Hugo vs Pelican

Hugo and Pelican are both static site generators that offer efficient and fast website building capabilities. Hugo is written in Go and is known for its speed and simplicity, while Pelican is written in Python and offers flexibility and extensibility through plugins and themes.

General information

Hugo
Pelican
Introduction :
Hugo is a static site generator that was launched in 2013 and has gained popularity for its speed and simplicity. It is an open-source platform that allows users to create fast and secure websites with ease. Hugo is known for its flexibility and performance, making it a popular choice among developers and content creators looking for a reliable and efficient platform for their projects.
Introduction :
Pelican is a static site generator that is open source and was first released in 2010. It is popular for its simplicity, speed, and flexibility, making it a preferred choice for developers who want to create fast and secure websites. Pelican allows users to write content in Markdown or reStructuredText and offers a range of plugins and themes for customization.
Advantages :
  • Fast static site generation
  • Lightweight and efficient performance
  • Easy customization and theming options
  • Secure and reliable platform
  • Excellent support and active community
Advantages :
  • Easy to use and beginner-friendly interface
  • Fast loading times for websites
  • Strong security features to protect content
  • Customizable themes and plugins for flexibility
  • Good for small to medium-sized websites
Disadvantages :
  • Limited built-in features compared to others
  • Steeper learning curve for beginners
  • Less user-friendly interface for non-technical users
  • Limited plugin and theme options
  • Less community support and resources available
Disadvantages :
  • Limited customization options
  • Steeper learning curve compared to others
  • Lack of built-in SEO features
  • Limited plugin and theme options
  • Less user-friendly interface compared to competitors
Website users : Less than 1% of websites
Hugo is a niche platform with a small user base compared to other popular content management systems like WordPress and Shopify.
Website users : Thousands
Pelican is used by thousands of websites, making it a popular choice among content management systems for website creation and management.
๐ŸŸก Difficulty : Average.
Getting started with Hugo requires some technical knowledge and familiarity with the command line interface, but resources and documentation are available for support.
๐ŸŸก Difficulty : Average.
Getting started with Pelican requires some technical knowledge and familiarity with static site generators, but resources are available for support.
Year launched : 2013
Hugo was launched in 2013, making it a relatively newer platform compared to others in the market.
Year launched : 2002
Pelican was launched in 2002, making it one of the earlier content management systems available for users to create and manage websites.
Official website : https://gohugo.io/
Official website : https://www.pelicanweb.org/


Commercial details

Hugo
Pelican
๐ŸŸก Open source : Partially.
Hugo is partially open source, with the core software being open but some additional features and themes requiring a license.
๐ŸŸก Open source : Partially.
Pelican is partially open source, with the core codebase being fully open source, but some plugins and themes may have different licenses.
โšช Free option : Unknown.
It is unclear if there is a free option available for Hugo. Further research is needed to determine the pricing structure.
๐ŸŸข Free option : Yes.
Pelican offers a free self-hosted option with no limitations on features, making it a cost-effective choice for users looking to manage their own content.
๐ŸŸข Paid option : Yes.
Hugo offers a paid option for users looking for additional features, support, or hosted solutions, providing flexibility and customization for a fee.
๐ŸŸข Paid option : Yes.
Pelican offers a paid option for users looking for additional features and support, providing a more comprehensive experience for those willing to invest.


Platform details

Hugo
Pelican
๐ŸŸข Hosted : Yes.
There are hosted options available for Hugo, both free and paid, allowing users to easily deploy and manage their websites.
๐ŸŸข Hosted : Yes.
Pelican offers a hosted option for users looking for a convenient and managed solution for their website hosting needs.
๐ŸŸข Self host : Yes.
Self-hosting is possible with Hugo, allowing users to have full control over their website and choose their own hosting provider.
๐ŸŸข Self host : Yes.
Pelican can be self-hosted on various 3rd party vendors, giving users more control over their hosting environment.
๐ŸŸก Headless CMS : Supported via plugin.
Hugo does not natively support headless systems but can be integrated with headless features through plugins or APIs.
๐ŸŸก Headless CMS : Supported via plugin.
Pelican does not natively support headless features but can be integrated with plugins or APIs for headless functionality.
๐ŸŸข Static content generation : Support natively.
Hugo supports static content generation out of the box, making it a powerful tool for creating fast and efficient websites.
๐ŸŸข Static content generation : Support natively.
Pelican natively supports static content generation, making it efficient and reliable for creating static websites without the need for additional plugins.


Key features

Hugo
Pelican
๐ŸŸก Content management : Supported via plugin.
Hugo is a static site generator, so content management is not native but can be achieved through plugins for added functionality.
๐ŸŸข Content management : Support natively.
Pelican is a good platform for managing content as it offers native features specifically designed for content management tasks.
๐ŸŸก Blogging : Supported via plugin.
Hugo is a good platform for blogging when enhanced by popular 3rd party plugins/extensions for additional features and functionality.
๐ŸŸก Blogging : Supported via plugin.
Pelican can be enhanced by third-party plugins for blogging functionality, offering flexibility and customization options for bloggers.
๐Ÿ”ด E-commerce : Not supported.
Hugo is not specifically designed for e-commerce, lacking native features for online stores. However, it can be enhanced with third-party plugins/extensions.
๐ŸŸก E-commerce : Supported via plugin.
Pelican can be used for e-commerce with plugins like Pelican-Commerce, but it may require additional setup compared to dedicated e-commerce platforms.
๐ŸŸก Community forum : Supported via plugin.
Hugo can support community forums with third-party plugins like Discourse or Vanilla Forums, offering robust features and customization options.
๐ŸŸก Community forum : Supported via plugin.
Pelican can support a community/forum with plugins like Disqus, but lacks native features for robust community engagement compared to other platforms.
๐ŸŸก Content subscription : Supported via plugin.
Content subscriptions/paywalls can be supported through third-party plugins/extensions, enhancing functionality beyond native capabilities.
๐ŸŸก Content subscription : Supported via plugin.
Pelican does not natively support content subscriptions/paywalls but can be enhanced with third-party plugins for this functionality.


Other features

Hugo
Pelican
๐ŸŸก Multi-site : Supported via plugin.
Multi-site functionality is supported via a popular third-party plugin, providing flexibility for managing multiple sites within Hugo.
๐ŸŸก Multi-site : Supported via plugin.
Support for multi-site in Pelican is typically achieved through third-party plugins, offering enhanced functionality for managing multiple sites within the platform.
๐ŸŸก Multi-language : Supported via plugin.
Multi-language support in Hugo is typically achieved through third-party plugins, offering flexibility but requiring additional setup and maintenance.
๐ŸŸก Multi-language : Supported via plugin.
Pelican does not natively support multi-language but can be enhanced with plugins like Pelican-i18n for multi-language functionality.
๐ŸŸก XML Sitemaps : Supported via plugin.
XML sitemap functionality can be added through popular third-party plugins, enhancing SEO capabilities for Hugo websites.
๐ŸŸก XML Sitemaps : Supported via plugin.
Support for XML sitemaps can be enhanced by popular third-party plugins/extensions in the Pelican ecosystem.


When choosing between Hugo and Pelican, consider your familiarity with the programming languages they are built on and your preference for speed versus flexibility. Hugo may be better suited for those looking for a straightforward and fast website building experience, while Pelican may be a better choice for those who prioritize customization and extensibility.