---
name: "nikola"
section: "1"
platform: "linux"
package: "nikola"
version: "8.3.3-3"
release: "Arch Linux 2026-11-01"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/nikola"
---

# nikola(1)

A Static Site and Blog Generator

## NAME

Nikola - A Static Site and Blog Generator

## SYNOPSIS

Create an empty site (with a setup wizard):

**nikola init mysite**

(You can create a site with demo files in it with **nikola init --demo mysite**)

Create a post (inside the **mysite** directory):

**nikola new\_post**

Build the site:

**nikola build**

Start the test server and open a browser:

**nikola serve -b**

## DESCRIPTION

Nikola is a static website and blog generator. The very short explanation is that it takes some texts you wrote, and uses them to create a folder full of HTML files. If you upload that folder to a server, you will have a rather full-featured website, done with little effort.

Its original goal is to create blogs, but it supports most kind of sites, and can be used as a CMS, as long as what you present to the user is your own content instead of something the user generates.

Nikola can do:

- •

  A blog

- •

  Your company's site

- •

  Your personal site

- •

  A software project's site

- •

  A book's site

Since Nikola-based sites don't run any code on the server, there is no way to process user input in forms.

Nikola can't do:

- •

  Twitter

- •

  Facebook

- •

  An Issue tracker

- •

  Anything with forms, really (except for comments!)

Keep in mind that "static" doesn't mean **boring**. You can have animations, slides or whatever fancy CSS/HTML5 thingie you like. It only means all that HTML is generated already before being uploaded. On the other hand, Nikola sites will tend to be content-heavy. What Nikola is good at is at putting what you write out there.

## COMMANDS

The most basic commands needed to get by are:

- **nikola help**

  get a list of commands, or help for a command

- **nikola version \[--check\]**

  print version number

- **nikola init \[-d\|--demo\] \[-q\|--quiet\] folder**

  initialize new site

- **nikola build**

  build a site

- **nikola new\_post**

  create a new post

- **nikola new\_page**

  create a new page

- **nikola status \[--list-drafts\] \[--list-modified\] \[--list-scheduled\]**

  show site and deployment status

- **nikola check \[-v\] (-l \[--find-sources\] \[-r\] \| -f \[--clean-files\])**

  check for dangling links or unknown files

- **nikola deploy \[\[preset \[preset...\]\]**

  deploy the site using the **DEPLOY\_COMMANDS** setting

- **nikola github\_deploy \[-m COMMIT\_MESSAGE\]\`**

  deploy the site to GitHub Pages

- **nikola serve \[-p PORT\] \[-a ADDRESS\] \[-d\|--detach\] \[-b\|--browser\] \[-6\|--ipv6\]**

  start development web server

- **nikola auto \[-p PORT\] \[-a ADDRESS\] \[-b\|--browser\] \[-6\|--ipv6\]**

  start development web server with automated rebuilds and reloads

- **nikola plugin \[options\]**

  manage plugins from the Plugins Index ( \<https://plugins.getnikola.com/\> )

- **nikola theme \[options\]**

  manage themes from the Themes Index ( \<https://themes.getnikola.com/\> )

Use **nikola help** to get a list of all commands.

## BUGS

Issue Tracker:  \<https://github.com/getnikola/nikola/issues\>

## SEE ALSO

- •

  The Nikola Website:  \<https://getnikola.com/\>

- •

  Handbook:  \<https://getnikola.com/handbook.html\>

- •

  Support:  \<https://getnikola.com/contact.html\>