Documentation · head to head
Antora vs Slab
Antora
Documentation
Static site generator that assembles versioned AsciiDoc documentation from many git repositories
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Slab
Documentation
Internal knowledge base for teams, organised by topic rather than folders, with search across connected tools
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Antora content must be AsciiDoc, so an existing markdown documentation set has to be converted before you can evaluate the tool properly.; Slab it is built for internal knowledge, so public product documentation on a custom domain with versioning is outside what the product does.
- They diverge on capability: Antora covers Multi-repository sourcing, Slab covers Topics instead of folders.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Antora and Slab actually diverge.
Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Documentation).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Antora
- Multi-repository sourcing
- Version handling
- AsciiDoc
- Cross-component references
- Separate UI bundle
- Content reuse
Only in Slab
- Topics instead of folders
- Unified search
- Post verification
- Quill editor
- Permissions
- Free tier for small teams
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Antora
- Publishing one documentation site from several product repositories owned by different teamsnot Slab
- Maintaining documentation for three or more supported releases without copying directoriesnot Slab
- Enterprise documentation teams that already write in AsciiDoc and need version-aware cross-referencesnot Slab
- Keeping documentation in the same repository and pull request as the code change it describesnot Slab
Slab
- Building an employee handbook and onboarding path that new starters can actually findnot Antora
- Replacing a folder-based wiki where nobody agrees which folder a document belongs innot Antora
- Companies whose knowledge is already spread across Drive, Slack and GitHub and needs one search boxnot Antora
- Documenting process and decisions for teams that do not want a project management tool attachednot Antora
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Antora
- Content must be AsciiDoc, so an existing markdown documentation set has to be converted before you can evaluate the tool properly.
- The component, version and module model must be understood before anything builds, and the first working site typically takes days rather than the afternoon a markdown generator needs.
- Theming means building a separate UI bundle with Handlebars templates and its own pipeline, which is a front-end project most documentation teams are not staffed for.
- There is no search included, so every deployment adds either a Lunr extension with its own index size limits or a paid hosted search service.
- Builds fetch from every configured repository, so large multi-component sites become slow and depend on git availability during every documentation build.
Slab
- It is built for internal knowledge, so public product documentation on a custom domain with versioning is outside what the product does.
- There is no docs-as-code workflow, no git synchronisation and no markdown files on disk, so engineering-owned technical documentation ends up somewhere else anyway.
- Hierarchy is shallow by design, and organisations that genuinely need deep nested structure find topics an awkward substitute rather than an improvement.
- There is no offline mode, so a knowledge base that includes incident runbooks is unavailable during exactly the incident where the network is the problem.
- Pricing is per user per month, so organisations where most staff only read a handbook twice a year still pay a seat for each of them.
Pricing, plan by plan
Antora
Free- AntoraFree
- Mozilla Public Licence 2.0
- Unlimited components and versions
- No hosting or seat costs
Slab
Free- FreeFree
- Up to ten users
- Unlimited posts
- Core integrations
- Slab$undefined/month
- Priced per user per month with annual billing
- Unlimited users and history
- Full integration set and unified search
Which should you pick?
Choose Antora if
- You need multi-repository sourcing.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Self-hosted, Static hosting, CI pipelines.
- You also want version handling.
Choose Slab if
- You need topics instead of folders.
- You want to start without paying.
- You also want unified search.
Questions people ask
- Is Antora or Slab better?
- Neither clearly leads. Antora starts at Free and Slab at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Antora or Slab?
- Antora starts at Free and Slab at Free.
- Does Antora or Slab run on more platforms?
- Antora runs on Self-hosted, Static hosting, CI pipelines. Slab runs on Web.
- Can I use Antora for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Antora best used for?
- Antora is most often used for publishing one documentation site from several product repositories owned by different teams, maintaining documentation for three or more supported releases without copying directories, enterprise documentation teams that already write in asciidoc and need version-aware cross-references, keeping documentation in the same repository and pull request as the code change it describes. Of those, publishing one documentation site from several product repositories owned by different teams and maintaining documentation for three or more supported releases without copying directories are not what Slab is typically brought in for.
- What can Antora do that Slab cannot?
- Antora covers Multi-repository sourcing, Version handling, AsciiDoc, Cross-component references. Slab covers Topics instead of folders, Unified search, Post verification, Quill editor.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Antora: Can I use markdown with Antora?
Not as the primary format. Antora is an AsciiDoc pipeline, and treating markdown as a first-class input means a different tool.
Slab: Can I publish documentation publicly with Slab?
Posts can be shared by link, but it is not a product documentation platform. There is no custom domain publishing, versioning or API reference tooling.
Antora: Is it worth it for a single product with one version?
Usually not. The model pays off when you have several repositories or several supported versions; below that a simpler generator will do the same job with far less setup.
Slab: What does the free plan actually cover?
Up to ten users with unlimited posts and core integrations. It is a real free tier rather than a trial, and it is enough for a small company handbook.
Antora: How does versioning actually work?
Each branch or tag of a source repository becomes a version of that component. You publish a new version by branching, not by copying a directory.
Slab: How does it compare with a general workspace tool?
Slab does less on purpose. There are no databases, boards or task views, which makes it faster to write in and much harder to turn into an unmaintained sprawl.
Antora: Who maintains it?
OpenDevise, the group behind Asciidoctor, under the Mozilla Public Licence. Paid consulting and custom UI work are available from them separately.
Slab: Does search really cover other tools?
Yes, connected sources are indexed and appear in results. That integration is the main reason to choose it, so verify your specific tools are supported before committing.
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