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Static web design includes static web page which is delivered to users exactly the way it is stored unlike the dynamic web page which are generated by the web application. It displays the same information for all users.

CMS stands for Content Management System. It is a system which allows adding, editing, updating and deleting the website content very easily in very less time through administrative rights to the site and database.

Static website generally uses basic HTML for designing while CMS use server side languages for scripting like PHP, .NET, ASP.

Difference:

As far as the front end of both the systems is considered there is not much difference between the 2 systems. The main difference is in the background i.e., The static site is normally built in XHTML/CSS while the technology behind a CMS is PHP which is a very powerful language.