Gitbook vs Read the Docs: What are the differences?

Gitbook and Read the Docs are both popular documentation platforms that provide a way to create and host documentation for software projects. While they serve the same purpose, there are several key differences between the two.

1. Integration with Version Control: Gitbook offers direct integration with Git repositories, allowing users to sync their documentation with changes made in their codebase. On the other hand, Read the Docs requires a separate build process to generate and host documentation, which can be less seamless.

2. Customization Options: Gitbook provides a more flexible and customizable platform for documentation. Users can easily customize the layout, design, and structure of their documentation to match their brand or project needs. In contrast, Read the Docs has a more limited set of customization options, mainly focusing on the content itself rather than the overall look and feel.

3. Hosting Options: Gitbook offers both cloud hosting and self-hosting options, giving users more control over their documentation hosting. Users can choose to host their documentation on Gitbook's servers or host it on their own infrastructure. Read the Docs, on the other hand, primarily focuses on cloud hosting and does not provide a self-hosting option.

4. Collaboration Features: Gitbook includes collaboration features that allow multiple contributors to work together on the documentation. It provides tools for real-time collaboration, version history, and commenting, making it easier for teams to collaborate on the documentation. Read the Docs, on the other hand, lacks these built-in collaboration features.

5. Inline Code Samples: Gitbook supports the inclusion of inline code samples directly in the documentation, making it easier to demonstrate and explain complex code concepts. Read the Docs, while it does support code examples, does not offer the same level of integration for inline code samples.

6. Search Functionality: Gitbook provides a robust search functionality, allowing users to easily search through the documentation for specific keywords or phrases. This can be particularly useful for larger documentation projects. Read the Docs also offers search functionality, but it may not be as advanced or customizable as Gitbook's search features.

In summary, Gitbook offers better integration with version control, more customization options, flexible hosting options, collaboration features, support for inline code samples, and advanced search functionality compared to Read the Docs.