LinuxLinks, like most modern websites, is dynamic in that content is stored in a database and converted into presentation-ready HTML when readers access the site.
While we employ built-in server caching which creates static versions of the site, we don’t generate a full, static HTML website based on raw data and a set of templates. However, sometimes a full, static HTML website is desirable. Because HTML pages are all prebuilt, they load extremely quickly in web browsers.
There are lots of other advantages of running a full, static HTML website.
Here are some of the main advantages:
- Less software is needed to produce a static site. A small software stack can improve security. Static sites do not contain dynamic content, and are therefore immune to most common attacks;
- Obsolescence. Running a dynamic site relies on a content management system that constantly needs to be updated. The foundations of a dynamic site changes over time;
- Cost – every time a visitor accesses a page, a set of database queries are made with dynamic sites. While caching reduces these queries, there are always pages that aren’t in the cache or need to be refreshed. With a static site, the load on the server is considerably reduced;
- Previewable – as static sites are developed locally, you can play around with the site to your heart’s content without affecting the live site;
- A static site means that data is easier to export than if it’s contained within a database;
- Versionable – ideal to be used with version control system, such as Git.
A static site works very well in certain use cases. For example, it’s great for documentation. And static sites can be just as engaging as dynamic sites. The only real difference is that all the HTML is generated before being uploaded.
To provide an insight into the quality of software that is available, we have compiled a list of 17 best Python static site generators. All of these tools are released under a freely distributable license. Here’s our verdict captured in a legendary LinuxLinks-style ratings chart.
Click the links in the table below to learn more about each static site generator.
| Python Static Site Generators | |
|---|---|
| MkDocs | Project documentation with Markdown. It's easy to use and extensible |
| Pelican | Static site generator that supports Markdown and reST syntax |
| Sphinx | Create intelligent and beautiful documentation for Python projects |
| Lektor | Flexible and powerful static content management system |
| Nikola | Static website and blog generator |
| makesite | Simple, lightweight, and magic-free static site/blog generator |
| Hyde | Support for powerful template languages like Jinja2 |
| Cactus | Simple but powerful static website generator |
| Stapy | Works with Python on any operating system without additional packages. |
| Frozen-Flask | Freezes a Flask application into a set of static files |
| Blurry | Focused on page speed and SEO |
| Urubu | Micro content management system for static websites |
| blag | Blog-aware, static site generator which uses Markdown |
| wmk | Flexible and versatile static site generator |
| Pagegen | Site generator with reStructuredText or Markdown markup and Mako templates |
| Baku | Simple, Markdown-based blogging engine/static website generator |
| Aurora | Support for static and incremental builds |
This article has been revamped in line with our recent announcement.
 Read our complete collection of recommended free and open source software. Our curated compilation covers all categories of software. The software collection forms part of our series of informative articles for Linux enthusiasts. There are hundreds of in-depth reviews, open source alternatives to proprietary software from large corporations like Google, Microsoft, Apple, Adobe, IBM, Cisco, Oracle, and Autodesk. There are also fun things to try, hardware, free programming books and tutorials, and much more. |