Gatsby

Gatsby is an open-source framework based on React for building websites such as eCommerce and marketing sites, blogs, and documentation. It supports JavaScript and Node.js and offers Static Site Generation, Deferred Static Generation, and Server-Side Rendering. Its GraphQL data layer provides a consistent way for page components to request information from content, APIs, and services. Gatsby also includes code-splitting, image optimization, lazy loading, and webpack. Its plugin library covers areas including content management, styling, analytics, commerce, payments, authentication, and search; official integrations include hosting providers and CMS platforms. The open-source framework is free. A separate Free plan is listed as free and includes 300 credits per month, unlimited deploy previews, and custom domains with SSL. The Personal plan is listed at $9 a month and Pro at $20 a month; Enterprise pricing is custom. Projects pause when monthly usage limits are reached. Gatsby 5 requires Node 18 and React 18.

Gatsby offers React-based site building with several rendering approaches and a broad plugin ecosystem. Consider the credit limit and project pause behavior when evaluating its hosted plans.

Gatsby suits React developers building websites that draw on content, APIs, or services. Its rendering options and integrations may fit projects ranging from blogs to eCommerce sites.

Gatsby is a free, open-source framework for React developers building websites. It suits teams that need several rendering options and connections to content and service APIs. Choose it for that flexibility and its broad plugin ecosystem; hosted-plan credit limits and project pauses may be a poor fit for workloads that cannot stop.

Overview

Gatsby brings content, APIs, and services together through a GraphQL data layer, giving pages and StaticQuery components a common way to request data. That approach can help sites drawing from several sources, though it is more structure than a small site with straightforward content may need.

Teams can use Static Site Generation, Deferred Static Generation, or Server-Side Rendering, rather than committing every page to one rendering approach. Code-splitting, image optimization, lazy-loading, and webpack are included, adding useful delivery tools for React projects without requiring each capability to be assembled separately.

Key features

Plugins and integrations

The Gatsby Plugin Library spans CMS, CSS and UI, analytics, commerce, payments, authentication, and search, with 3,269 results. Official CMS integrations include Contentful, Sanity, Strapi, and WordPress, among others; hosting integrations include Netlify, Vercel, AWS S3, Azure, and Firebase. This breadth is valuable when a team wants to connect an existing stack, but the framework's appeal is strongest for developers comfortable working in JavaScript and Node.js.

Build and team capabilities

Incremental builds, multilingual support, and a local preview server cover useful parts of the development workflow. Team roles and permissions help control access to members and sites, and users can belong to multiple teams. Repository connections include GitHub Enterprise Server, self-managed GitLab, and Bitbucket; the Netlify app for Slack adds a team communication integration.

The platform supports one-time-password authenticator apps. Gatsby says its security program is SOC 2 Type 2 certified for Security, Availability, and Confidentiality, and that it adheres to GDPR. Gatsby does not offer monetary rewards through a formal bug bounty program. Gatsby Cloud Serverless Functions on the free plan have a 100,000-invocation monthly limit, 128MB memory, and a 15-second timeout.

Pricing

The open-source framework costs free, billed always free. It is the natural starting point for developers who want Gatsby without a paid hosted plan. The hosted Free plan is also free, billed $0 forever, and includes 300 credits per month, unlimited deploy previews, and custom domains with SSL. Those previews and domain features make it useful for small projects, but the credit cap matters: projects pause when monthly usage limits are reached and remain paused until the next billing cycle.

Personal costs $9 a month, billed $9 /month, and raises the allowance to 1,000 credits per month while adding priority email support and one-day observability. It is a fit for an individual or small project that needs more credits and a faster support option, though the monthly cap and pause behavior remain important. Pro costs $20 a month, billed $20 /month, with unlimited members, 3+ concurrent builds, 30-day analytics and metrics, and monthly credits from the plan. Teams that benefit from concurrent builds and longer metrics coverage have a clearer reason to pay; the plan still uses monthly credits.

Enterprise has custom pricing and includes a 99.99% SLA, enterprise network tier, SSO and SCIM, and 24/7 dedicated support. It is aimed at organizations that need those service and identity controls, not teams seeking a published flat rate. Paid plans start at $9 /mo.

Platforms

Gatsby is available as an API, a self-hosted option, and on the web. Gatsby 5 requires Node 18 and React 18, so projects adopting that version need to meet both runtime requirements.

Who it's for

Gatsby is best suited to React teams building e-commerce, marketing, blog, documentation, or other sites that benefit from varied rendering strategies and a shared data layer. It is less suitable for a team seeking a minimal static-site workflow or for hosted workloads that cannot tolerate reaching a monthly credit limit and pausing.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Static generation, deferred generation, and server-side rendering can serve different page needs within one framework.
• Pros: A wide plugin library and official CMS and hosting integrations give teams many options for connecting a content and delivery stack.
• Pros: The free hosted plan includes unlimited deploy previews and custom domains with SSL.
• Cons: Hosted Free is capped at 300 credits per month, and projects pause at their usage limit until the next billing cycle.
• Cons: Personal and Pro retain monthly credit limits, so paying does not remove the need to manage usage.
• Cons: Gatsby 5 requires both Node 18 and React 18, which may constrain teams that cannot use those versions.

Alternatives

For a broader comparison, browse Static site generators. Consider Cecil if you want free software for Linux, macOS, or Windows; it is distributed under the EUPL-1.2 license. Eleventy is a free, MIT-licensed, self-hosted static-site generator for teams that prefer that model. Nanoc is a free option for Linux, macOS, or Windows. Bridgetown is another free option, with API, self-hosted, and desktop platforms.

Hugo is open source and free to use, with Windows, macOS, and Linux support. Lume is a free static-site generator for Deno. Metalsmith is free and MIT/(L)GPL licensed, with API and desktop platforms. Publii is a free option for Windows, macOS, and Linux.

Verdict

Choose Gatsby if you are a React team that wants multiple rendering strategies, a GraphQL data layer, and a broad ecosystem of integrations in one framework. The open-source framework and preview-friendly Free plan make it approachable, but hosted credit caps can interrupt a project; teams that need predictable uninterrupted usage should weigh that limit before committing.