So you've built your site with Kirby CMS and now you're ready to deploy it. But with so many hosting options available, which one should you choose? This guide breaks down five popular ways to deploy your Kirby site, comparing their costs, features, and complexity to help you make the right choice for your project. Let's get started!
VPS (Virtual Private Server)
A VPS gives you complete control over your hosting environment, making it an excellent choice for developers who want to fine-tune their Kirby CMS setup. Popular providers include DigitalOcean and Hetzner.
Pricing: Starts at $4-6/month for basic servers
Features:
- Full root access to your server
- Choice of operating system (Ubuntu recommended for Kirby)
- Custom server configurations
- Ability to host multiple sites
- Shell access for direct server management
Pros:
- Complete control over the server environment
- Better performance (dedicated resources)
- Cost-effective for multiple sites
- Full control over security measures
Cons:
- Requires DevOps knowledge
- Server maintenance responsibility
- Security management falls on you
- Manual setup of SSL certificates
- No automatic CI/CD
For those comfortable with command line and server administration, VPS hosting offers the most flexibility and control for your Kirby site. It's particularly cost-effective if you're hosting multiple sites or need specific server configurations.
DeployHQ
DeployHQ is a powerful deployment platform that bridges the gap between your Git repository and your server, making Kirby CMS deployments seamless and automated.
Pricing: Starts at $0/month, $9/month for unlimited deployments
Features:
- Zero-downtime automated deployments from Github, GitLab, Bitbucket
- Multiple environment support (staging, production)
- Deployment rollbacks with one click
Pros:
- Works with any hosting provider
- Quick setup (usually under 5 minutes)
- Free tier available for small projects
- Automatic CI/CD pipeline
Cons:
- Needs a VPS to host
- Still needs a bit of setup
Sounds good? Read the complete guide to deploying Kirby with DeployHQ
Dokku
Dokku is an open-source Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) that acts like a mini-Heroku for your VPS. It simplifies deployment by using Docker containers and Git workflows, making it an excellent choice for developers who have experience with Docker.
Pricing: Free (open-source), just pay for your VPS ($5-10/month)
Features:
- Git-based deployments (push to deploy)
- Docker container management
- Automatic SSL certificates
- Zero-downtime deployments
- Multiple environment support
Pros:
- Free and open-source
- Great for multiple applications
- Docker isolation between apps
Cons:
- Requires DevOps knowledge
- Needs a VPS to host
- Requires Docker
- More complex than managed hosting
Want to get started? Check out the official guide for deploying Kirby with Dokku.
Dokku is particularly well-suited for developers who want Heroku-like features but prefer to maintain control over their infrastructure. It's an excellent middle ground between raw VPS hosting and managed platforms if you're comfortable with Docker.
Managed Hosting
Krystal.io is an ethical managed web hosting platform that takes care of most of the technical stuff for you, but for that you have to pay more and give up some control.
Pricing: Starts at $11/month, $29/month for unlimited sites
Features:
- Up to 5 sites
- Up to 25GB storage
- Free SSL certificates
- Customer support
Pros:
- Easier to setup than VPS
- Awesome customer support
- No need to worry about server maintenance
Cons:
- More expensive than VPS
- Limited performance options
- No full control over the server
Github Pages
While Kirby typically requires PHP and a server environment, you can actually deploy it as a static site using Github Pages! This approach is quite a hack, but it works. It uses a static site generator to convert your Kirby site into plain HTML files. Of course, this assumes that you are already using Github to store your content.
Pricing: Free for public repositories, included with Github account for private repos
Features:
- Automated builds via Github Actions
- Free SSL certificates
- Global CDN through Github's infrastructure
- Version control for your content
- Automatic deployments on git push
Pros:
- Completely free hosting
- Excellent performance (static files served via CDN)
- Zero server maintenance
- Automatic deployments via Git
- Perfect for version-controlled content
- High reliability (backed by Github's infrastructure)
Cons:
- No Panel support (content must be edited via Git)
- Dynamic features won't work (forms, search, etc.)
- Not all Kirby plugins are compatible
To set it up you can use the Github Actions workflow, which uses this library under the hood.
Conclusion
So, we've looked at five different ways to deploy Kirby CMS. Let's break down what's best for who:
DeployHQ is probably your best bet if you want the best of both worlds between ease of use and control.
VPS (like DigitalOcean) is for the tech-savvy folks who love to tinker. If you enjoy getting your hands dirty with server configuration and want complete control, this is your playground.
Dokku is pretty cool if you're into Docker and don't mind a bit of setup work. It's free and open-source, which is awesome.
Managed Hosting with Krystal.io is perfect if you just want someone else to handle most of the technical stuff, trading off some control and more money.
Github Pages is an interesting hack for Kirby sites. It's free and super simple to use, but you'll have to say goodbye to dynamic features!
When picking your solution, ask yourself:
- How comfortable are you with DevOps?
- What's your budget looking like?
- How big is your project going to get?
Our recommendation? Start with DeployHQ unless you have a specific reason not to. It's flexible enough for most projects and won't give you a headache! You can get started with DeployHQ for free here.
FAQ
Got questions? We’ve got answers!
Kirby vs. WordPress
Kirby is a flat-file CMS, which means it doesn’t rely on a database like WordPress does. This makes Kirby faster, simpler to manage, and often more secure. However, WordPress remains more popular and benefits from a larger community.
What are the benefits of using Kirby for developers?
Kirby is open-source and designed for extensibility, featuring a headless mode with a built-in RESTful API for content and user management. Developers can add functionality with plugins, or create their own using PHP.
For more details, check out Kirby for Developers.
Is Kirby CMS suitable for large-scale websites?
Yes! Kirby is capable of handling large-scale projects, with some sites reaching 65,000 pages. To learn more about Kirby’s performance, visit the Kirby Performance page.
Is Kirby CMS free?
Although Kirby is open-source, it is not free. If you want to use Kirby for a for-profit project, you need to purchase a license.
