Textpattern is a free and open-source content management system written in PHP that installs on a web server with PHP and MySQL, and it is aimed at people who want to publish and organise web content on infrastructure they control.

What it is

Textpattern is a flexible, elegant, fast and easy-to-use content management system written in PHP. It is distributed under the GPL-2.0 licence, developed in the open on GitHub, and described in its own topics as a CMS, a CMS framework and a content management framework. The project lives in the PHP and MySQL web publishing ecosystem: it is installed directly onto a web server that provides PHP and a MySQL database, and the current production release is version 4.9.1. Development continues toward Textpattern 5 as the next major release, with forthcoming system requirements covering PHP, MySQL, Apache and Nginx.

The problem it solves is that of managing and publishing content on a self-hosted site without building that layer by hand. Rather than assembling a bespoke publishing and administration layer inside a custom PHP application, a site runs Textpattern as its content management system and lets the application handle content, administration and multi-site operations. The README treats installation, upgrading and support as first-class parts of the project, so a working site is the expected outcome rather than an integration exercise.

Key capabilities

• Distributed as downloadable archives in .zip, .tar.gz and .tar.xz formats, with version 4.9.1 as the current production release.
• Multi-site functionality, available when the .tar.gz or .tar.xz archive is used rather than the .zip archive.
• Runs on a web server with PHP and MySQL, with separate documented system requirements for the production release.
• Install and upgrade procedures documented in their own files, README.txt and UPGRADE.txt.
• Localisation handled through Crowdin via the textpattern-cms-textpacks project, with translated textpacks.
• Community support through the Textpattern support forum, plus presence on Mastodon and X.
• Development funded through GitHub Sponsors and tracked in the public GitHub repository.

Who uses it and how

• Self-hosters running their own PHP and MySQL web server, installing Textpattern from an archive rather than through a managed platform.
• Operators running several sites from one installation, who need multi-site functionality and therefore the .tar.gz or .tar.xz archive.
• Multi-language publishers, who lean on the Crowdin localisation project for translated textpacks.
• Developers who track the development snapshot from the GitHub repository and plan around the forthcoming Textpattern 5 release.
• Site owners who rely on the support forum community for help and troubleshooting.

Getting started

Download version 4.9.1 in .zip, .tar.gz or .tar.xz from textpattern.com or GitHub, then install it on a PHP and MySQL web server following README.txt. Upgrades follow UPGRADE.txt.

How it compares

The facts provided name no paid products that Textpattern replaces, and they name no comparable tools. On the evidence here, it stands alone in this registry.

When to use it — and when not to

A self-hoster must operate a PHP web server and a MySQL database, and keep both maintained. Anyone wanting a managed, hosted product with no server to run should look elsewhere, because the README describes only a self-installed deployment. The project carries 86 open issues, and the README leaves plugin and theming detail thin, so anyone whose decision depends on a large extension catalogue should check the project site directly.