Log in Sign up free

Static by default

How to publish a Hugo site

Hugo builds a whole site in one command with no Node toolchain involved. The output is finished HTML, which is exactly what gets served here.

Build command
hugo
Folder to upload
public
Upload your public folder How it works

Free plan, free SSL, no credit card.

.droply.id

  1. Build the project

    Run hugo in the project folder. This is the step Droply does not do for you: we publish finished pages, we never run your build.

  2. Find the output folder

    The build writes a finished site to public. That folder, not the project folder, is what gets uploaded.

  3. Drag it in

    Drop the folder (or a ZIP of it) into Droply. It is live on an HTTPS droply.id subdomain in seconds, and re-uploading publishes a new version at the same URL.

Worth knowing about Hugo

  • The build command is just hugo. hugo server is the local preview and writes nothing to disk, which is why people go looking for a public folder that was never created.

  • Set baseURL in your config to the address the site will actually live at. Hugo writes it into canonical tags, feeds and sitemaps, so a leftover localhost value publishes fine and then points every crawler at your laptop.

  • Content dated in the future, or marked draft: true, is left out of a normal build. If a page is missing after publishing, check that before you check the upload.

  • hugo --minify is worth running for a public site. It changes nothing about how you publish it.

Did an AI tool build this project?

Hosting an AI-generated website covers the question that comes before the build command: whether what you are holding is a single file or a project, and which of the two every tool actually hands back.

Frequently asked questions

Does Droply build my Hugo project for me?
No, and it never will. Droply publishes finished static files. Running your build would mean running your dependencies on our servers, which is a different and much riskier product. Build locally or in your existing CI, then upload the result.
Which folder do I upload?
The public folder that hugo creates, not the project folder. Upload it directly or ZIP it first; both work.
What happens when I update the site?
Build again and upload again. The new version replaces the old one at the same URL, so a link you have already shared keeps working. The Pro, Business and Enterprise plans keep a version history you can roll back to in one click.
Can I use my own domain?
Yes, on the Pro, Business and Enterprise plans. Point your domain at Droply, and the certificate is issued and renewed automatically.
Jekyll MkDocs Quarto Slidev