A static blog is the simplest kind to run: you write posts in Markdown, a generator such as Hugo, Jekyll, Eleventy or Astro turns them into HTML, and the result is a folder of files. There's no database to patch and no admin page to protect. Lobsite puts that folder online: run npx lobsite after the build, or drop the built folder in the box above.
How it works
- Build the blog as you always do:
hugo,bundle exec jekyll build,npx @11ty/eleventyornpm run build. - Run
npx lobsitein the project. It finds the output folder, deploys it and prints the address. No account is needed for the first deploy, which lasts 6 hours. - Keep it with the claim link, in a free account. After that, every new post is the same two commands: build, then
npx lobsite.
Where each generator puts the blog
| Generator | Build command | Folder Lobsite deploys |
|---|---|---|
| Hugo | hugo |
public/ |
| Jekyll | bundle exec jekyll build |
_site/ |
| Eleventy | npx @11ty/eleventy |
_site/ |
| Astro | npm run build |
dist/ |
| Gatsby | npm run build |
public/ |
The folder is saved in lobsite.toml on the first run, so later deploys go to the same site without asking.
Publishing a new post
A new post changes a handful of files: the post itself, the index page, maybe a tag page and the feed. Lobsite compares every file by its hash and uploads only those, so a blog with hundreds of posts and images still deploys in seconds. To read a post on the real site before readers do, deploy with lobsite deploy --preview: it gets its own URL and the live blog stays as it was until you run lobsite promote. Published something by mistake? lobsite rollback puts the previous version back in one step.
Feeds, comments and moving from another host
- RSS and Atom feeds are files your generator writes, such as
index.xmlorfeed.xml, and they're served like any other file. Feed readers pick them up at the same address. - Comments come from an embedded service your generator supports, such as giscus or utterances; they run in the reader's browser, so they work on any static host.
- Old addresses keep working with redirects in
lobsite.toml, for example from/2019/05/my-post.htmlto/posts/my-post/. The Redirect Generator turns a list of old and new paths into the rules. - A sitemap helps search engines find every post. Most generators write one; if yours doesn't, the Sitemap Generator makes one from your files.
Files are stored by their hash. Redeploying an unchanged site uploads 0 bytes.
Preview before going live. Roll back in one click, redirects and all.
Every site gets a *.lobsite.app address with HTTPS from the first deploy.
Redirects, headers and forms live in lobsite.toml and travel with each deploy.
A deploy without an account is live for 6 hours. The claim link keeps it, free.
Every limit is published, and every error tells you what to do next.
Blog hosts compared
| Lobsite | WordPress.com | GitHub Pages | Netlify | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| How you write | Markdown and a generator, on your machine | In the browser | Markdown and a generator | Markdown and a generator |
| Publish | Build, then one command | Press Publish | Push to a repository | Push, or the CLI |
| Builds on the server | No: you upload the built blog | Not needed | Jekyll, or GitHub Actions | Yes |
| Preview a post on the real site | Yes, a preview URL per deploy | Yes | No | Yes |
| Custom domain | Yes, free | Paid plans | Yes, free | Yes, free |
If you'd rather write in the browser with no build step, WordPress.com or a hosted blog platform suits you better. If you already write in Markdown with a generator, Lobsite is the shortest way from hugo to a live blog, and nothing on the server needs updating, ever.
Frequently asked questions
Can I host a Hugo or Jekyll blog for free?
Yes. A free account keeps one site, with up to 1,000 files, 50 MB per deploy and 10 GB of bandwidth a month, which is plenty for a text blog. Blogs with lots of large images may need the paid plan, coming soon.
Do you build my blog from Git?
No. Lobsite deploys the built folder, from your machine or from CI. That way the version you previewed locally is the one that goes live, and there's no build environment to keep in step with yours.
Will search engines index my blog?
Yes, once it's in an account. Sites published without an account carry a noindex header and last 6 hours, so they don't show up in search; claiming the site removes that.
Can I schedule posts to go live later?
Not on Lobsite itself: there's no server-side build to run at a set time. Deploy when the post is ready, or run the deploy from a scheduled CI job; CI tokens come with the paid plan, coming soon.