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11ty (Eleventy)

11ty (Eleventy) is a JavaScript-based static site generator (web development tooling) that transforms templates and content files into pre-rendered HTML for deployment on any web server or static hosting platform.

  • Static site generation (web development tooling) from various template languages into HTML.
  • Support for multiple template engines (templating) including HTML, Markdown, Liquid, Nunjucks, and others as documented.
  • Data-driven content capabilities (content management) using JSON, JavaScript data files, and front matter.
  • Flexible directory and URL configuration (site architecture) for input, output, permalinks, and collections.
  • Extensibility via plugins, filters, shortcodes, and configuration APIs (extensibility framework).

More About 11ty

11ty, also referred to as Eleventy, is a static site generator (web development tooling) built on the JavaScript ecosystem that compiles source templates, data files, and assets into static HTML, CSS, and JavaScript suitable for deployment on generic web servers or static hosting services. The project focuses on file-based content authoring and pre-rendered output instead of runtime server frameworks.

The core purpose of 11ty is to provide a configurable pipeline (build tooling) for generating websites and web content from multiple template languages. It supports templating (templating) with formats such as HTML, Markdown, Liquid, Nunjucks, and others that are documented in the official project materials. Authors can mix these formats within a single project, enabling teams to choose syntax that aligns with existing skills or legacy content.

11ty implements a data layer (content management) based on front matter, JSON, and JavaScript data files. Global, directory-level, and page-level data can be merged into templates, which enables content reuse and separation of content from presentation. Collections (site architecture) are a core feature that group content items based on tags or other criteria, enabling listing pages, archives, and navigation structures built from structured content metadata.

From an operational perspective, 11ty runs as a command-line tool (developer tooling) that reads an input directory, processes content according to a configuration file, and writes a generated site into an output directory. Configuration (configuration management) allows control over directory structure, template engines, layout resolution, permalinks, and collection definitions. A local development server with live reload (developer experience) is provided in the tooling so teams can preview changes during authoring.

Enterprises use 11ty (web publishing) to build marketing sites, documentation properties, microsites, and other content properties where static delivery is feasible. Because the output is static HTML, 11ty integrates with generic CDNs and static hosting platforms (infrastructure integration), including Jamstack-style deployments that connect build pipelines to source control repositories. Its framework-agnostic output allows teams to embed 11ty-generated pages alongside other systems as long as the hosting environment can serve static files.

Extensibility is enabled through plugins, filters, transforms, and shortcodes (extensibility framework) that can modify content during the build process, inject reusable components, or integrate external data at build time. The configuration Application Programming Interface (API) permits custom logic in JavaScript, which integrates with the broader Node.js ecosystem (runtime platform) for tasks such as content ingestion, asset processing, or build-time automation.

Within an enterprise technical taxonomy, 11ty fits under static site generators, Jamstack tooling, and web build pipelines (web development tooling). It addresses scenarios where organizations want version-controlled content, reproducible builds, and static delivery while retaining flexibility in templating and data modeling without binding to a single front-end framework.