Free documentation hosting compared for static docs
Drag your built docs folder or a ZIP (up to 25 MB and 100 files) into ship.page for a free HTTPS link in seconds, no signup. The link stays online for 30 days. Pick GitHub Pages or Cloudflare Pages instead when you need a custom domain, or Read the Docs Community for public open-source docs.
A file. A folder. A fresh start.
Your static site, one link away.
Uploading publishes your file. The link is public but unlisted, not password-protected, so leave out secrets and confidential content.
- Online with no account (90 days if claimed)
- 30 days
- Free ZIP limit (100 MB unpacked, up to 100 files)
- 25 MB ZIP
- Pro plan for passwords, permanent links and 10,000 files
- $4/mo
- Output folders listed for MkDocs, Docusaurus, Sphinx and more
- 6 tools
How to publish your docs build on ship.page in three steps
Run your generator's build command
Run your docs tool's build command on your computer, such as mkdocs build for a MkDocs site or docusaurus build for Docusaurus docs. If you use Docsify, skip this step because it turns Markdown files into a site in the browser.
Zip the output folder if it is over 7 MB
Locate the generated folder (like site, build or _build/html) and make sure index.html is inside it. Browser folder uploads go up as one request of at most 10 MB (roughly 7 MB of files), so zip larger builds first; a ZIP with a single top folder is unwrapped automatically.
Drop the folder or ZIP onto ship.page
Drag your output folder or .zip file into the browser uploader with no account or credit card required. Your documentation is live in seconds on its own HTTPS subdomain, and the success screen gives you the link and a downloadable PNG QR code.
Your options
ship.page
- Best for
- Sharing a built docs folder or ZIP in seconds without creating an account, or password-protecting internal docs for $4 a month.
- Free
- Free with no account for 30 days (90 days with a free account), up to 100 files and a 25 MB ZIP (100 MB unpacked) per upload.
- Catch
- No custom domains on any plan, and free links cannot be updated in place without getting a new URL.
GitHub Pages
- Best for
- Open-source projects already stored in a public GitHub repository that want a custom domain.
- Free
- Free for public repositories on GitHub Free, with published sites up to 1 GB and a soft bandwidth limit of 100 GB a month.
- Catch
- Requires a GitHub account and repository, has a soft limit of 10 builds an hour, and is not allowed as free hosting for a commercial, e-commerce or SaaS business.
Read the Docs
- Best for
- Public documentation for open-source projects.
- Free
- Read the Docs Community is free forever for open-source, public documentation.
- Catch
- Free sites are supported by ads, and private documentation starts at $50 a month.
GitBook
- Best for
- Individuals publishing docs on their own.
- Free
- GitBook Free is $0 per site a month for individuals.
- Catch
- The free plan is limited to one user.
Cloudflare Pages
- Best for
- Large documentation sites that need a custom domain and high file counts.
- Free
- Free plan includes up to 20,000 files per site, 25 MiB per file, 500 builds a month and 100 custom domains per project.
- Catch
- Requires a Cloudflare account to publish and manage your project.
Netlify
- Best for
- Trying a deploy with Netlify Drop, with no account needed to start.
- Free
- Netlify Drop takes a folder, ZIP or single HTML file with no account needed to start, and the free plan includes 300 credits.
- Catch
- A production deploy costs 15 credits and bandwidth costs 20 credits per GB, with the Personal plan starting at $9 a month.
Which folder each documentation generator builds to (upload that folder or zip it)
| Docs tool | Build command | Upload this folder |
|---|---|---|
| Sphinx | make html | _build/html |
| MkDocs | mkdocs build | site |
| Docusaurus | docusaurus build | build |
| VitePress | vitepress build | .vitepress/dist |
| mdBook | mdbook build | book |
| Docsify | No build needed | docs |
When to use a no-signup drop vs a Git-connected host
If you are maintaining public open-source docs or want a custom domain, GitHub Pages, Cloudflare Pages or Read the Docs are the better fit. GitHub Pages gives public repositories up to 1 GB per site with custom domain support, and Cloudflare Pages allows 20,000 files per site and 100 custom domains per project on its free plan.
