Documentation Platforms¶

Documentation platforms provide comprehensive solutions for creating, hosting, and managing documentation. This guide compares popular options to help you choose the right platform for your needs.

Platform Categories¶

Static Site Generators¶

Generate static HTML from source files:

• MkDocs (Material for MkDocs)
• Docusaurus (React-based)
• Hugo (Go-based, fast)
• Sphinx (Python documentation standard)

Hosted Platforms¶

Full-service documentation hosting:

• ReadMe
• GitBook
• Notion (for internal docs)
• Confluence

API Documentation¶

Specialized for API docs:

• Swagger UI / Redoc
• Stoplight
• Postman

Static Site Generators¶

MkDocs with Material Theme¶

The platform powering this site.

Strengths: - Excellent search - Beautiful default theme - Simple configuration - Python-based, easy to extend

Best for: Developer documentation, technical content

Example configuration:

site_name: My Docs
theme:
  name: material
  features:
    - navigation.tabs
    - search.highlight
plugins:
  - search
  - minify

Docusaurus¶

React-based, backed by Meta.

Strengths: - React component support - Versioning built-in - Blog integration - Internationalization

Best for: Open source projects, versioned docs

Hugo¶

Extremely fast builds.

Strengths: - Fastest build times - No dependencies beyond Hugo binary - Flexible templating

Best for: Large documentation sets, performance-critical

Sphinx¶

Python documentation standard.

Strengths: - Automatic API documentation from Python docstrings - reStructuredText format - Cross-referencing - Multiple output formats

Best for: Python projects, academic documentation

Hosted Platforms¶

ReadMe¶

Developer hub platform.

Strengths: - Interactive API explorer - Analytics built-in - Customizable design - Version management

Pricing: Free tier available, paid plans for teams

GitBook¶

Knowledge base platform.

Strengths: - Beautiful editor - Git synchronization - Team collaboration - Simple setup

Best for: Product documentation, team knowledge bases

Confluence¶

Enterprise knowledge management.

Strengths: - Jira integration - Enterprise features - Extensive permissions - Template system

Best for: Enterprise teams using Atlassian ecosystem

Choosing a Platform¶

Decision Factors¶

Recommendations by Use Case¶

Summary¶

Choose a documentation platform based on your needs:

• Need control? Static site generators
• Need simplicity? Hosted platforms
• Developer-focused? MkDocs, Docusaurus
• API-heavy? ReadMe, Stoplight
• Enterprise? Confluence, GitBook Enterprise

The best platform is one your team will actually maintain.