# Serendipity

PHP weblog engine with a plugin system, themes and a Smarty-based template layer.


Source: https://findsoftware.frbit.cloud/serendipity/
Last reviewed: 2026-10-20
Updated: 2026-10-25
Listed since: 2026-10-19

## Record

### Links

- home: https://www.s9y.org
- repository: https://github.com/s9y/Serendipity
- docs: https://docs.s9y.org/
- forum: https://board.s9y.org

### Identity

- status: active
- maintainer: Serendipity open source team
- maintainerType: community
- parent: unknown
- firstRelease: unknown
- hqCountry: unknown

### Kind

- category: cms
- hosting: php
- language: php
- runtime: php
- runtimeMin: php 7.3
- basedOn: unknown

### Content

- contentStore: database
- databases: mysql, postgres, sqlite
- adminUi: yes
- headlessApi: unknown
- templating: smarty
- i18n: unknown

### Rendering and deploy

- runsAs: per-request
- renderingModes: server
- installMethod: archive download, upload by FTP or SSH, web installer

### License

- licenseModel: open-source
- license: BSD-3-Clause

### Releases

- currentMajor: 2
- latestReleaseDate: 2026-07-22

### Adoption

- githubStargazers: 228
- packagistDownloads: unknown
- npmWeeklyDownloads: not applicable
- contributors: 46
- pluginCount: unknown
- packagistMonthlyDownloads: unknown
- ecosystemsMonthlyDownloads: unknown
- httpArchiveSites: 11
- wordpressActiveInstalls: unknown
- dependentRepos: unknown
- dependentPackages: unknown

### Sources

- name: https://www.s9y.org/ (read 2026-10-20)
- urls: https://www.s9y.org/ (read 2026-10-20)
- urls: https://api.github.com/repos/s9y/Serendipity (read 2026-10-20)
- urls: https://docs.s9y.org/docs/ (read 2026-10-20)
- maintainer: https://blog.s9y.org/index.php?serendipity[subpage]=dsgvo_gdpr_privacy (read 2026-10-20)
- category: https://www.s9y.org/ (read 2026-10-20)
- language: https://api.github.com/repos/s9y/Serendipity (read 2026-10-20)
- runtime: https://docs.s9y.org/docs/users/getting-started/fresh-installation.html (read 2026-10-20)
- runtimeMin: https://docs.s9y.org/docs/users/getting-started/fresh-installation.html (read 2026-10-20)
- contentStore: https://docs.s9y.org/docs/quickstart/index.html (read 2026-10-20)
- databases: https://docs.s9y.org/docs/users/getting-started/fresh-installation.html (read 2026-10-20)
- adminUi: https://docs.s9y.org/docs/faq/index.html (read 2026-10-20)
- templating: https://docs.s9y.org/docs/users/getting-started/fresh-installation.html (read 2026-10-20)
- renderingModes: https://docs.s9y.org/docs/users/getting-started/fresh-installation.html (read 2026-10-20)
- installMethod: https://docs.s9y.org/docs/quickstart/index.html (read 2026-10-20)
- runsAs: https://docs.s9y.org/docs/users/getting-started/fresh-installation.html (read 2026-10-20)
- license: https://github.com/s9y/Serendipity/blob/master/LICENSE (read 2026-10-20)
- licenseModel: https://github.com/s9y/Serendipity/blob/master/LICENSE (read 2026-10-20)
- currentMajor: https://api.github.com/repos/s9y/Serendipity/releases/latest (read 2026-10-20)
- latestReleaseDate: https://api.github.com/repos/s9y/Serendipity/releases/latest (read 2026-10-20)
- githubStargazers: https://api.github.com/repos/s9y/Serendipity (read 2026-10-20)
- contributors: https://api.github.com/repos/s9y/Serendipity/contributors (read 2026-10-20)
- urls: https://www.s9y.org/ (read 2026-10-20)
- httpArchiveSites: https://cdn.httparchive.org/v1/technologies (read 2026-10-25)

## Notes

Serendipity is a PHP weblog engine. Pages are rendered from Smarty templates, and the compiled versions go into a templates_c directory that the web server must be able to write. Plugins and themes add functionality and change how a blog looks, and the project publishes them through the Spartacus plugin repository. Blog content is stored in a database, which can be MySQL, PostgreSQL or SQLite. Editors use the admin panel at serendipity_admin.php.

Installation means downloading the release archive, unpacking it into the web root, and running the web installer. On Apache, the virtual host must allow .htaccess files.

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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