About Pivlu

Pivlu is a free and open source CMS (Content Management System) and Website Builder, written in PHP and using the Laravel framework.

Pivlu is an alternative to existing CMS and Website Builders, like WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, Wix, Weebly, SquareSpace, Ghost and others. Pivlu offers a great opportunity to grow your business building websites and applications.

Pivlu use a plugin system that extends the features and functions of a Pivlu website. Plugins make it easier for users and developers to add features to their website without knowing a single line of code.

Author

Pivlu CMS is developed and maintaned by Gabriel Chimilevchi, a senior web developer from Romania.
My Github profile

Pivlu was born from a simple frustration I kept running into while building and maintaining websites: I wanted the flexibility and freedom of a self‑hosted CMS, but without the bloat, fragility, and “plugin roulette” that too often comes with traditional solutions.

WordPress proved how powerful an ecosystem can be, but it also highlighted the tradeoffs—performance overhead, security exposure through outdated extensions, and a developer experience that can feel inconsistent when you’re trying to build modern applications.

What inspired me to build Pivlu is the idea that a CMS and a website builder can be both creator-friendly and developer-first. By building it as open source, I wanted to make something transparent, auditable, and community-driven. And by writing it in PHP on top of the Laravel framework, the goal is to bring the CMS world closer to modern engineering practices: clean architecture, strong conventions, maintainable code, and a familiar workflow for teams already building with Laravel.

Gabriel Chimilevschi - Author & Developer of Pivlu Gabriel Chimilevschi - Author & Developer of Pivlu

What problems Pivlu aims to solve 

1) A modern alternative to the “legacy CMS” experience 

Many CMS platforms evolved over years of backwards compatibility. Pivlu is meant to feel like a modern application from the start—structured, predictable, and easier to extend safely.  

2) Less dependence on fragile plugin stacks 

A common pain point is needing many third-party plugins just to assemble a complete site. Pivlu’s goal is to cover core needs out of the box (content, pages, themes, building blocks, media, SEO basics), reducing the number of moving parts and the risks that come with them.  

3) Better developer ergonomics (especially for PHP/Laravel teams) 

For developers, Pivlu is intended to be a CMS that fits into a professional development workflow: clearer separation of concerns, easier customization, and a framework foundation that encourages testing, maintainability, and long-term evolution.  

4) Faster, cleaner site building for non-technical users 

As a website builder, Pivlu is aimed at lowering the barrier for creating pages and layouts—helping users build and iterate without constantly editing templates or relying on custom development for every change.  

5) Performance, security, and maintainability by design 

By simplifying the extension surface and leaning on Laravel’s ecosystem and best practices, Pivlu is positioned to be easier to keep updated, more secure to operate, and more predictable to host and scale.  

In short, Pivlu is inspired by the desire to keep the freedom of open source and self-hosting, while delivering a more modern, reliable, and developer-friendly CMS and website builder—something that can stand as a practical WordPress alternative for today’s web.