astro-vs-jekyll.html

Astro vs Jekyll — which one wins for your brief, in 2026

Two static site generators, side by side. Astro is multi-framework, content-first, ships zero js by default. the default for seo-heavy sites. Jekyll is the original ssg. liquid templates, ruby, markdown. github pages' backbone. The verdict, the criteria, and the honest take below.

ALL COMPARISONS →

Verdict in one paragraph

For new projects in 2026, Astro by a wide margin. Jekyll has 15 years of inertia and is still GitHub Pages' default, but the framework has stalled and Ruby toolchain pain is real. The most common Astro adoption story is exactly this — a Jekyll site that has outgrown itself. The migration path is straightforward and the speed and DX gains are immediate.

Score across the criteria: Astro 4 · Jekyll 1

Side by side

Astro
Jekyll
Language
TypeScript
Ruby
Category
Multi-framework
Ruby
License
MIT
MIT
Created
2021
2008
GitHub stars
49.5k
49.2k
Status
active
mature

Decision criteria

  • Which is the right pick for a new project?

    Astro

    Astro has the active maintenance, modern features, and growing community. Jekyll is mature but slow on releases.

  • Which builds faster?

    Astro

    Astro is 5–10x faster than Jekyll at any non-trivial scale. Jekyll on a 1k-page blog can take minutes where Astro takes seconds.

  • Which has GitHub Pages support out of the box?

    Jekyll

    Jekyll is the GitHub Pages default. Astro needs a GitHub Actions workflow but that is a 10-line config.

  • Which has a better component model?

    Astro

    Astro components, JSX islands, multi-framework integrations. Jekyll's Liquid-and-include model feels dated.

  • Which is easier to migrate to from WordPress?

    Astro

    Astro has Markdown / MDX, Content Collections, and a richer plugin ecosystem for WordPress imports.

What Astro is best for

  • Marketing sites and landing pages where Core Web Vitals matter
  • Documentation, blogs, and content hubs
  • Programmatic SEO at scale (HostList: 25k pages, Deluxe Astrology: 91k pages)
  • Multi-framework teams sharing a single static site
  • Migration off WordPress when content is structured cleanly

Read the full Astro entry: /static-site-generators/astro/

What Jekyll is best for

  • Existing Jekyll sites with no reason to migrate
  • GitHub Pages projects where Jekyll is the default
  • Personal blogs with low post counts

Read the full Jekyll entry: /static-site-generators/jekyll/

The easy half is the SSG choice — your build is the hard one

If your project is shipping in the next 6 months, the 30-min call is where the comparison becomes a real plan — your stack, your build phases, your SEO transport, your price range. Describe your project; I tell you whether Astro or Jekyll (or something else) is genuinely your fit.