October CMS vs Pagekit
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted content management systems options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | October CMS | Pagekit |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 93 · Excellent | 15 · At risk |
| Status | Actively maintained | Archived |
| Category | Content Management Systems | Content Management Systems |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | PHP | PHP |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | docker, bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 11,147 | ★ 5,454 |
| First released | 2014 | 2014 |
| Replaces | WordPress, Wix | WordPress |
What are October CMS and Pagekit?
October CMS
October CMS is a self-hosted content management system built on the Laravel framework, designed to make web development simple again. It uses flat-file templating with a clean backend for content editors.
- Built on Laravel
- Flat-file twig-style templating
- Plugin marketplace
- Clean developer experience
Pagekit
Pagekit is a modular, open-source content management system with a clean, modern interface built on Symfony components and Vue.js. It includes a blog and a marketplace for extensions.
- Modern Vue.js interface
- Modular architecture
- Built-in blog
- Marketplace for extensions
October CMS vs Pagekit: key differences
The biggest difference is maintenance: Pagekit's repository is archived and no longer developed, while October CMS is actively maintained. Both projects are written in PHP. Pagekit is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for October CMS. October CMS has the considerably larger community, at 11,147 GitHub stars versus 5,454.
Why pick each one
Choose October CMS if…
- Great for Laravel developers
- Simple, transparent architecture
Watch out for
- Some plugins are paid
- Less suited to non-developers
Choose Pagekit if…
- Clean, modern admin
- Lightweight
Watch out for
- Development has stalled
- Limited active maintenance
Frequently asked questions
Is October CMS or Pagekit better?
Neither is universally better. October CMS has the larger community, while Pagekit is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are October CMS and Pagekit free and open-source?
Yes. October CMS is licensed under MIT and Pagekit under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run October CMS and Pagekit with Docker?
October CMS: yes. Pagekit: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, October CMS or Pagekit?
Pagekit has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for October CMS. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.