What is Jamstack? A Beginner-Friendly Explanation

Jamstack is an architecture for building websites. It's an approach, not a specific technology. Here's what it means and why people use it.

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Jamstack = JAM + Stack

J - JavaScript

A - APIs

M - Markup

But really, Jamstack means: pre-built websites served from a CDN.

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The Old Way vs. Jamstack

Traditional Website (WordPress)

1. Visitor requests page
2. Server receives request
3. Server runs PHP code
4. PHP queries database
5. PHP builds HTML page
6. Server sends HTML to visitor

This happens every single time someone visits.

Jamstack Website

1. Developer deploys site
2. Build process runs ONCE
3. All pages become static HTML
4. HTML deployed to CDN globally

Later:
1. Visitor requests page
2. CDN sends pre-built HTML
3. Done

The HTML is built once at deploy time, not on every visit.

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Why Is This Better?

Speed

Metric

Traditional

Jamstack

First request

200-2000ms

10-50ms

Server processing

Every request

None

Database queries

Every request

None

Pre-built files are just faster than processing code.

Security

Attack Surface

Traditional

Jamstack

Server

Yes

No (static files)

Database

Yes

No (no database)

PHP/Code

Yes

No (pre-built)

Login page

Yes

Not typically

No server code running = nothing to exploit.

Cost

Traditional

Jamstack

$10-50/month server

Free CDN hosting

Database costs

No database

Scaling costs

CDN scales automatically

Many Jamstack sites run on free tiers.

Developer Experience

• Version control (Git)

• Preview deployments

• Instant rollback

• No server management

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What "Static" Actually Means

"Static" doesn't mean boring or simple. It means the HTML is pre-built.

A Jamstack site can have:

• ✅ Interactive features (JavaScript)

• ✅ User authentication

• ✅ E-commerce

• ✅ Forms

• ✅ Comments

• ✅ Real-time data

These are handled by JavaScript and APIs, not server-side code.

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The Stack

Build Tools

Convert your source code into static files:

• Next.js - React framework

• Astro - Multi-framework

• Hugo - Go-based, very fast

• Eleventy - JavaScript simplicity

• Gatsby - React + GraphQL

Hosting

Serve your static files globally:

• Vercel - Best for Next.js

• Netlify - Great for everything

• Cloudflare Pages - Free unlimited bandwidth

• GitHub Pages - Simple and free

APIs

Add dynamic functionality:

• Content: Headless CMS (Sanity, Contentful)

• Forms: Formspree, Netlify Forms

• Auth: Auth0, Clerk

• Payments: Stripe

• Comments: Giscus, Disqus

• Search: Algolia

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Example Architecture

Blog

Content: Markdown files in Git
Build: Next.js
Hosting: Vercel
Forms: Formspree
Comments: Giscus

E-commerce

Products: Shopify (headless)
Build: Next.js
Hosting: Vercel
Checkout: Shopify Checkout
Payments: Shopify/Stripe

Marketing Site

Content: Sanity CMS
Build: Astro
Hosting: Netlify
Forms: Netlify Forms
Analytics: Plausible

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When to Use Jamstack

Great For

• ✅ Blogs

• ✅ Marketing sites

• ✅ Documentation

• ✅ Portfolios

• ✅ E-commerce (with headless backend)

• ✅ Landing pages

• ✅ Company websites

Not Ideal For

❌ Highly dynamic apps (social networks)

❌ Real-time collaboration tools

❌ Sites with thousands of pages updating constantly

❌ Non-technical editors without CMS

(Though Jamstack can handle these with APIs and server functions)

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How to Get Started

Simplest Path

1. Create a Next.js project:

   npx create-next-app@latest my-site

   

2. Add some pages

3. Deploy to Vercel:

   npx vercel

   

That's it. You're on Jamstack.

With Content Management

1. Set up a headless CMS (Sanity, Contentful)

2. Connect to your framework

3. Content editors use CMS

4. Site rebuilds on publish

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Jamstack vs. WordPress

Aspect

WordPress

Jamstack

How it works

Build on request

Pre-build

Speed

Needs optimization

Fast by default

Security

Needs hardening

Secure by default

Scaling

Needs servers

CDN handles it

Editing

Admin dashboard

CMS or Markdown

Hosting cost

$15-50/month

Often free

Plugins

Thousands

APIs + npm

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Common Misconceptions

"Jamstack = no CMS"

False. Jamstack works great with headless CMSes:

• Sanity

• Contentful

• Strapi

• Payload

• Ghost

Content editors get their dashboard. Developers get their stack.

"Jamstack = no dynamic features"

False. JavaScript runs in the browser. APIs provide data. Serverless functions handle backend logic.

You can build almost anything.

"Jamstack is only for developers"

Mostly false. With a headless CMS, non-technical editors can manage content just like WordPress—maybe better.

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The Future

Jamstack keeps evolving:

• Edge functions - Run code at CDN edge

• Incremental regeneration - Rebuild only changed pages

• Streaming - Start sending HTML immediately

• Database at edge - Global distributed data

The line between "static" and "dynamic" is blurring. What remains is: performance by default.

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Summary

Jamstack is:

• Pre-building websites instead of building on every request

• Serving from CDN instead of origin servers

• Using APIs for dynamic features instead of server code

Benefits:

• Faster

• More secure

• Often cheaper

• Better developer experience

Getting started:

1. Pick a framework (Next.js, Astro)

2. Add content (Markdown or CMS)

3. Deploy to CDN (Vercel, Netlify)

That's Jamstack.

Related guides:

• JAMstack Explained for WordPress Users

• Static Site Generators vs WordPress

• Deploy to Vercel Guide

See how to migrate from WordPress →