Many developers have switched from bloated platforms and embraced lightweight headless CMSs and the static site generators (SSGs) that make those beautiful digital experiences possible.
A static site generator, like Gatsby, leverages JavaScript frameworks and libraries to generate HTML content during build time instead of doing so during runtime.
According to npm trends, Gatsby is the second most used static site generator in the market, in a close battle with Nuxt.
However, Gatsby has evolved to become more than just an SSG but a fully-fledged framework for a variety of applications. With Gatsby and a headless CMS like dotCMS, developers can build and deploy blazing-fast websites, SPAs and PWAs.
What is Gatsby?
Gatsby is a free, open source, React-based framework that helps developers build websites and apps. Not so long ago, it was considered only a static site generator, but since its functionalities go beyond that, it’s now seen as a framework for SPAs and PWAs.
Gatsby offers users preconfigured features that are ready to use. Instead of having to code your way towards your site or app, Gatsby gives you the tools, so you don’t have to do any coding on the server or go to a query database.
Why does Gatsby need a CMS?
To understand why Gatsby needs a CMS, a rundown of how the static site generator works is first required. It enables developers to create fast, SEO-friendly websites by leveraging React-based JavaScript framework. Following its SSG model, at build time, the server fetches pre-rendered static files.
While this approach covers framework and development, as well as offers significant performance benefits, it poses challenges when it comes to managing dynamic content. By itself, Gatsby is a frontend framework, requiring a backend to build on top of it. This is where a CMS comes into play, providing essential support for a smooth and scalable workflow.
Being developer-centric, Gatsby can be difficult for non-technical users to operate, such as content creators attempting to manage content directly in the code. With a CMS, these users are provided an intuitive interface for updating and managing content. Though Gatsby generates static pages during build time, modern websites often demand frequent updates to the content, such as blog posts, product listings, or user-generated content. A CMS makes it easy to make necessary changes to content in real time, eliminating the need for constant site rebuilds or manual intervention.
A CMS also aims to improve collaboration between developers and marketing teams in charge of content. While developers remain focused on building digital experiences for users with Gatsby, content creators can independently manage content. This helps to reduce missteps caused by friction and accelerates updates and changes without hindering the site’s performance or development.
Overall, together, Gatsby and a CMS enable efficient content management, fast builds, and a seamless workflow for engineering and marketing teams.
Benefits of Gatsby
It’s part of the developers’ job to provide every user with the best experience possible regardless of their device and network speed.
That’s where Gatsby comes in, providing developers with a solid solution that integrates out-of-the-box with a headless CMS like dotCMS. Let’s explore some of the benefits of Gatsby.
Gentle Learning Curve
Since Gatsby is based on React.js, the JavaScript library for building UI that most frontend developers know and love, it is simple for developers to make the leap and start using Gatsby. In fact, Gatsby aims to work and behave like a React app, relying on reusable components to simplify development.
Also, using Gatsby with a headless CMS simplifies integration with GraphQL, enabling developers to query data from markup, SQL databases, or a headless CMS.
Created With Performance In Mind
Slow or bloated sites are the death of every digital brand. Luckily for developers, Gatsby sites are significantly faster than others.
Gatsby follows Google’s PRPL architectural pattern (push, render, pre-render, lazy-loading), boosting both mobile and digital desktop experiences. Gatsby also simplifies development by compiling Webpack configuration to build your sites, as well as prefetches resources to reduce load times and give users a blazing-fast experience.
Better SEO
When used as an SSG, Gatsby uses server-side rendering to generate static pages at build time. Dynamic meta information is provided during this process, including meta titles and descriptions and all the content is available to Google bots to crawl.
In fact, when you inspect a Gatsby-created page, you’ll notice a fully rendered HTML document. The best thing about Gatbsy is that most of its speed advantages come out-of-the-box, but if you need additional speed tweaks, you can upgrade easily by following Gatsby’s crystal clear documentation.
Another gain on the SEO-front is the fact that Gatsby gives you full control over your website’s content and structure, which translates to control over SEO. You can edit all the meta information and alt-texts to tell Google what your website is all about.
Easier Maintenance
A headless CMS makes it easy for Gatsby users to maintain both the site and the plugins. With a headless CMS, it’s possible to simplify updates and keep things running smoothly. Also, you can leverage Gatsby Cloud; a tool that makes hosting, building and deploying simple, reducing the time IT teams spend maintaining a site.
