What Happened to Eleventy (11ty)?
Eleventy (11ty) is an open-source static site generator created by Zach Leatherman in 2017, known for its simplicity, flexibility, and performance in building content-focused websites. After being acquired by Font Awesome in September 2024, the project announced a significant rebrand to "Build Awesome" in March 2026, aiming to ensure its long-term sustainability and expand its ecosystem while maintaining backward compatibility.
Quick Answer
Eleventy, also known as 11ty, is a JavaScript-based static site generator that has been a popular choice for developers seeking simplicity and performance in building static websites since its creation in 2017. As of March 2026, Eleventy is undergoing a significant rebrand to "Build Awesome," a strategic move initiated after its acquisition by Font Awesome in September 2024. This transition aims to secure the project's long-term sustainability and expand its offerings, with a commitment to maintaining backward compatibility for existing Eleventy sites and continuing its core philosophy of flexibility and speed.
📊Key Facts
📅Complete Timeline11 events
Eleventy Initial Release
Zach Leatherman officially released Eleventy (11ty) as a new static site generator, inspired by Jekyll but built with JavaScript.
Eleventy Reaches 3 Million npm Downloads
Zach Leatherman discussed Eleventy's growth and its achievement of over 3 million downloads on npm, highlighting its increasing adoption.
Eleventy Joins Font Awesome
It was announced that Eleventy (11ty) would be joining Font Awesome, with its creator Zach Leatherman also moving to the Font Awesome team to continue working on the project.
Eleventy v3.0.0 Released
Eleventy released its major version 3.0.0, bringing updates and improvements to the static site generator.
Eleventy, 2024 in Review Published
The annual 'Eleventy, 2024 in Review' was published, summarizing the project's achievements and progress throughout the previous year.
Eleventy v3.1.0 Released
Eleventy v3.1.0 was made available, boasting an 11% increase in speed and a 22% reduction in size, enhancing performance and efficiency.
Eleventy v4.0.0-alpha.1 Pre-release
The first alpha pre-release of Eleventy v4.0.0 was made available, signaling future developments for the static site generator.
Eleventy, 2025 in Review Published
The 'Eleventy, 2025 in Review' was published, detailing significant growth with 177 releases, 804 issues closed, and a 51% increase in npm downloads.
Eleventy Announces Rebrand to 'Build Awesome'
Eleventy officially announced its rebrand to 'Build Awesome' and launched a Kickstarter campaign to support the project's sustainable future.
Eleventy Meetup Discusses Build Awesome AMA
The Eleventy Meetup hosted an episode featuring an AMA (Ask Me Anything) session about the new 'Build Awesome' rebrand, providing insights into the future of the project.
Eleventy v3.1.5 Released
Eleventy released version 3.1.5, focusing on dependable dependencies and continued stability for the static site generator.
🔍Deep Dive Analysis
Eleventy, often abbreviated as 11ty, emerged in December 2017 as an open-source static site generator, developed by Zach Leatherman. Inspired by Jekyll but built with JavaScript, Eleventy quickly carved out a niche for its 'static-first' design philosophy, emphasizing simplicity, flexibility, and the ability to work with a wide array of template languages such as Markdown, Liquid, Nunjucks, and Handlebars. This approach resonated with developers looking to build fast, secure, and easily scalable websites, particularly within the burgeoning JAMstack ecosystem.
Throughout its early years, Eleventy gained a reputation for its minimal configuration requirements and its commitment to not locking users into a specific JavaScript framework, allowing developers full control over their project's output and client-side code. Its growth was organic, driven by a passionate community and Leatherman's dedication to sustainable open-source development. By May 2022, Eleventy had surpassed 3 million downloads on npm, a testament to its growing adoption.
A significant turning point occurred in September 2024 when Eleventy was acquired by Font Awesome, with Zach Leatherman joining the Font Awesome team. This acquisition was part of a broader strategy to foster sustainable open-source projects, following the successful model applied to Shoelace, which rebranded to Web Awesome. The move aimed to provide Eleventy with dedicated resources for maintenance, new feature development, and long-term stability.
Following the acquisition, Eleventy continued its development trajectory, releasing version 3.0.0 in October 2024, which focused on modernizing the codebase and reducing dependencies. The "Eleventy, 2025 in Review" report, published in January 2026, highlighted a year of substantial growth, with 177 releases, 804 issues closed, and a 51% year-over-year increase in npm downloads for the core package.
The most recent and impactful development is the announcement in March 2026 that Eleventy is rebranding to "Build Awesome." This rebrand is accompanied by a Kickstarter campaign, aiming to further fund and expand the project under the larger 'Awesome' banner. Zach Leatherman has assured the community that the transition to Build Awesome (which will correspond to Eleventy v4) will maintain full backward compatibility with existing Eleventy projects and plugins, emphasizing a smooth upgrade path. The goal is to evolve Eleventy into a more comprehensive site builder while retaining its core values of speed, flexibility, and open-source integrity.
What If...?
Explore alternate histories. What if Eleventy (11ty) made different choices?