The Difference between Static and Dynamic Websites

by Cybernet NY A Digital Agency

As an end-user, you most likely don’t care about the difference between dynamic and static sites… but as a small business owner, corporation, or creative individual, understanding the difference is the first critical step in establishing your web presence.

Static: Static websites consist of fixed specific documents that are made up of text and code in the form of markup. A request for a web-page invokes the server to send the file being requested, most likely an HTML file to the browser where it’s displayed exactly as the creator of that file intended it to be displayed. The server’s only role in this instance is to provide the specific file without modifying it in any way. While static sites are cheap and quick to develop, they do require some technical know-how to maintain. Also, the content on these sites can get stagnant, and they aren’t very search engine friendly either.

Dynamic: Modern dynamic websites don’t contain static pages for every page you visit on the site. Instead, the server interprets the content you seek and assembles a specific document, just for you, and then sends it to your computer’s browser for display. In essence, with a dynamic website, the server ‘dynamically’ creates every file or web page it transmits. Dynamic sites are easy to update and provide greater functionality. The content is fresh and brings people back to the site and helps in the search engines as well. To augment the benefits of a dynamic website, it’s recommended to partner with an SEO company in Long Island, NY. The downside? They are more involved and marginally more expensive to develop… and they require a slightly more robust server setup as well.

Well, then, which one is better for you?

Because they provide a more interactive approach to web browsing, the additional effort required to create a dynamic website is certainly worth it. Also, with the growing number of very successful and powerful Content Management System (CMS) platforms as well as seasoned Long Island web design companies, building and maintaining a dynamic website is much easier than you likely imagine.