MkDocs vs PhpWiki
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted wikis & documentation options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
MkDocs
Documentation site generator for technical teams
VS
PhpWiki
Classic PHP wiki engine, the first wiki in PHP
| Feature | MkDocs | PhpWiki |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Wikis & Documentation | Wikis & Documentation |
| License | BSD-2-Clause | GPL-2.0 |
| Language | Python | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | binary, source | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 22,317 | ★ 50 |
| First released | 2014 | 1999 |
| Replaces | Confluence, GitBook | Confluence |
Why pick each one
Frequently asked questions
Is MkDocs or PhpWiki better?
MkDocs is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider PhpWiki if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are MkDocs and PhpWiki free and open-source?
Yes. MkDocs is licensed under BSD-2-Clause and PhpWiki under GPL-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run MkDocs and PhpWiki with Docker?
MkDocs: check the project docs for container support. PhpWiki: check the project docs for container support.