Use ship.page when you want a live preview link in seconds without connecting a repository, or when you cannot make your repo public. Every page uploaded to ship.page is sent with a noindex header and is never listed publicly, so search engines leave your draft documentation out.
Tip: Sign in with Google or an email link after uploading to claim a free ship.page link and extend its lifetime from 30 days to 90 days.
How to host private or internal documentation cheaply
Hosting private documentation gets expensive quickly on dedicated docs platforms. Read the Docs Community is free for public open-source docs, but private documentation starts at $50 a month, and GitHub Pages is only free for public repositories on GitHub Free and is not allowed as free hosting for a commercial, e-commerce or SaaS business.
On ship.page, the Pro plan costs $4 a month (billed monthly, cancel anytime) and adds password protection, permanent links that never expire, and in-place updates so you can re-upload your docs build and keep the same URL. Pro also raises the upload limit to 10,000 files and a 100 MB ZIP (400 MB unpacked), room for a bigger Sphinx build or Javadoc export.
Will my doc links and search work on ship.page?
Static docs generators output plain HTML, CSS, JavaScript, JSON search indexes and images, which all work out of the box on ship.page. A subfolder with its own index.html opens cleanly at /folder/, while a file saved as guide.html opens at /guide.html (the short /guide address only works when the file is saved as guide/index.html).
File paths are case-sensitive, and there is no single-page-app fallback or custom 404 page. Most docs tools like MkDocs, Sphinx, VitePress, Docusaurus, mdBook and Eleventy generate a real HTML file for every page, so they do not need a single-page-app fallback.
Questions
Where can I host documentation for free without an account?
You can drop your built documentation folder or a ZIP file onto ship.page to get a live HTTPS link in seconds with no signup and no credit card. The free link stays online for 30 days, and supports up to 100 files or a 25 MB ZIP (100 MB unpacked). Netlify Drop also accepts a folder or ZIP without an account to start.
Which folder do I upload for MkDocs, Docusaurus or Sphinx?
Upload the output folder generated by your build command, not your raw source files. Run mkdocs build and upload the site folder, run docusaurus build and upload the build folder, or run make html in Sphinx and upload the _build/html folder. For VitePress upload .vitepress/dist, for mdBook upload book, and for Docsify upload your docs folder directly.
What is a cheap alternative to GitBook or Read the Docs for private docs?
GitBook Free is $0 a month but limited to one user, and Read the Docs charges starting at $50 a month for private documentation. If you generate static docs locally, ship.page Pro costs $4 a month and gives you password protection, links that never expire, and up to 10,000 files per upload.
Can I use a custom domain for my documentation on ship.page?
No, ship.page does not offer custom domains on any plan; Team ($19 a month) provides a vanity subdomain on ship.page. If you need a custom domain on a free plan, use Cloudflare Pages (up to 100 custom domains per project) or GitHub Pages.
Why did my folder upload fail on a large documentation site?
The free plan allows up to 100 files per upload, and browser folder uploads on every plan are sent as one request of at most 10 MB (roughly 7 MB of files). If your docs build is larger than 7 MB, zip the folder first (up to 25 MB on Free, 100 MB on Pro), and upgrade to Pro ($4 a month) if your site has more than 100 files (Pro allows up to 10,000).
Can I update my documentation without changing the link?
On the free tier, pages cannot be updated in place, so uploading a new build creates a new link. On the $4 a month Pro plan, you can re-upload a ZIP or deploy via curl or the GitHub Action and keep the exact same URL.
Keep reading
- Host a MkDocs site
- Host Docusaurus docs
- Host Sphinx documentation
- Share Javadoc HTML
- ship.page pricing and limits
Drop your docs build for a live link
Drag your built documentation folder or ZIP onto ship.page for a free HTTPS link in seconds, with no account required.