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JAMstack and Static Site Generators
Let’s rewind a few years.
I was working on a simple blog project. Nothing fancy—just a place to share thoughts on tech, coffee, and the occasional existential ramble. So, naturally, I spun up a WordPress site… and within a week, I had:
That’s when I stumbled into the world of JAMstack—and friends, it was like stepping into a clean, minimalist apartment after years of hoarding server logs.
JAMstack in Plain English (Not Marketing-Speak)
You’ve probably heard the acronym: JavaScript, APIs, and Markup. But here’s what it really means:
Think of JAMstack like meal prepping:
Instead of cooking dinner every night (dynamic CMS), you make a batch of meals on Sunday (build time), and eat happily all week (static files).
Static Site Generators: Choose Your Weapon
The real engine behind JAMstack magic is the Static Site Generator (SSG).
Here are the big players I’ve danced with:
1. Next.js – "I want it all."
Next.js isn’t just an SSG. It’s a Swiss Army knife with tools you didn’t know you needed:
Versatile and powerful, perfect if you need both static and dynamic features.
2. Hugo – "I need speed, and I mean speed."
Written in Go, Hugo builds sites like it’s late for a flight.
I’ve used Hugo for docs and builds in milliseconds. It feels illegal how fast it is.
One caveat: its templating can feel… Go-ish. Quirky, but manageable.
3. Gatsby – "I love React and GraphQL (yes, even the pain)."
Gatsby was one of the first SSGs I used seriously.
But… build times can balloon fast. Caching strategies and tools like Gatsby Cloud are a must as your site grows.
4. Eleventy (11ty) – "Give me Markdown, give me peace."
If JAMstack were a band, Eleventy would be the indie artist doing everything by hand—but still topping charts.
Perfect for blogs or minimal sites. I migrated two blogs to Eleventy and it felt like digital Marie Kondo.
"Does this plugin spark joy?" No? Delete.
Why JAMstack Actually Makes Sense
Here’s the thing:
Traditional monolithic setups (looking at you, LAMP stack) are:
I once had a WordPress site crash under a Reddit hug.
JAMstack sites? They laugh in the face of viral traffic.
Hosting is also a breeze:
Push to Git. Boom. It’s deployed. No server patching. No plugin conflicts. No random PHP errors.
It’s like vacationing with a carry-on instead of dragging a trunk full of issues.
Platforms like even recommend JAMstack-based personal portfolios to tech interns, for simplicity and performance.
The Trade-Offs (Because Nothing’s Perfect)
JAMstack isn’t magic unicorn dust.
For dynamic content—dashboards, carts, real-time updates—you’ll need:
But tools like Auth0, Stripe, Firebase, and Sanity fit perfectly into the JAMstack model.
It’s not always plug-and-play, but it’s very doable.
A Real-World Win: Simplicity in Action
One client—a small non-profit—was stuck with a bloated Drupal site. Even changing a header required dev intervention.
We migrated them to JAMstack (Hugo + Netlify CMS):
They cried happy tears. JAMstack didn’t just save their site—it saved their sanity.
Solutions like have also been integrating JAMstack into client-facing portals, prioritizing speed, SEO, and developer productivity.
Conclusion: Should You Go JAMstack?
If you:
....then yes—JAMstack might be your new best friend.
And if you’re still clinging to your old CMS because it's what you know? I get it. But try JAMstack on your next project. Start small. Build a personal site.
You might be surprised how light it is to carry.
Let’s rewind a few years.
I was working on a simple blog project. Nothing fancy—just a place to share thoughts on tech, coffee, and the occasional existential ramble. So, naturally, I spun up a WordPress site… and within a week, I had:
- A caching plugin
- Three security patches
- A sluggish backend
- A white screen of death
That’s when I stumbled into the world of JAMstack—and friends, it was like stepping into a clean, minimalist apartment after years of hoarding server logs.
JAMstack in Plain English (Not Marketing-Speak)
You’ve probably heard the acronym: JavaScript, APIs, and Markup. But here’s what it really means:
- Your site is pre-built at deploy time, not served on-the-fly.
- Everything loads fast. Like, scary fast.
Think of JAMstack like meal prepping:
Instead of cooking dinner every night (dynamic CMS), you make a batch of meals on Sunday (build time), and eat happily all week (static files).
Static Site Generators: Choose Your Weapon
The real engine behind JAMstack magic is the Static Site Generator (SSG).
Here are the big players I’ve danced with:
1. Next.js – "I want it all."
Next.js isn’t just an SSG. It’s a Swiss Army knife with tools you didn’t know you needed:
- Static Site Generation (SSG)
- Server-Side Rendering (SSR)
- API Routes
- Middleware
Versatile and powerful, perfect if you need both static and dynamic features.
2. Hugo – "I need speed, and I mean speed."
Written in Go, Hugo builds sites like it’s late for a flight.
I’ve used Hugo for docs and builds in milliseconds. It feels illegal how fast it is.
One caveat: its templating can feel… Go-ish. Quirky, but manageable.
3. Gatsby – "I love React and GraphQL (yes, even the pain)."
Gatsby was one of the first SSGs I used seriously.
- React-based
- GraphQL-powered
- A rich plugin ecosystem
But… build times can balloon fast. Caching strategies and tools like Gatsby Cloud are a must as your site grows.
4. Eleventy (11ty) – "Give me Markdown, give me peace."
If JAMstack were a band, Eleventy would be the indie artist doing everything by hand—but still topping charts.
- No strict framework
- Super flexible
- Markdown-first
Perfect for blogs or minimal sites. I migrated two blogs to Eleventy and it felt like digital Marie Kondo.
"Does this plugin spark joy?" No? Delete.
Why JAMstack Actually Makes Sense
Here’s the thing:
Traditional monolithic setups (looking at you, LAMP stack) are:
- Bloated
- Hard to secure
- Slow under pressure
I once had a WordPress site crash under a Reddit hug.
JAMstack sites? They laugh in the face of viral traffic.
Hosting is also a breeze:
- Netlify
- Vercel
- GitHub Pages
Push to Git. Boom. It’s deployed. No server patching. No plugin conflicts. No random PHP errors.
It’s like vacationing with a carry-on instead of dragging a trunk full of issues.
Platforms like even recommend JAMstack-based personal portfolios to tech interns, for simplicity and performance.
The Trade-Offs (Because Nothing’s Perfect)
JAMstack isn’t magic unicorn dust.
For dynamic content—dashboards, carts, real-time updates—you’ll need:
- External APIs
- Client-side JavaScript
But tools like Auth0, Stripe, Firebase, and Sanity fit perfectly into the JAMstack model.
It’s not always plug-and-play, but it’s very doable.
A Real-World Win: Simplicity in Action
One client—a small non-profit—was stuck with a bloated Drupal site. Even changing a header required dev intervention.
We migrated them to JAMstack (Hugo + Netlify CMS):
- Load time dropped from 4.2s to under 1s
- Non-tech staff handled deploys
- Monthly hosting costs? Tiny
They cried happy tears. JAMstack didn’t just save their site—it saved their sanity.
Solutions like have also been integrating JAMstack into client-facing portals, prioritizing speed, SEO, and developer productivity.
Conclusion: Should You Go JAMstack?
If you:
- Want blazing-fast load times
- Prefer Git over clunky dashboards
- Enjoy clean, minimalist architecture
- Don’t mind stitching APIs for dynamic bits
....then yes—JAMstack might be your new best friend.
And if you’re still clinging to your old CMS because it's what you know? I get it. But try JAMstack on your next project. Start small. Build a personal site.
You might be surprised how light it is to carry.