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Best Static Site Generators 2026: Astro vs Hugo vs 11ty vs Jekyll

Static site generators (SSGs) are the backbone of modern documentation, blogs, and marketing sites. Astro, Hugo, 11ty, and Jekyll take different approaches. Here's which one matches your content workflow and stack.

Quick Comparison

Astro	Hugo	11ty (Eleventy)	Jekyll
Language	JS/TS (Go core)	Go	JavaScript
Build speed	Fast (~5s for 1000 pages)	Fastest (<1s for 1000 pages)	Very fast (~3s for 1000 pages)
Templating	Astro (.astro), JSX, Vue, Svelte	Go templates	Nunjucks, Liquid, Handlebars, etc.
CMS integration	Content Collections (built-in)	Front Matter only	Data cascade (flexible)
JavaScript in output	Optional (Islands)	Minimal	Whatever you add
Markdown	MDX support	Goldmark (excellent)	markdown-it (configurable)
Plugins	Growing (Astro integrations)	Built-in (most features included)	400+ plugins
GitHub Pages	Yes (GitHub Action)	Yes (native)	Yes (GitHub Action)

Astro — The Modern Standard

Astro's killer feature is the Islands Architecture: ship zero JavaScript by default, hydrate only the interactive components that need it. You can use React, Vue, Svelte, or Solid components in the same project. Content Collections provide type-safe Markdown with Zod schema validation.

Strengths: Zero JS by default (perfect for content sites). Use any UI framework for interactive islands. Content Collections are best-in-class for Markdown sites. View Transitions API for SPA-like navigation. Excellent for blogs, docs, and marketing sites.

Weaknesses: Not for highly interactive SPAs (use Next.js instead). Younger ecosystem than Hugo or Jekyll. Some integrations are community-maintained. Build is fast but not Hugo-fast.

Best for: Content-heavy sites (blogs, docs, marketing), developers who want to mix frameworks, projects where Core Web Vitals are critical.

Hugo — The Speed King

Hugo is built in Go and compiles thousands of pages in under a second. It's a single binary with no dependencies. Hugo's template system is powerful but has a learning curve. For large documentation sites or blogs with many pages, Hugo's speed is transformative.

Strengths: Blazing fast builds (sub-second for 1000+ pages). Single binary (no npm install). Built-in image processing and shortcodes. Excellent multilingual support. Huge theme library. Great for very large sites.

Weaknesses: Go template syntax is idiosyncratic. No built-in CMS/content layer beyond front matter. Limited JavaScript framework integration. Theme customization can be complex. Smaller plugin ecosystem than JS-based SSGs.

Best for: Large documentation sites, blogs with 500+ posts, projects where build speed matters, developers comfortable with Go templates.

11ty (Eleventy) — The Flexible Power Tool

11ty is JavaScript-based but framework-agnostic. It supports 11 template languages and gives you complete control over your output. The data cascade (global → directory → file → front matter) is uniquely powerful. It compiles to a directory of static HTML with zero client-side JS.

Strengths: Most flexible template system (11 languages). Data cascade is powerful for complex sites. Zero boilerplate output. Excellent for sites that mix content types. Progressive enhancement by default. WebC components for reusable templates.

Weaknesses: Flexibility means more decisions to make. Fewer pre-built themes than Hugo or Jekyll. Smaller community. Documentation assumes you know what you want to build.

Best for: Developers who want maximum control, sites with complex data relationships, projects that mix multiple content sources, developers who enjoy customizing their build.

Jekyll — The GitHub Pages Native

Jekyll is the original static site generator and runs natively on GitHub Pages — push Markdown, get a blog. It's Ruby-based, which can be a pro (if you use Ruby) or a con (if you don't). The theme and plugin ecosystem is mature but showing its age.

Strengths: Native GitHub Pages support (no build step needed). Mature ecosystem with 15+ years of themes and plugins. Simple mental model (collections, pages, posts). Good for simple blogs and documentation.

Weaknesses: Slowest build times (painful at 500+ pages). Ruby dependency (can be painful outside macOS). Limited compared to modern SSGs. Template syntax (Liquid) is less powerful than JSX or Go templates. Feels dated compared to Astro or Hugo.

Best for: Simple GitHub Pages blogs, developers who want zero-config with GitHub, Ruby developers, projects that don't need modern JS features.

Decision Matrix

Scenario	Best SSG
Modern blog or marketing site	Astro
Large documentation (1000+ pages)	Hugo
Complex data-driven static site	11ty

Simple GitHub Page

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