DocAnvil — Forge beautiful static documentation from Markdown.
DocAnvil is a Rust-based static documentation generator that turns plain Markdown into a fast, polished HTML site — with live reloading, customizable components, and flexible styling.
Built for developers who want full control over how their documentation looks and behaves, DocAnvil focuses on clarity, performance, and composability. Write in Markdown, extend with custom components, and let DocAnvil handle the rest.
Whether you're documenting a Rust crate, a library, or an entire product, DocAnvil helps you forge documentation that feels solid, intentional, and well-crafted.
Why DocAnvil?
- ⚡ Fast by default — built in Rust for quick builds and snappy dev cycles
- 🔁 Hot reloading — see changes instantly as you edit Markdown
- 🧩 Custom components — extend beyond Markdown when you need to
- 🎨 Configurable styling — themes without fighting the tool
- 📦 Static output — deploy anywhere
CLI Usage
DocAnvil is designed to be used from the command line during both development and deployment.
Install
Initialise a new project
Serve the current project (with hot reloading)
Simplest way to serve the current project is just to run:
However you can also specify the host and listening ports:
Build the current project
To output the current project as static html you can use the following command.
By default the built static site will be output to 'dist/'
You can pass an out flag and an alternative path instead