Which six frameworks make a great Hugo alternative?

Hugo is a powerful static site generator (SSG) known for its incredibly fast build times, straightforward configuration, and extensive templating options. But what if you’re looking for something different? As far as Hugo alternatives go, there are plenty to choose from: from classic site generators like Jekyll and Eleventy to modern frameworks such as Gatsby, Next.js, and Nuxt. [TOC]

What is Hugo and when is it worth considering an alternative?

Hugo is an open-source, Go-developed static site generator, optimized for speed and flexibility. It supports not only HTML but also Markdown-formatted content and delivers build times measured in milliseconds. Hugo offers a clear configuration syntax (YAML, JSON, and TOML), and a versatile templating system. Features like taxonomies, multilingual support, and image optimization allow you to deploy static websites without needing extra plugins.

So, when does it make sense to look for a Hugo alternative? Hugo takes some getting used to and doesn’t provide all the features of content management systems or website builders, such as dynamic content and real-time interactivity. Depending on your needs, a different ecosystem might be a better fit.

Jekyll

Jekyll is one of the original static site generators, released in 2008 and written in Ruby. It helped popularize the SSG concept and inspired many successors. Jekyll works especially well for blogs and documentation, converting Markdown and HTML files, combined with Liquid or Textile templates, into static HTML pages. Its tight integration with GitHub Pages allows projects to be published directly from a repository, without a separate web server.

This particular alternative to Hugo uses simple YAML configuration files and can be extended with plugins. It’s fully controllable from the command line, which keeps workflows efficient and reproducible. Owing to this, it’s ideal for small to medium-sized projects where quick deployment and straightforward maintenance matter.

Gatsby

Gatsby is a React-based static site framework launched in 2015 and acquired by Netlify in 2023. This Hugo alternative is ideal for SEO-optimized websites and Progressive Web Apps (PWAs). With GraphQL integration Gatsby can source data from Markdown, CMSs, or APIs. It’s often used to speed up WordPress sites, pulling content through GraphQL and transforming it into static pages with React.

Gatsby’s plugin ecosystem, which is more than 2,500 strong, makes it easy to add features like image optimization, PWA support and authentication. Since version 4, it also supports server-side rendering (SSR) and Deferred Static Generation, which help deliver dynamic content on Node.js servers.

Next.js

Currently one of the most popular static site generators, Next.js is a React-based framework that supports both static and server-side rendering. Using getStaticProps, content is generated at build time for fast load times and easy CDN distribution. With getServerSideProps you can fetch dynamic data on each request. Incremental Static Regeneration (ISR) enables partial page updates without rebuilding the entire site.

An open-source web framework, Next.js includes built-in API routes, automatic image and font optimization, and CSS support. Its middleware feature lets you define custom routing, authentication, and localization rules. Next.js is a solid Hugo alternative if you need a mix of static and dynamic content or personalized site features.

Nuxt

Nuxt is a Vue-based framework inspired by Next.js that supports static site generation, server-side rendering, and Single Page Application (SPA). By default, it uses universal rendering, where pages are pre-rendered on the server and then delivered as fully rendered HTML.

In addition to this, Nuxt provides a clear folder structure, automatic component and middleware imports, integrated API routes and path-based routing. Thanks to the Nitro server engine, it easily adapts to different hosting environments. Features like automatic image optimization, TypeScript support, and global state management make Nuxt one of the best Hugo alternatives for those needing more than static sites.

Astro

Astro is a modern JavaScript framework built for content-rich websites with minimal JavaScript. Its island architecture breaks the interface into reusable Astro Islands, replacing unused JavaScript code with HTML for faster performance and shorter load times. Initially a pure static site generator, Astro now also offers server-side rendering, letting you choose the best model for each page.

This particuar Hugo alternative is framework-agnostic and can be deployed almost anywhere, from traditional servers to edge computing setups. Its straightforward approach to building and deploying sites also makes it beginner friendly.

Eleventy

Eleventy (also known as 11ty) is a lightweight, JavaScript-based SSG, inspired by Jekyll. It’s built to create static HTML documents but can also support dynamic websites. A key advantage is that Eleventy doesn’t require a client-side JavaScript framework like React or Vue.

Eleventy supports multiple template languages (such as HTML, Markdown, WebC, JavaScript, and Liquid), and delivers lightning-fast build times. For example, the software can process 4,000 Markdown files in just 1.93 seconds. That makes it a great Hugo alternative for content-heavy pipelines where speed is crucial.