Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

WP2Static VS Hugo

Compare WP2Static VS Hugo and see what are their differences

WP2Static logo WP2Static

Static site generator for WordPress

Hugo logo Hugo

Hugo is a general-purpose website framework for generating static web pages.
  • WP2Static Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-03-23
  • Hugo Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-21

WP2Static features and specs

  • Performance
    By converting a dynamic WordPress site into a static one, WP2Static eliminates the need to query the database or execute PHP code, resulting in faster page load times.
  • Security
    Static sites have a reduced attack surface as they do not rely on server-side code execution. This significantly decreases the risk of vulnerabilities such as SQL injection and other attacks common to dynamic sites.
  • Scalability
    Static sites can handle a large volume of traffic without additional infrastructure because they serve pre-rendered files, greatly reducing the demand on the server.
  • Cost Reduction
    Without the need for a high-performance server or a database, hosting static sites can be much cheaper compared to dynamic sites.
  • Ease of Deployment
    Static files can be easily deployed to any web hosting platform, CDN, or file storage service, making it flexible in terms of hosting options.

Possible disadvantages of WP2Static

  • Limited Interactivity
    Static sites lack dynamic features such as user authentication and content management, which are inherent to WordPress by default.
  • Complex Updates
    Updating content on a static site requires regenerating and redeploying the static files, which is less straightforward compared to updating a dynamic WordPress site.
  • Plugin Compatibility
    Some WordPress plugins rely on dynamic content generation or server-side execution, which may not work as expected with static site generators.
  • Learning Curve
    Users may need to adapt to a different workflow for deploying updates and managing their site, especially if they are accustomed to a traditional WordPress setup.
  • SEO Concerns
    Certain SEO features, like dynamic XML sitemaps or real-time meta tags updates, require special handling or additional tools to implement in static sites.

Hugo features and specs

  • Performance
    Hugo is extremely fast, capable of generating websites with thousands of pages in milliseconds, making it one of the fastest static site generators available.
  • Flexible Content Management
    Hugo supports multiple content types, taxonomies, menus, and dynamic API-driven content, offering a high level of flexibility for different site architectures.
  • Ease of Use
    Hugo’s straightforward installation process and simple configuration files make it accessible, even for beginners.
  • Extended Markdown
    It extends standard Markdown with additional shortcodes, which allows embedding rich content like videos, tweets, and more with simple syntax.
  • Large Community and Plugins
    Hugo has a large and active community that develops themes and plugins, providing ample resources and support for developers.
  • Inbuilt Server
    Hugo comes with a built-in server for local development, enabling real-time previews and speeding up the development process.

Possible disadvantages of Hugo

  • Learning Curve
    Despite its simplicity, Hugo’s template language and content rendering system can be complex for beginners to grasp initially.
  • Limited Dynamic Features
    As a static site generator, Hugo is not ideal for websites that require real-time data processing or dynamic content generation without additional tooling and integration.
  • Go-based Templating
    Hugo uses Go-based templating, which might be unfamiliar to developers accustomed to other templating engines such as Liquid, Handlebars, or Mustache.
  • Lack of Built-in CMS
    Unlike some other static site generators, Hugo does not come with its own CMS interface, which can be a downside for users who prefer a graphical content management system.
  • Dependency on Command Line
    Using Hugo effectively requires comfort with command-line interfaces, which can be a barrier to less technical users.

Analysis of Hugo

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Hugo is considered a good choice for static site generation, particularly for users who value performance and simplicity.

Why this product is good

  • Hugo is a popular static site generator known for its speed, flexibility, and ease of use. It allows developers and content creators to build fast, scalable, and secure websites without relying on a database. Hugo's templating and theming options are powerful, supporting a wide range of use cases from blogs to fully-featured websites. Additionally, it has an active community and extensive documentation, which makes getting started and troubleshooting easier.

Recommended for

  • Developers who need a fast and efficient static site generator.
  • Content creators who prefer markdown-based writing and easy content management.
  • Users who want a highly customizable and extensible platform.
  • Teams that require a tool with robust multilingual support.
  • Individuals or organizations looking to build websites with minimal server-side dependencies.

WP2Static videos

Simply Static Vs WP2Static - Creating Static Sites with Wordpress

More videos:

  • Tutorial - How to create a Static version of your Wordpress Website (DEPRECATED) PLEASE USE wp2static

Hugo videos

Hugo - Movie Review by Chris Stuckmann

More videos:

  • Review - Hugo - A Love Letter to Cinema
  • Review - Hugo Review (funny movie review)

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to WP2Static and Hugo)
Blogging
6 6%
94% 94
CMS
8 8%
92% 92
Static Site Generators
Blogging Platform
7 7%
93% 93

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare WP2Static and Hugo

WP2Static Reviews

We have no reviews of WP2Static yet.
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Hugo Reviews

