Jekyll Hosting Comparison: GitHub Pages vs Netlify vs Cloudflare Pages vs Vercel
Compare the four best Jekyll hosting platforms — GitHub Pages, Netlify, Cloudflare Pages, and Vercel. Free plans, build times, CDN speed, custom domains, and which to choose.
Choosing where to host your Jekyll site is one of the first decisions you’ll make — and all four major platforms are free for personal projects. The differences come down to build speed, CDN coverage, plugin support, and how much you want to configure. Here’s a plain-English breakdown.
At a Glance
| GitHub Pages | Netlify | Cloudflare Pages | Vercel | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Custom domain | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Free SSL | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| CDN locations | Limited | 100+ PoPs | 300+ PoPs | 100+ PoPs |
| Build time (typical) | 30–90s | 15–45s | 10–30s | 10–30s |
| Any Jekyll plugin | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Preview deploys | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Build minutes (free) | Unlimited | 300/month | Unlimited | 6,000/month |
| Bandwidth (free) | 100GB/month | 100GB/month | Unlimited | 100GB/month |
GitHub Pages
GitHub Pages is the default choice for Jekyll — it’s the only platform with native Jekyll support. Push to a repository and it builds and deploys automatically with zero configuration.
What makes it great
- Zero setup — no accounts beyond GitHub, no CI/CD, no config files
- Free forever — no build minute limits, no bandwidth caps (within reason)
- Tight GitHub integration — deployments show in your commit history, PR checks, and Actions tab
The catch: limited plugins
GitHub Pages only supports a specific list of plugins. Popular ones like jekyll-archives, jekyll-paginate-v2, and any custom gems won’t work.
Workaround: Use GitHub Actions to build Jekyll yourself and deploy the output. This removes the plugin restriction entirely:
# .github/workflows/deploy.yml
- name: Build with Jekyll
run: bundle exec jekyll build
# Now you can use any plugin
Best for
Beginners, simple blogs, open-source project documentation, anyone who wants zero infrastructure decisions.
Netlify
Netlify was the first platform to make static site deployment truly developer-friendly. It remains one of the best options for Jekyll.
What makes it great
- Any plugin — you control the build, so any gem works
- Preview deploys — every pull request gets its own preview URL (
https://deploy-preview-42--mysite.netlify.app) - Form handling — built-in form submissions without a backend (free up to 100/month)
- Split testing — A/B test different branches
- Netlify Functions — serverless functions if you ever need a backend endpoint
- Instant rollbacks — one click to revert to any previous deploy
Configuration
Create netlify.toml in your repo root:
[build]
command = "bundle exec jekyll build"
publish = "_site"
[build.environment]
JEKYLL_ENV = "production"
RUBY_VERSION = "3.3"
[[headers]]
for = "/assets/*"
[headers.values]
Cache-Control = "public, max-age=31536000, immutable"
[[redirects]]
from = "/old-url/"
to = "/new-url/"
status = 301
Free plan limits
300 build minutes/month. A typical Jekyll build takes 30–60 seconds, so you get roughly 300–600 deploys/month — more than enough for most projects.
Best for
Projects that need preview deploys, contact forms, redirects, or any plugin beyond the GitHub Pages whitelist.
Cloudflare Pages
Cloudflare Pages is the newest of the four and has quickly become the performance leader. Its CDN has 300+ locations worldwide — meaning files are served from close to every user on the planet.
What makes it great
- Fastest CDN — 300+ points of presence, best global coverage of any free tier
- Unlimited bandwidth — no caps, no overage charges, ever
- Unlimited build minutes — no monthly limits on the free plan
- Any plugin — full control over the build
- Preview deploys — every branch and PR gets a preview URL
- Web Analytics — free, privacy-friendly analytics built in (no cookie banner needed)
- Cloudflare Workers — edge functions for dynamic behaviour if needed
Configuration
Connect your GitHub/GitLab repo in the Cloudflare Pages dashboard and set:
- Build command:
bundle exec jekyll build - Build output directory:
_site - Environment variable:
JEKYLL_ENV=production
No config file needed — it’s all in the dashboard.
Redirects
Create a _redirects file in your site root (same format as Netlify):
/old-url/ /new-url/ 301
Best for
Sites where global performance matters — international audiences, high-traffic sites, anyone who wants the best CDN coverage for free.
Vercel
Vercel is best known for Next.js hosting, but it works well with Jekyll too. Its developer experience is excellent and its edge network is fast.
What makes it great
- Fast build infrastructure — builds often complete faster than Netlify
- Excellent CLI —
vercelcommand deploys from your terminal instantly - Preview deploys — every push and PR gets a preview URL with a comment on GitHub
- Analytics — paid add-on, but detailed
- Edge functions — Vercel Edge Functions if you need dynamic routes
Configuration
Create vercel.json:
{
"buildCommand": "bundle exec jekyll build",
"outputDirectory": "_site",
"installCommand": "bundle install"
}
Free plan limits
6,000 build minutes/month — more than GitHub Actions but less than Cloudflare’s unlimited.
Important: Vercel’s free plan is for personal/non-commercial use. Commercial sites require a paid plan ($20+/month). For a commercial theme marketplace, check the terms carefully.
Best for
Developer tools, open-source projects, teams already using Vercel for other projects.
Which Should You Choose?
Just starting out / personal blog: GitHub Pages — zero decisions, zero setup, free forever.
Need any Jekyll plugin: Netlify, Cloudflare Pages, or Vercel — all support custom builds.
Best global performance: Cloudflare Pages — 300+ CDN locations, unlimited bandwidth, unlimited builds.
Need contact forms built in: Netlify — form handling is a native feature, not a third-party integration.
Commercial project: Cloudflare Pages or Netlify — Vercel’s free tier restricts commercial use.
Our recommendation for most new JekyllHub users: Start with GitHub Pages for simplicity. If you outgrow its plugin restrictions or need better global performance, migrate to Cloudflare Pages — the unlimited bandwidth and build minutes make it the most generous free tier.
Migrating Between Platforms
All four platforms deploy from the same Git repository. Switching is as simple as:
- Sign up for the new platform
- Connect the same GitHub repo
- Set the build command (
bundle exec jekyll build) and output directory (_site) - Update your domain’s DNS to point to the new host
- Delete the old deployment
The whole process takes under 30 minutes and your Jekyll site code doesn’t change at all.
Browse Jekyll themes on JekyllHub — all themes are tested for compatibility with GitHub Pages, Netlify, and Cloudflare Pages.