Modern Static

File-based + database-free site generators are an increasingly popular approach to building websites and blogs. On this list, most are static site generators, which maintain flat, ready-to-serve html. Others use a similar file-based cms concept, but output dynamic php.

Jekyll

jekyllrb.com/

@jekyllrb

Ruby

Hyde

ringce.com/hyde

Python

Kirby

www.getkirby.com

@getkirby

PHP

Hammer

hammerformac.com/

@HammerForMac

language-agnostic

DocPad

github.com/bevry/docpad

Node.js

PieCrust

bolt80.com/piecrust

PHP

nanoc

nanoc.ws

Ruby

Statamic

statamic.com

@statamic

PHP

Punch

laktek.github.io/punch

Node.js

Blacksmith

github.com/flatiron/blacksmith

Node.js

Awestruct

awestruct.org

@awestruct

Ruby

Nesta CMS

nestacms.com

@nestacms

Ruby

Middleman

middlemanapp.com

@middlemanapp

Ruby

Pelican

blog.getpelican.com/

@getpelican

Python

Cactus

github.com/koenbok/Cactus

Python

Stacey

staceyapp.com

PHP

Octopress

octopress.org

@octopress

Ruby

webgen

webgen.rubyforge.org

Ruby

Sculpin

sculpin.io

@getsculpin

PHP

Other Lists on the Web

Similar Projects to Nanoc from "About nanoc": nanoc.ws/about/#similar-projects
10 Powerful & Free Static Website Generators: April 2013; ahmad shah; www.webhostingbillboard.com/development/10-powerful-free-static-website-generators/
Static Site Generators: A definitive list of tools for generating static websites.: April 2013; Pedro Rogério; github.com/pinceladasdaweb/Static-Site-Generators
Crowdsourced Static Site Generator Recommendations: March 2012; Dave Rupert; gist.github.com/davatron5000/2254924
32 Static Website Generators For Your Site, Blog Or Wiki: February 2011; Timo Reitnauer; iwantmyname.com/blog/2011/02/list-static-website-generators.html

Articles and Tutorials

Major New Features in Prose v1: New Prose updates include refreshed UI, metadata editor, Jekyll layout previews, and more: May 2013; Dave Cole; developmentseed.org/blog/2013/05/08/major-new-features-prose-v1/
Jekyll 1.0 Released: May 2013; news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5660153
Introducing Jekyll-hook: Run your own GitHub Pages: May 2013; Dave Cole; developmentseed.org/blog/2013/05/01/introducing-jekyll-hook
Middleman + Github Pages == Static Site Bliss: April 2013; Adam McCrea; www.neo.com/2013/04/03/middleman-github-pages-static-site-bliss
Generating a Blog with MiddleMan: April 2013; Matt Butcher; technosophos.com/content/generating-blog-middleman
A mini-review of static site generators: April 2013; Steve Kemp; github.com/skx/static-site-generators#readme
Introduction to Static Site Generation with Nanoc: March 2013; Jakub Chodounský; chodounsky.net/2013/03/28/introduction-to-static-site-generation-with-nanoc
Fun with Static Site Generators and Travis: March 2013; Wesley Hales; wesleyhales.com/blog/2013/03/29/Fun-with-Static-Site-Generators-and-Travis
What is a Static Site Generator?: March 2013; Chris Gilchrist; www.hitreach.co.uk/blog/what-is-a-static-site-generator/
Going Static with Jekyll & Deploying via GitHub for Free: March 2013; Jake Bresnehan; web-design-weekly.com/2013/03/04/going-static-with-jekyll-deploying-via-github-for-free/
Static site generators for building web sites: March 2013; Martin Michlmayr; lwn.net/Articles/541299/
An introduction to Jekyll—a static HTML generator: February 2013; Steve Jenkins; www.webdesignermag.co.uk/blog/an-introduction-to-jekyll-a-static-html-generator/
3 Non-Database CMS Apps You Might Have Missed: February 2013; John Saddington; wpdaily.co/3-non-db-cms
Kirby, Y U NO HAZ template engine?: February 2013; Bastian Allgeier; getkirby.com/blog/php-templates
What's your favorite website CMS?: February 2013; David Kaneda; branch.com/b/what-s-your-favorite-website-cms
I regret not learning some new tools sooner: December 2012; robfitz; ht.ly/2tYxxH
An Introduction to Static Site Generators: December 2012; Michael Gardner; www.mickgardner.com/2012/12/an-introduction-to-static-site.html
Reset (Enter Statamic): December 2012; John Bjerke; pixelshift.in/blog/reset
Eight Questions with Mark Boulton—The Statamicist: November 2012; Fred Leblanc; statamicist.com/interviews/eight-questions-with-mark-boulton
A new approach to design and development of websites: No DB CMS.: November 2012; Demóstenes García; www.pixmatstudios.com/blog/a-new-approach-to-design-and-development-of-websites-no-db-cms/
Jekyll blog on Amazon S3 and CloudFront: October 2012; Tobias Sjösten; vvv.tobiassjosten.net/development/jekyll-blog-on-amazon-s3-and-cloudfront/
No-DB Content Management Systems: September 2012; Phil Sturgeon; philsturgeon.co.uk/blog/2012/09/no-db-content-management-systems
Static Websites with Jekyll (screencast for purchase, free preview): September 2012; Ryan Irelan; mijingo.com/blog/new-video-static-websites-with-jekyll
How We Build CMS-Free Websites: July 2012; Dave Cole; developmentseed.org/blog/2012/07/27/build-cms-free-websites
Statamic—Fast and Powerful CMS Without the Database: June 2012; Shawn Scammahorn; esdev.net/statamic-fast-and-powerful-cms-without-the-database/
Punch - A Fun and Easy Way to Build Modern Websites: April 2012; Lakshan Perera; www.laktek.com/2012/04/19/punch-a-fun-and-easy-way-to-build-modern-websites/
5 Minimalist Static Blog Generators to Check Out: Mar 2012; Klint Finley; siliconangle.com/blog/2012/03/20/5-minimalist-static-html-blog-generators-to-check-out/
Goodbye CMS, welcome static HTML: February 2012; Rein; http://techblog.viewbook.com/2012/02/goodbye-cms-welcome-static-html
T-Minus Zero (Pelican and Dropbox): January 2012; Matt Ronge; www.mronge.com
Building Static Sites with Jekyll: October 2011; Andrew Burgess; net.tutsplus.com/tutorials/other/building-static-sites-with-jekyll/
Strategy: Run A Scalable, Available, And Cheap Static Site On S3 Or GitHub: August 2011; Todd Hoff; highscalability.com/blog/2011/8/22/strategy-run-a-scalable-available-and-cheap-static-site-on-s.html
No Server Required - Jekyll & Amazon S3: August 2011; Werner Vogels; www.allthingsdistributed.com/2011/08/Jekyll-amazon-s3.html
Reddit: jekyll vs. hyde - a comparison of two static site generators: May 2011; www.reddit.com/r/programming/comments/hcxvc/jekyll_vs_hyde_a_comparison_of_two_static_site
Host Your Static Website on Amazon S3: February 2011; news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2233620
Static Site Generators: A practical comparison and thoughts on 10 tools: December 2010; Rich Leland; mathematism.com/2010/12/22/static-site-generators