Static site generators are not new, but they are becoming much more popular again as the web matures. This is due to the need for speed, the challenge of security, and the constant need to reduce costs. I’ll stick my neck out and nominate the six best static site generators (SSGs) I know of in this article.

For those new to static site generators and wondering if you might benefit from having a static website instead of a dynamic site (such as WordPress), I’ve got you covered. We’ll briefly discuss where static sites excel and the kind of sites that lend themselves to static hosting.

If you’re seeking a static site generator, you may already know what you’re looking for in terms of features. You’ll get a good feel for each option in this article.

Finally, we’ll look at Tiiny.host—a simple, secure, full-featured, and inexpensive hosting service for your fast static site project.

Okay, let’s go.

What’s wrong with dynamic sites?

Dynamic websites wait until your visitor reaches your website before rendering the page they will see.

This on-the-fly page rendering process has some serious drawbacks.

For one thing, the time your visitor spends waiting for the server to render the page slows down your website. If too much time goes by with nothing happening in the browser, your visitor might leave.

Secondly, while the server is rendering the page, it is vulnerable to hacker attacks and malware injection. This threatens the security of your site.

Lastly, dynamic sites require more resources to run and, therefore, more expensive hosting plans.

Why are static sites sometimes better?

Static websites solve the problems listed above. Here’s how.

Static websites have pre-prepared (pre-rendered) web pages that serve up the same information to everyone who visits your website. The pages are delivered directly to your visitors.

No waiting for rendering makes your site faster.

Hackers and malware can’t attack a server that isn’t running. Your security increases.

It takes fewer resources and no server interaction to deliver your pages, so you don’t need an expensive server. You save money. And static sites are easier to build.

What kinds of sites are best as static sites?

Since webpages created by static site generators don’t change, they are best for informational sites that don’t often need editing.

Also, there is no significant interaction possible with your visitor. You can’t personalize their visit or customize each visitor’s experience.

The kind of information that lends itself to static site hosting includes:

Personal blog posts
Documentation pages
Landing pages
Portfolio pages
Brochure sites

You can’t beat static sites such as these for speed, security, and low cost.

What are the best static site generators?

Each SSG has its own strengths. They are all different but achieve the same goal: rendering static web pages.

I’ve included these six SSGs based on my own experience, discussions with other developers, and their popularity in the community.

Each SSG has a link to a complete look at that particular site generator. This gives you a more complete picture of the SSG you might wish to read up on.

Jekyll

Jekyll is a top static site generator that has been around since 2008. It’s written in Ruby and is well-known for its simplicity, ease of use, and wide range of features. Jekyll is often used for blogs, portfolios, and simple websites.

An advantage of Jekyll is its library of plugins and themes. It has a command-line interface (CLI), so developers will probably be more comfortable using it.

Hugo

Hugo is written in Go. It’s fast, efficient, and easy to use. Hugo’s build speed is lightning fast, thanks to its multithreaded architecture. Hugo is also known for its flexibility and ability to easily handle large websites.

There’s a large library of themes and templates available. The templates are written in a simple language called Go templating.

Hugo has a built-in server, allowing you to preview your site before deploying it. Many SSGs lack this important feature.

And you can easily host your Hugo site with Tiiny Host!

Gatsby

Gatsby uses React and GraphQL. It is designed to be easy to use. It’s designed for building complex websites that require a lot of dynamic content.

It’s known for its fast build times and its ability to generate a static site that is fully optimized for performance.

The plugin system has a wide range of both plugins and libraries. Gatsby’s plugins are easy to install and can help you add features like SEO, analytics, and authentication.

Publii:

Eleventy

Related article: An Introductory Guide to Eleventy

Eleventy is gaining popularity among developers. It’s written in JavaScript and is designed to be flexible and easy to use. Eleventy is known for its simplicity, fast build times, and ability to work with a wide range of templating languages.

Unlike the others, it doesn’t have a built-in theme system, so you’ll need to create your own templates or use an existing template library.

However, Eleventy’s templating language is easy to learn, and its flexibility means you can use any templating language you want.

Simply Static

Many people seeking SSGs already have a dynamic site built in WordPress.

Simply Static is an open-source WordPress plugin allowing you to convert your dynamic WordPress website into a static site.

It also offers advanced features, such as the ability to exclude certain pages or posts from the static version of the site, and provides support for custom post types.

How do I host my static website?

Visit Tiiny.host for fast, secure, and easy hosting of your static website.

Once you visit the homepage at Tiiny.host, you are three simple steps from your project being live on the web.

Enter the link-name for your site.
Choose HTML, then drag and drop or upload your zipped website file.
Click the big blue “Upload” button.

That’s it!

Next steps

Tiiny.host offers everything you need for sharing a professional or personal website on the internet.

Tiiny.host customer service is awesome! Contact them directly at Tiiny.host/help and see. They’ll answer your questions about their services, help you out with any problems, and explain any issues raised by this article.

6 best static site generators in 2024

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