Extensive Open Source Ecosystem
Another of Gatsby’s main strengths lies in its robust and open source community. Gatsby’s Github community is alive and well, with hundreds of thousands of developers working together to make Gatsby a better framework for static sites. Also, Gatsby is strong in both plugins and API hooks, with over 2,000 user-created plugins to help other users streamline their Gatsby development.
When to Use a Gatsby and A Headless CMS
Even though Gatsby and a headless CMS like dotCMS are a great combination, that doesn’t mean that Gatsby works for every possible use case. Let’s explore some of the best use cases for Gatsby.
When You’re Building Static Sites
Even though it’s now considered a framework, Gatsby is optimized for generating static websites in plain HTML, JS, and CSS. It is virtually unbeatable when it comes to building and deploying static websites as it provides server-side rendering out-of-the-box as well as all the plugins you need to build a website quickly.
When You Plan On Using Jamstack
Jamstack sites, like those you can create with Gatsby, allow developers to have more freedom and flexibility. Gatsby enables frontend developers to focus on building the UI and plug in a headless CMS like dotCMS to build every part of the website or app under the same roof, yet separately.
When You’re Building Progressive Web Apps
Gatsby sites also qualify as progressive web apps as it’s possible to add the web app manifest, a brief JSON file with metadata, to Gatsby. This file provides the browser with instructions on how to behave when installed in a device. Adding this file can be done by installing the gatsby-plugin-manifest.
When Your Team is Experienced in JavaScript
Gatsby’s learning curve is gentle, yes, but you need a team of developers who are already experienced in JavaScript. If your team is already proficient in JS and React, making the leap towards Gatsby is relatively easy. If you’re already using React components that you want to reuse on a static website, Gatsby can be a good call for JS-proficient developers.
Why Choose dotCMS for Gatsby?
Gatsby has a rich open source ecosystem and essentially lets you build websites the way you want. However, integrating a headless CMS into the equation will take your Gatsby to the next level.
With functions like Edit Mode Anywhere, dotCMS content API, enhanced integration with GraphQL, dotCMS’s hybrid CMS capabilities support Gatsby on what it does best: help you build fast, eye-catching static sites and PWAs.
Ready to get started with Gatsby? To learn more, contact dotCMS today to schedule a free demo of our solutions.
FAQs
What CMS should you use with Gatsby?
Choosing the right CMS to use with Gatsby depends on several key factors, including the project requirements, team workflow, scalability, and ease of integration. When determining the best CMS for your Gatsby project, keep the following considerations in mind:
Complexity: If your website requires complex content types, such as blogs, e-commerce, portfolios, or documentation, you may be better served choosing a CMS that allows you to create custom content methods.
Delivery: If you need a flexible content delivery system because you produce content for multiple channels, a headless CMS is ideal.
Ease of use: A content team consisting of non-technical users will benefit from a CMS that has a user-friendly interface and easy content editing capabilities.
Ease of integration: Some CMS platforms have dedicated Gatsby plugins that simplify the integration process.
Flexibility: A headless CMS decouples the content from the frontend, providing you with more flexibility. Those who prefer a traditional CMS will need to configure it to work with Gatsby, which can be more complex.
Traffic and growth: If you plan for significant growth or have large amounts of content, choose a CMS that can scale accordingly.
Does Gatsby have a CMS?
Gatsby itself is a JavaScript framework that focuses on building fast, high-performing websites. The tool does not come with a built-in CMS or a graphical user interface for managing content. However, Gatsby can be integrated with various CMS options to manage content.
Using plugins, Gatsby excels at connecting with headless CMSs, which are content management systems that provide content through APIs rather than a traditional web interface. These systems allow you to create, manage, and update content while Gatsby fetches and renders it as static pages during build time.
Is Gatsby SEO-friendly?
Because the static site generator pre-builds pages at build time, content is fully rendered when it reaches the browser, which makes it easier for search engines to crawl and index the content. This process is highly beneficial for SEO purposes.
Additionally, Gatsby’s performance optimizations contribute to faster page load times. Not only does that impact the user experience, but it is also a ranking factor for SEO. Moreover, Gatsby allows users to customize SEO-related elements for greater performance.
What is CMS in Gatsby?
A CMS is used to manage and organize content for a website. Gatsby can integrate with various CMSs to fetch content and display it on a static website. The combination of Gatsby and a CMS results in fast, SEO-friendly websites that can be easily updated when needed without extensive actions.