Chyrp Lite is a free, open-source PHP blogging engine you self-host. See its features, themes, extensions, and server requirements before installing it.
Category
Content Marketing
Pricing
Free / Open Source, from Free
Verified
Not yet
Last updated
July 18, 2026
Founded
2014
Web AppAPIOpen SourceSelf-Hosted
Overview
Chyrp Lite is a free, open-source, ultra-lightweight blogging engine written in PHP. It is a fork of the original Chyrp project (copyrighted from 2008), created in 2014 by contributor Daniel Pimley after development on the original Chyrp had slowed, with an emphasis on keeping the codebase small and efficient.
As a self-hosted tool distributed under the BSD license, Chyrp Lite has no company, pricing tiers, or hosted service behind it: it is maintained by volunteer open-source contributors and downloaded and installed directly onto a user's own PHP-capable web server.
Key Features
Content is organized through a system of Feathers (post types) covering text, photo, quote, link, video, audio, and multi-file uploads, and Pages for static content, letting a single install function as a traditional blog, a tumblelog, or a general-purpose publishing site.
It ships with six built-in themes built on the Twig template engine, a MetaWeblog XML-RPC API for remote publishing compatible with WordPress clients, and a user rights model for managing multiple authors, all running on a minimal PHP plus MySQL or SQLite stack.
Pricing
Chyrp Lite is completely free. There is no paid tier, subscription, or hosted plan; users download the open-source software and self-host it on their own server, whether shared PHP hosting, a VPS, or cloud infrastructure they manage themselves.
Key Features
Feathers post-type system — Supports text, photo, quote, link, video, audio, and multi-file uploader post types that can be enabled or disabled per site.
Built-in themes — Ships with six included themes and supports custom theme development using the Twig template engine.
MetaWeblog XML-RPC API — Implements a WordPress-compatible remote publishing API, allowing posts to be published using existing blogging client software.
Minimal hosting requirements — Runs on PHP with either a MySQL or SQLite database, keeping server requirements lightweight compared to larger CMS platforms.
User rights model — Includes a permissions system for managing multiple authors and visitor accounts on a single install.
Accessible, responsive front end — Uses semantic HTML5 and ARIA labeling so blogs remain navigable across a broad range of devices and assistive technologies.
Pros & Cons
Pros
Completely free and open source under the BSD license, with no paid tiers
Very lightweight, with minimal PHP and database requirements suitable for inexpensive hosting
Flexible post-type (Feathers) system supports several blog formats without needing plugins
WordPress-compatible XML-RPC API allows remote publishing with existing blogging clients
Cons
Requires self-hosting and basic PHP server management; there is no managed hosted version
Smaller plugin and theme ecosystem compared to large platforms like WordPress
No commercial support organization behind the project, only volunteer open-source maintainers
Feature set is intentionally minimal, so sites needing advanced e-commerce or membership features will need extensions or a different platform
Pricing
Open Source (Self-Hosted) Free N/A
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Chyrp Lite free?
Yes. Chyrp Lite is free, open-source software distributed under the BSD license. There are no paid plans; you self-host it on your own server.
What are the server requirements for Chyrp Lite?
Chyrp Lite requires a PHP-capable web server and either a MySQL or SQLite database, making its hosting requirements minimal compared to larger CMS platforms.
How is Chyrp Lite different from the original Chyrp?
Chyrp Lite is a fork created in 2014 after development on the original Chyrp project (started in 2008) slowed down. It focuses on a smaller, more efficient codebase while continuing active development.
Can I publish to Chyrp Lite remotely?
Yes. Chyrp Lite implements a WordPress-compatible MetaWeblog XML-RPC API, so it can be used with existing blogging client software for remote publishing.
Does Chyrp Lite support multiple content types?
Yes, through its Feathers system, which supports text, photo, quote, link, video, audio, and multi-file uploader post types.