Our honest take: if you already use Git and your site is a public, non-commercial project, GitHub Pages is hard to beat. If you want to drag in a file and send a link, need to share PDFs or videos rather than just websites, or want passwords, analytics or lead capture without code, Droply is the shorter path.
How each one works
GitHub Pages publishes a website from a GitHub repository. You commit your files (or set up a build with GitHub Actions), turn on Pages in the repository settings, and the site appears atusername.github.io/repo. Every change goes through a commit.
Droply publishes whatever you drop into the upload box: a ZIP of a site, a single HTML file, or documents, images and videos. It appears at your-name.droply.page. Changes go through an Update button in the dashboard. If your code is on GitHub anyway, Droply can deploy from a repository too.
Side by side
| GitHub Pages | Droply | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free (public repos) | Free plan; paid plans from $5/mo billed yearly |
| Needs Git knowledge | Yes | No |
| Time to first link | Minutes, plus setup | Under a minute |
| Site size | Up to 1 GB published site | 10 MB free, up to 2 TB on paid plans |
| Bandwidth | Soft limit of 100 GB/month | Monthly visit allowance per plan |
| PDFs, images, video as viewer pages | No (raw files only) | Yes |
| Custom domain | Yes, free | Plus plan and above |
| Password protection | No | Plus plan and above |
| Visitor analytics | No (add your own script) | Plus plan and above |
| Email capture before viewing | No | Plus plan and above |
| Commercial use | Not for online businesses or e-commerce | Allowed |
| Private repository | Needs a paid GitHub plan | No repository needed |
GitHub figures come from GitHub's own documentation on Pages limits. Check it before you rely on them, as GitHub changes these from time to time.
Where GitHub Pages wins
- Cost. It is free, including custom domains, for public repositories.
- Version history. Every change is a commit, so you can see and undo anything.
- Developer workflow. Pull requests, GitHub Actions builds and static site generators like Jekyll, Hugo or Astro all fit in naturally.
- Open-source documentation. It is the default home for project docs for a reason.
Where Droply wins
- No setup. No repository, no branch settings, no waiting for a build. Drop and share.
- More than websites. A PDF proposal, a pitch deck, a video cut or a set of files each get a clean page with a viewer or download buttons. GitHub Pages would just serve the raw file.
- Control over who sees it. Password-protect a client preview, require an email before someone views a lead magnet, or turn downloads off, all from the dashboard.
- Built-in numbers. See views, countries and referrers per project without adding a tracking script.
- Business use. GitHub's terms rule out using Pages as free hosting for an online business. Droply is meant for it.
Which should you pick?
- Developer, open-source project, docs site: GitHub Pages.
- Designer, freelancer or marketer sharing work with clients: Droply.
- Prototype or AI-made page you want to send today: Droply.
- Both: plenty of people keep code on GitHub and use Droply's GitHub deploy for the client-facing preview, with a password on it.