Jekyll vs Joomla!
| Tagline | Transform plain text into static websites and blogs | Battle-tested open-source CMS powering millions of websites |
| Category | Blogging & CMS | Blogging & CMS |
| Replaces | WordPress.com, Medium, Squarespace | WordPress.com, Squarespace, Contentful |
| GitHub stars | 52k | 5.1k |
| Language | Ruby | PHP |
| License | MIT | GPL-2.0 |
| Self-host difficulty | 2/5 Easy | 3/5 Moderate |
| Deploy options | Manual Docker | Docker Docker Compose Manual |
| Managed hosting | ||
| Last updated | 1 month ago | 10 days ago |
| View repo | View repo |
Where each falls short
The honest trade-offs — what you give up with each, versus the proprietary tools they replace.
Jekyll
- Ruby environment setup can be tricky on Windows
- No admin UI; all content management is via files
- Slower build times for very large sites compared to Hugo or Eleventy
Joomla!
- Admin UI is complex and dated compared to modern CMSes; steep learning curve for new users
- Extension quality is inconsistent; vetting third-party plugins for security requires effort
- Headless/API capabilities were added late and are less polished than dedicated headless CMSes
- Page builder and WYSIWYG experience falls behind Squarespace or WordPress.com in ease of use
Bottom line
Choose Jekyll if you want the lower-effort setup; choose Jekyll for the larger community and ecosystem. Joomla! has seen more recent development. Open each guide below for deploy steps and the full feature gap.