Do static websites suit you? Perhaps!

2024-01-02 · 4 minutes read · Security Static Websites

Image of an imaginary network

In a digital era where information speed is crucial, the choice of a web platform is critical. Some have taken a step back in time to use so-called static websites, but not everyone has discovered the benefits of static sites yet.

This is not really something new; it’s essentially what we had before we started with dynamically generated websites over 20 years ago. However, there are relatively new tools to make static websites better and easier than they were 20 years ago.

Static websites are often a better choice than dynamic ones, and we will go through some of the reasons we see below.

Advantages

Here, we explore the advantages we see with static websites.

Faster loading times

With a static website, it’s often easier to reason about what you include, giving you a different overview of the various things you add. This usually leads to static websites generally containing fewer unnecessary resources or unnecessary calls to third parties.

This contributes to building a lightweight website with shorter loading times for the user, resulting in a better user experience. Especially on poor connections, such as mobile phones.

Works on all devices

It’s a common misconception that static websites are not flexible or adaptable. This is an unfortunate interpretation of the word “static” in this context.

Static websites are only static in how content is updated, not in how it is displayed to the user. They are essentially as flexible for the end-user as a dynamic website regarding the devices they work on, scaling from mobile phones to computers.

Server security

Since there are no dynamic components that need to run on the server side, the attack vector on the server decreases significantly, making it much easier to secure the server.

User security

A secure server makes it much easier to make it safe for the user as well. A server that has been compromised can start spreading malicious content to its users. Therefore, it’s important to have a secure server to protect the website’s users.

Server performance

One of the advantages of static websites compared to dynamic ones is that they don’t need to be calculated in real-time on every visit. Instead, all calculations are done in advance. This leads to less load on hosting and can accommodate more users at lower server costs for you.

Easier server management

The backup process becomes trivial for servers that only have static websites on them, as you don’t need to keep track of complicated states. Everything needed to recreate the websites is strictly defined in a project, and you can recreate the entire website from that project.

Limitations

The absolute biggest limitations lie in the static nature, which doesn’t suit all use cases.

Areas where it may not fit include:

Websites changed by visitors in any way.
E-commerce where you need to update inventory when purchases are made.
Websites with login functionality.
Websites that strictly require an embedded contact form.

Despite these limitations, there are things you can do to automate content replenishment from external sources if needed for that specific requirement.

Conclusion

Despite these limitations, we want to emphasize that we believe static websites suit many more than those currently using them, including businesses that may not think it would fit.

Businesses where I see great potential for static websites:

All types of websites that are primarily contact information.
All types of restaurants without built-in booking systems and a menu that doesn’t change very often.
All types of businesses where there is static information, such as opening hours, phone numbers, addresses, and similar, to find the business’s physical location.