If the site changes rarely and has only a few pages, a static site is the simplest, the safest and the fastest. If it changes often, or is edited by several people, WordPress repays the extra work. The difference is how the page reaches the visitor: already built, or put together on the spot.
What each one does when someone opens a page
A static site is ready-made files (HTML, CSS, images). The server hands over the file and that is it: there is no database and no program running. WordPress is dynamic: on every visit PHP goes to the database, combines the theme and the content and builds the page. A page cache narrows that gap but does not remove it. See installing and tuning a page cache.
Side by side
| Criterion |
Static site |
WordPress |
| Speed |
Very good from the start: it just serves files. |
Good with a well-tuned cache; without one, it depends on the theme and plugins. |
| Security |
Little to attack: no login, no plugins, no database. |
Needs updates to core, theme and plugins, and strong passwords. |
| Who edits |
Someone who knows HTML, or uses a static site generator. |
Anyone, from the dashboard, without touching code. |
| Forms, search, comments |
Need an outside service or a little code. |
Solved with plugins. |
| Many pages and many authors |
Painful by hand; workable with a generator. |
This is what WordPress exists for. |
| Cost of upkeep |
Almost none. |
Some time every month. |
Who should pick what
| 1 |
Online business card, portfolio, event page, documentation: static. Five pages that change twice a year do not need a database.
|
|
| 3 |
Many pages but a single technical author: a static site generator (Hugo, Jekyll and Eleventy are well-known examples) builds the pages on your computer and you upload the result. You get static speed with the comfort of a template.
|
|
| 4 |
Not sure: start static. Moving to WordPress later is always possible, and the reverse takes considerably more work.
|
|
How to publish a static site on your account
Upload the files to the domain’s folder (the public_html folder of the main domain), with the entry file index.html right at the root, and you are done. See uploading your site with FileZilla. The account’s free SSL applies to static sites too.
|
Static is not “maintenance-free” for ever. A contact form somebody has to build for you, a broken link nobody checks and a cookie notice that goes out of date are work all the same. The advantage is that none of it exposes you to an attack.
|
|
You can mix them. Some people keep the presentation site static on the main domain and the blog in WordPress on a subdomain or in a folder. Each part uses the technology that suits it.
|
|
Have a site and wondering whether it is worth changing its form? Describe it and we will look at it with you.
Open a support ticket
|
RECOMMENDED PRODUCT WordPress hosting One-click install, updates handled, and speed that holds up. from 5.940,00 Kz/mo (3-year plan, with coupon) See plans |
Português
English
