Static Site Generators (SSGs)
provide a structured way to create fast, maintainable websites. Unlike traditional dynamic sites, static sites are pre-rendered at build time, making them efficient and secure. In this guide, we’ll explore three static site generators in Elm:
elm-starter
,
Elmstatic
, and
elm-pages
. Each tool offers unique features and workflows, helping developers choose the best fit for their projects.
lucamug/elm-starter
lucamug/elm-starter
elm-starter
is an experimental Elm-based bootstrapper designed to generate Progressive Web Applications (PWAs). It focuses on pre-rendering pages at build time, ensuring offline functionality and search engine optimization.
Basic Workflow
Basic Workflow
# clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/lucamug/elm-starter.git project-elm-starter
cd project-elm-starter
rm -rf .git
# install dependencies
npm install
# start the development server
npm start
# build for production
npm run buildPros and Cons
Pros and Cons
•
✅ Generates PWAs with offline support.
•
✅ Works without JavaScript.
•
✅ High SEO levels with Lighthouse.
•
✅ Basic documentation available.
•
❌ Lack of CLI tooling.
•
❌ Requires manual setup for existing Elm projects.
alexkorban/elmstatic
alexkorban/elmstatic
Elmstatic
is a static site generator that allows you to write page layouts in Elm, and content in Markdown. You're free to use whatever you like for layouts: elm/html, elm-css, elm-ui etc. It can generate sites with pages and blog posts, post tags and post lists for each tag, subsections with their own post streams, and RSS feeds.
Basic Workflow
Basic Workflow
# install the package
npm install -g elmstatic browser-sync
# initialize a project
mkdir project-elm-static
cd project-elm-static
elmstatic init
# start the development server
elmstatic watch
cd _site
browser-sync start --server --files "." --no-ui --reload-delay 500 --reload-debounce 500
# build for production
elmstatic buildPros and Cons
Pros and Cons
•
✅ Minimalistic and easy to use.
•
✅ Direct Elm-to-HTML conversion.
•
✅ CLI tooling available.
•
✅ Basic documentation available.
•
❌ Limited flexibility for dynamic content.
•
❌ Requires additional tooling for complex projects.
dillonkearns/elm-pages
dillonkearns/elm-pages
elm-pages
is a framework for building an Elm single-page app that is able to seamlessly interface with data from an Elm Backend. elm-pages is a hybrid framework, allowing you to define Routes that are either server-rendered (for more dynamic content with user-specific or request-specific data) or pre-rendered at build-time (for generating static HTML files that are hosted through a CDN). You can mix and match server-rendered and pre-rendered routes in your app.
Basic Workflow
Basic Workflow
# initialize a project
npx elm-pages init project-elm-pages
cd project-elm-pages
# install dependencies
npm install
# start the development server
npx elm-pages dev
# build for production
npx elm-pages buildPros and Cons
Pros and Cons
•
✅ Supports both static and dynamic routes.
•
✅ Strong integration with Elm backend.
•
✅ CLI tooling available.
•
✅ Well-maintained and actively developed.
•
❌ More complex setup compared to other tools.
•
❌ Requires understanding of Elm’s backend integration.
Conclusion
Conclusion
Each of these tools offers unique advantages.
elm-starter
is great for PWAs,
Elmstatic
is simple and direct, while
elm-pages
provides a hybrid approach for more complex applications. Choosing the right tool depends on your project’s needs and desired level of flexibility.
