October CMS vs PublicCMS
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 | PublicCMS |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Health score | 93 · Excellent | 86 · Excellent |
| Category | Content Management Systems | Content Management Systems |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | PHP | Java |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 1,024 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal, source | bare-metal, source |
| GitHub stars | ★ 11,147 | ★ 2,097 |
| First released | 2014 | 2015 |
| Replaces | WordPress, Wix | WordPress |
What are October CMS and PublicCMS?
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
PublicCMS
PublicCMS is an open-source content management system written in Java that generates static pages for high performance and supports managing multiple sites. It is aimed at organizations needing a fast, template-driven publishing platform.
- Static page generation
- Template-driven
- Multi-site support
- High performance
October CMS vs PublicCMS: key differences
October CMS is written in PHP, while PublicCMS is built with Java. Licensing differs — MIT for October CMS versus Apache-2.0 for PublicCMS. October CMS is the lighter option, starting around 512 MB of RAM against 1,024 MB for PublicCMS. October CMS has the considerably larger community, at 11,147 GitHub stars versus 2,097. October CMS lists first-class Docker deployment; PublicCMS does not.
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 PublicCMS if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- Active community (2.1k GitHub stars)
- Written in Java
Frequently asked questions
Is October CMS or PublicCMS better?
October CMS is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider PublicCMS if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are October CMS and PublicCMS free and open-source?
Yes. October CMS is licensed under MIT and PublicCMS under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run October CMS and PublicCMS with Docker?
October CMS: yes. PublicCMS: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, October CMS or PublicCMS?
October CMS has the smaller minimum footprint at 512 MB of RAM, compared to about 1,024 MB for PublicCMS. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.