Difference Between a Static & a Dynamic Website ( Tutorial with visual Aids)

Have you ever wandered what the basic differences between a static & Dynamic website? Well you have come to the right place...Learn the basic differences between a Static and Dynamic Website using a power point presentation and other visual aids. Understanding these basic differences will help you make informed decisions on your next website project.

“What is the difference between a static and a dynamic web page?” I am faced with this question frequently as a web developer. Especially when dealing with new customers shopping around for quotes for their web design project.. The question arise mostly because, there is a difference in cost to building a dynamic website like WordPress based design as opposed to a simple static website. I hope this tutorial will help you understand basic differences between a static and a dynamic web page so you can make an informed decision about your next web design project.

What Is a Static Website or web page?

A static website contains Web pages with fixed content. Each page is coded in HTML and displays the same information to every visitor. Static sites are the most basic type of website and are the easiest to create. Unlike dynamic websites, they do not require any Web programming or database design. A static site can be built by simply creating a few HTML pages and publishing them to a Web server.

How To Tell if A Website or web page is Static?

There are many static websites on the Internet, you won’t be able to tell immediately if it is static, but the chances are, if the site looks basic and is for a smaller company, and simply delivers information without any bells and whistles, it could be a static website. Static websites can only really be updated by someone with knowledge of website development. Static websites are the cheapest to develop and host, and many smaller companies still use these to get a web presence. Here at Don Web Solutions, we can advise or help to develop both static and dynamic websites. For a more comprehensive understanding of static websites you need to have at least some basic knowledge of coding languages like HTML and CSS. Static websites tend to mostly use only these 2 coding languages to code the websites as opposed to using php or other coding languages as done on dynamic websites.

Here are some easy ways to spot a Static website

Each page will have the Code/text written out separately
Every page has to be saved separately on the server, just as you see it on the web
Changes have to be made manually every time , and you need coding knowledge to make any changes.
Static website pages typically ( Not always ) with the extension .html or .htm :- Use this method for a quick measure only

Advantages of static websites and web pages

Easy to develop
Cheap to develop
Cheap to host


Disadvantages of static websites and web pages

Requires web development expertise to update site
Site not as useful for the user (not user-friendly)
Content can get stagnant

What is a Dynamic Website or Web Page?

A site whose construction is controlled by an application server processed by server-side scripts. Here are some ways you can identify dynamic Web pages.
Pages of the website are not coded and saved separately.
The design/template ( look and feel ) is saved separately.
Corresponding content are saved separately.
The pages are dynamically populated every time.
Dynamic sites on the other hand can be more expensive to develop initially, but the advantages are numerous. At a basic level, a dynamic website can give the website owner the ability to simply update and add new content to the site. For example, news and events could be posted to the site through a simple browser interface. Dynamic features of a site are only limited by imagination. Some examples of dynamic website features could be: content management system, e-commerce system, bulletin / discussion boards, intranet or extranet facilities, ability for clients or users to upload documents, ability for administrators or users to create content or add information to a site (dynamic publishing).

Advantages of dynamic websites and web pages

Much more functional website
Much easier to update
New content brings people back to the site and helps in the search engines
Can work as a system to allow staff or users to collaborate


Disadvantages of dynamic websites and web pages

Slower / more expensive to develop
Hosting costs a little more ( This might not be true now, because of great shared web hosting plans these days)

[Justrelaxx]

You did an amazing job with this tutorial. I am a visual learner and the pros and cons written along with the real website examples helped me to understand everything you were saying. Bravo!!

[fedordedov]

I'm from the future and you did great even 7 years after the drop of this video. You were clear, concise, easy to follow. I was able to take clear notes using the bullet points you provided. Often in these videos people will forget that those they are instructing have a broad range of skill levels. You've omitted any unnecessary jargon making it understandable for noobs and pros alike.

[waqasgamedev]

I am a Civil Engineer but your explanation made it very clear to me whatever you explained. Best part is not just the theory, the explanation with examples. Thank you very much for your efforts.

[chantalbalfe]

Great first tutorial. Better than some who've been doing this for awhile. Thanks for taking the time to create it:)

[GwenetteWriterSinclair]

Thanks Don! A great video. Very well-organized> I shared with a client and they immediately "got it" - much better than when I try to explain it to client's myself. You are a great teacher!

[abdullahosmankhil]

The way you define and the way you talk is awesome and very clear please follow as you going, thanks a lot sir .

[SlightlyOverripeAvocado]

Thank you! Straight to the point and easy to understand.

[rangeshprasanna]

wow !! what a simple and powerful explanation mate. Thanks for doing this great job :) .

[jigardoshi]

Simple and straight. Good video for knowing difference between static and dynamic.

[aellis]

THANK YOU, THANK YOU....THANK your explanation is what i have been looking for, it was very simple and easy to understand for the non web people

[DiegoFernandes-vvqo]

Thx alot for this, im starting with web development and It helped me alot!

[pascoluv]

Thanks very much for your breakdown of the types of websites. Keepup the good work

[SS-ctpe]

Your way of explanation is not seems to be your first one. Nice one. Keep going👏

[teacheroftheword]

Excellent JOB!!!. I visited other youtube sites and they were complicated as hell

[danielodera]

I am an IT newbie and I must say you explained this topic perfectly. Thanks for this video

[MohamedU]

This video is very clear and simple. I understood the difference even though I have very little IT knowledge. Great Work!!

[saifalikhan]

This video is very useful. hope we ll see lot more from you. Keep it up

[donchathurasenarathmudalig]

Very informative. Great video!! helped me out alot

[Ather]

Great Explanation! Thanks for sharing!!

[__taylor__]

Great video! You really care about the viewer learning this information. Thank you.