Hugo vs Simply Static

Compare Hugo vs Simply Static and explore which static site generator is for you.
Both are popular solutions for running static sites, let’s see how they differ.

Simply Static vs Hugo Features

Simply Static and Hugo both allow you to create a static website, but they work differently.

Using Hugo, you’ll create a new site and add content using the command line and markdown. It’s a complicated process that requires you to be knowledgeable in creating layouts, templates, and static content in markdown files.

When using Hugo, you’re also restricted by the look and feel of your finished static website. Hugo has a range of templates/Hugo themes you can use and customize, but it lacks the user-friendly nature of, for example, WordPress.

Simply Static allows you to create your website in WordPress and then make it static with a click of a button. This way, you can keep WordPress as your CMS (content management system) but get all the benefits of a static website. It’s as easy as that.

Here’s how they compare in a little more detail:

Features	Simply Static	Hugo
Manage Content	WordPress	Markdown
Can run locally (on your computer)	✅ (with LocalWP)	✅
Includes Hosting	❌	❌
DeploymentThe act of pushing the static files generated by Simply Static to a live environment where users can access them. methods	ZIP, local directoryA folder on your computer’s hard drive where files are stored. In the context of Simply Static, this could be the place …, GitHubA web-based platform for version control and collaboration, allowing multiple people to work on projects at once. (GitHub PagesA hosting service from GitHub for publishing static websites directly from a GitHub repository., CloudflareA company that provides services like security and website speed improvement. It acts as a protective layer between the … Pages, NetlifyA platform for automating web projects that provides hosting and serverless backend services for web applications and st…..), Amazon AWSAmazon Web Services (AWS) is a cloud computing platform that offers various services, including storage solutions like S…AWS S3Amazon Web Services (AWS) is a cloud computing platform that offers various services, including storage solutions like S…, BunnyCDNBunnyCDN is a service that helps your website load faster by storing copies of your site’s files in multiple locations., or via SFTPSecure File Transfer Protocol. A secure method of transferring files between a local system and a remote server.	GitHub Pages, Cloudflare Pages, Netlify, and Amazon AWS S3
No-Code	✅	❌ (CLICommand Line Interface. This is a text-based way to interact with your computer or specific software, like Simply Static… required)
Easy updates	✅ (Single-, Build- and Incremental Exports)	❌ (Only full exports)
Extendable	✅	✅
Free version available	✅	✅
Comments integrationThe act of combining different systems, software, or functionalities to work together as a unified whole.	✅	✅
Forms Integration	✅	❌
Search Integration	✅	❌
Multilingual support	✅	❌
Optimized Output (MinificationThe process of removing unnecessary characters from code files to make them smaller and improve website speed., Images, cleanup code)	✅	❌
Premium support from the developers	✅	❌ (only community forum)

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