# Pico

Flat-file CMS that stores pages as Markdown files in a content folder and needs no database.


Source: https://findsoftware.frbit.cloud/pico/
Last reviewed: 2026-10-20
Updated: 2026-10-25
Listed since: 2026-10-20

## Record

### Links

- home: https://picocms.org
- repository: https://github.com/picocms/Pico
- docs: https://picocms.org/docs/

### Identity

- status: discontinued
- maintainer: The Pico Community
- maintainerType: community
- parent: unknown
- firstRelease: unknown
- hqCountry: unknown

### Kind

- category: cms
- hosting: php
- language: php
- runtime: php
- runtimeMin: php 5.3
- basedOn: unknown

### Content

- contentStore: flat-file
- databases: unknown
- adminUi: no
- headlessApi: unknown
- templating: twig
- i18n: unknown

### Rendering and deploy

- runsAs: per-request
- renderingModes: unknown
- installMethod: composer create-project

### License

- licenseModel: open-source
- license: MIT

### Releases

- currentMajor: 2
- latestReleaseDate: 2020-08-29

### Adoption

- githubStargazers: 3902
- packagistDownloads: 38372
- npmWeeklyDownloads: not applicable
- contributors: 46
- pluginCount: unknown
- packagistMonthlyDownloads: 108
- ecosystemsMonthlyDownloads: unknown
- httpArchiveSites: 63
- wordpressActiveInstalls: unknown
- dependentRepos: 61
- dependentPackages: 12

### Sources

- status: https://picocms.org/download/ (read 2026-10-20)
- urls: https://picocms.org/ (read 2026-10-20)
- urls: https://github.com/picocms/Pico (read 2026-10-20)
- urls: https://picocms.org/docs/ (read 2026-10-20)
- maintainer: https://picocms.org/ (read 2026-10-20)
- category: https://picocms.org/ (read 2026-10-20)
- language: https://github.com/picocms/Pico (read 2026-10-20)
- runtime: https://picocms.org/download/ (read 2026-10-20)
- runtimeMin: https://picocms.org/download/ (read 2026-10-20)
- contentStore: https://picocms.org/about/ (read 2026-10-20)
- adminUi: https://picocms.org/docs/ (read 2026-10-20)
- templating: https://picocms.org/ (read 2026-10-20)
- installMethod: https://picocms.org/download/ (read 2026-10-20)
- installMethod: https://picocms.org/download/ (read 2026-10-20)
- runsAs: https://picocms.org/about/ (read 2026-10-20)
- license: https://github.com/picocms/Pico (read 2026-10-20)
- license: https://picocms.org/ (read 2026-10-20)
- currentMajor: https://github.com/picocms/Pico/releases/tag/v2.1.4 (read 2026-10-20)
- latestReleaseDate: https://github.com/picocms/Pico/releases/tag/v2.1.4 (read 2026-10-20)
- packagistDownloads: https://packagist.org/packages/picocms/pico.json (read 2026-10-20)
- githubStargazers: https://github.com/picocms/Pico (read 2026-10-20)
- contributors: https://api.github.com/repos/picocms/Pico/contributors?anon=true&per_page=100 (read 2026-10-20)
- httpArchiveSites: https://cdn.httparchive.org/v1/technologies (read 2026-10-25)
- dependentRepos: https://packages.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/registries/packagist.org/packages/picocms%2Fpico (read 2026-10-25)
- dependentPackages: https://packages.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/registries/packagist.org/packages/picocms%2Fpico (read 2026-10-25)
- packagistMonthlyDownloads: https://packagist.org/packages/picocms/pico/stats.json (read 2026-10-25)

## Notes

Pico is a flat file CMS written in PHP. Pages are Markdown files in a content folder, rendered through Twig templates; there is no database and no administration back end. The [download page](https://picocms.org/download/) gives two ways to install it: a Composer create-project from the picocms/pico-composer skeleton, or a pre-bundled release uploaded to the web space. The [about page](https://picocms.org/about/) says it runs on almost any web space.

## Worth knowing

The download page carries an end-of-life notice. It says development of Pico stopped a very long time ago and advises against using it for new websites. For existing sites it reports no known security issues, but warns that they will run into issues because Pico was not designed for modern PHP versions.

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Data licensed CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Attributes are recorded, never scored; absent means unknown.
Credit, in full: FindSoftware, CC BY 4.0