LocalGov Drupal vs Town Web

LocalGov Drupal is an open-source publishing platform built and maintained by councils and suppliers for local government. It is designed for local councils in the UK and Ireland, with tools for subsites, news, events, alerts, directories, service pages, guides, step-by-step pages, HTML publications and elections. Publishing features include flexible page components, patterns, styles, callouts, workflows, revisions, service contacts and shareable preview links. Optional workflow tools add roles, permissions, moderation, approval dashboards, scheduled publishing, review dates and revision records. Councils can use LocalGov Drupal Microsites to operate distinct websites from one platform; more than 50 microsites are live. The project supplies a scalable base theme and sample Scarfolk subtheme, along with quick-start installation, modular architecture, automated testing and coding-standards checks. Drupal REST and JSON:API tools and its module ecosystem can connect it with forms, payments, CRM, case management, identity providers, mapping and directories. Content and functionality are designed to meet or exceed WCAG 2.1 AA. The software is free, but installation and preparation require development resources, appropriate hosting and ongoing security updates.

Town Web builds and hosts websites for cities, towns, villages, and other local governments, and says its service is exclusively for this sector. Its municipal content system covers agendas, minutes, ordinances, resolutions, events, contacts, news, forms, and permits. Residents can subscribe to email or text notices about posted information, while municipalities can offer online payments for bills, taxes, citations, licenses, and permits. Additional tools support boating permits and facility bookings; optional Facebook posting may add a charge. Town Web also offers municipal email through Google Workspace. The company says its service includes monitoring, HTTPS certificates, separate-cloud-server backups, and accessibility maintenance. Existing site content and files are included in migration, alongside support, one-on-one training, webinars, and a dedicated account manager. An iOS and Android app is included for medium municipalities with 10,000–50,000 residents. Pricing starts at $99/mo, with the exact quote varying by municipality and features. A nominal one-time build fee applies and may be spread over the contract term; optional add-ons are priced separately.