Top 10 Next.js Alternatives You Can Try
If you are looking for a powerful static website generator, Hugo is a good alternative to Next.js. You can build multilingual websites much faster and in a simple way that no other platform will offer you. Furthermore, this platform will increase your experience in creating websites with beautiful Markdown syntax and pre-built features like commenting.
20 Next.js Alternatives Worth Considering
Certainly. Jekyll and Hugo are popular static site generators that don’t rely on React.js. Jekyll uses Ruby, while Hugo is renowned for its speed and simplicity. These options are excellent for projects focusing on content-driven sites without heavy JavaScript frameworks.
10 static site generators to watch in 2021
Perhaps most conveniently described as Jekyll implemented with JavaScript rather than Ruby, Eleventy has now moved beyond that while retaining a clear and simple on-ramp, and only shipping to the browser what you tell it too. As with Jekyll and Hugo, no JavaScript frameworks are auto-baked in.
Source: www.netlify.com
Hugo vs Jekyll: an Epic Battle of Static Site Generator Themes
Hugo does something similar with its menu templates. You can define menu links in your Hugo site config, and even add useful properties that Hugo understands, like weighting. Here’s a definition of the menu above in config.yaml:
Top Static Site Generators For 2019
Hugo is a static site generator which is also very popular which is proven by over 30,000 stars on GitHub right now. Hugo is based on the Go programming language which is great if you have already gained some knowledge of Go. Hugo claims that it is the fastest framework for building websites. In fact Hugo comes with an ultra-fast build process and makes building static...
Source: medium.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Hugo seems to be a lot more popular than WP2Static. While we know about 388 links to Hugo, we've tracked only 12 mentions of WP2Static. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

WP2Static mentions (12)

  • WordPress plugin hole puts '2M websites' at risk
    > It is not actually that hard to run Wordpress securely. Stick to supported plugins and themes, and install security patches quickly when they are released. Depending on your site's functionality, it may also be possible to run a static WP site: * https://wordpress.org/plugins/simply-static/ * https://wp2static.com You do all your regular updates via the CMS, but, instead of putting the dynamic site on the... - Source: Hacker News / about 2 years ago
  • Wordpress.org website creation and hosting
    The closest "free" option I can think of is Oracle Cloud, but /r/oraclecloud shows plenty of horror stories in registration and maintaining an instance. If you don't actually need interactive features, WP2Static on your local instance to be deployed to Cloudflare Pages might work. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Wp-SQLite: WordPress running on an SQLite database
    > Most WP sites should be static sites. https://wordpress.org/plugins/simply-static/ https://wp2static.com. - Source: Hacker News / about 3 years ago
  • WordPress sites getting hacked ‘within seconds’ of TLS certificates being issued
    Depending on the site, ask yourself "How dynamic does it actually have to be?". Perhaps using the GUI to update the content, and then creating static files and serving those may be an option: * https://wp2static.com. - Source: Hacker News / about 3 years ago
  • Building a blog from scratch in 2022 using Hugo, Docker and a bit of Python
    What is wrong with using Wordpress? I believe now one can get Wordpress to have 'static site' capabilities these days [0] [0] https://wp2static.com/. - Source: Hacker News / over 3 years ago
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Hugo mentions (388)

  • Hacking with mdBook
    A few days back, I wrote a blog post about static site generators, in particular how I decided to migrate my blog from Zola to Hugo. One of my points was to be able to hack my own content before generating the final HTML. - Source: dev.to / 28 days ago
  • Why I am Migrating From Zola Back to Hugo
    This post is a summary of my recent decision to go back to Hugo after using Zola. I also report on how LLM assistants with Web access can aid in such decisions, not as an authority but as a research assistant. - Source: dev.to / about 1 month ago
  • How to Migrate Technical Documentation: Tools, Checklist, and Tips
    Hugo is a fast and flexible static site generator built in Go, known for its speed and large theme ecosystem. It supports markdown, taxonomies, multilingual content, and powerful templating with minimal dependencies. Hugo is highly performant and well-suited for building large-scale documentation sites. It’s ideal for teams seeking speed and customization with minimal runtime requirements. - Source: dev.to / about 1 month ago
  • Ask HN: Static Site (not blog) Generator?
    Try Hugo[1]. In depends on a template you choose alone whether Hugo will generate a landing page, a website, a blog, etc. [1] https://gohugo.io. - Source: Hacker News / about 1 month ago
  • 🥳 We built the cli of our dreams to send sms ❣️
    The content of the guide lives in a single Markdown file, content/_index.md. The website is built using Hugo. - Source: dev.to / 2 months ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing WP2Static and Hugo, you can also consider the following products

Simply Static - Never worry about WordPress hacks again.

Jekyll - Jekyll is a simple, blog aware, static site generator.

GatsbyJS - Blazing-fast static site generator for React

Ghost - Ghost is a fully open source, adaptable platform for building and running a modern online publication. We power blogs, magazines and journalists from Zappos to Sky News.

Staatic - Staatic is a platform to create an extremely fast and highly secure static version of your WordPress site without effort.

WordPress - WordPress is web software you can use to create a beautiful website or blog. We like to say that WordPress is both free and priceless at the same time.