AI automation strategy, implementation, and infrastructure for mid-market companies. Built by Bennie Williams. Zola 2026-06-15T00:00:00+00:00 https://bwai.us/atom.xml 2026-06-15T00:00:00+00:00 2026-06-15T00:00:00+00:00 Bennie Williams https://bwai.us/blog/why-zola-over-nextjs/ <h1 id="why-i-picked-zola-over-next-js-for-client-sites">Why I Picked Zola Over Next.js for Client Sites</h1> <p>I’ve built sites with Django, Pelican, Next.js 15, and now Zola. For client work, Zola wins on every metric that matters.</p> <h2 id="the-problem-with-next-js-for-clients">The Problem With Next.js for Clients</h2> <p>Next.js 15 is excellent. I use it for complex applications. But for small business websites — 3 to 10 pages, mostly static content, a contact form — it’s overkill.</p> <p>You get:</p> <ul> <li>A 200MB <code>node_modules</code> directory</li> <li>Build times measured in minutes</li> <li>Dependency vulnerabilities that need updating weekly</li> <li>A hosting setup that requires Node.js runtime</li> <li>Client confusion when they try to edit content</li> </ul> <h2 id="what-zola-gives-you-instead">What Zola Gives You Instead</h2> <p>Zola is a single binary written in Rust. No dependencies. No Node.js. No npm install.</p> <pre data-lang="bash" class="language-bash "><code class="language-bash" data-lang="bash">zola build </code></pre> <p>That’s it. Sub-second build time. Output is pure HTML and CSS. Deploy it anywhere.</p> <h2 id="the-math">The Math</h2> <table><thead><tr><th>Metric</th><th>Next.js 15</th><th>Zola</th></tr></thead><tbody> <tr><td>Build time</td><td>30-60 seconds</td><td>&lt;1 second</td></tr> <tr><td>Dependencies</td><td>500+ packages</td><td>0</td></tr> <tr><td>Hosting requirements</td><td>Node.js runtime</td><td>Any web server</td></tr> <tr><td>Page size</td><td>200KB+ JS</td><td>0KB JS</td></tr> <tr><td>Lighthouse score</td><td>85-95</td><td>100</td></tr> <tr><td>Client can self-edit</td><td>Unlikely</td><td>Yes (markdown)</td></tr> </tbody></table> <h2 id="when-to-use-which">When To Use Which</h2> <p><strong>Use Next.js when:</strong> You’re building an application with authentication, real-time data, complex state management, or server-side rendering with dynamic data.</p> <p><strong>Use Zola when:</strong> You’re building a website. Marketing pages, blogs, documentation, portfolios, small business sites. Anything that’s mostly static content.</p> <h2 id="how-i-deploy-it">How I Deploy It</h2> <p>Every client site runs on a Hostinger VPS with Docker. Zola builds in the container, nginx serves the static output, Cloudflare handles CDN and SSL. Auto-deploys on git push via Dokploy webhook.</p> <p>The client gets the full source code. Content lives in markdown files. They can edit a blog post in a text editor, push to GitHub, and the site updates automatically.</p> <p>That’s ownership.</p>