine or Pico?
Pico has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Mezzanine. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.