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Rama_KrishnaNy
Level 3
May 1, 2026 6:17 AM UTC
Solved

JSTL in AEM

Hi all,

 

How do we use JSTL in AEM?

Any examples?

 

With Sightly, we have moved away from JSPs.

What is the relevance of JSTL in AEM?

 

Appreciate all your replies.

 

Thanks,

RK.

    VeenaVikraman
    VeenaVikramanAccepted solution
    Community Advisor
    May 1, 2026 7:30 AM UTC

    Hi ​@Rama_KrishnaNy 

    JSTL is a Standard Tag Library used inside JSP files for common things like loops, conditions and formatting. It was commonly used earlier when AEM components were built using JSP.

    In older AEM versions like CQ5 and early AEM 6, most components were JSP-based, so JSTL was widely used. Today, the important point is this: JSTL is still supported, but not recommended

    • JSP still works in AEM, including AEM as a Cloud Service
    • JSTL works only inside JSP files
    • You cannot use JSTL inside HTL files

    So nothing is technically blocked, but it is not something we should use for new development. With AEM 6, Adobe introduced HTL (Sightly), which became the standard templating language. HTL replaced JSP and JSTL because:

    • It is safer, as output is automatically escaped which helps prevent XSS
    • It keeps business logic out of the template
    • It is cleaner and easier to read
    • It aligns better with modern AEM and cloud setups

    Today, you will mostly see JSTL in legacy projects or in components that were never refactored. In many enterprise setups, this is just carry forward code.

    If you see JSTL in a current project, it is most likely legacy. Best practice is to refactor it into HTL components backed by Sling Models. This improves security and aligns better with AEM as a Cloud Service standards.

    Hope this helps

     

    Thanks

    Veena

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    4 replies

    VeenaVikraman
    Community Advisor
    VeenaVikramanCommunity AdvisorAccepted solution
    Community Advisor
    May 1, 2026 7:30 AM UTC

    Hi ​@Rama_KrishnaNy 

    JSTL is a Standard Tag Library used inside JSP files for common things like loops, conditions and formatting. It was commonly used earlier when AEM components were built using JSP.

    In older AEM versions like CQ5 and early AEM 6, most components were JSP-based, so JSTL was widely used. Today, the important point is this: JSTL is still supported, but not recommended

    • JSP still works in AEM, including AEM as a Cloud Service
    • JSTL works only inside JSP files
    • You cannot use JSTL inside HTL files

    So nothing is technically blocked, but it is not something we should use for new development. With AEM 6, Adobe introduced HTL (Sightly), which became the standard templating language. HTL replaced JSP and JSTL because:

    • It is safer, as output is automatically escaped which helps prevent XSS
    • It keeps business logic out of the template
    • It is cleaner and easier to read
    • It aligns better with modern AEM and cloud setups

    Today, you will mostly see JSTL in legacy projects or in components that were never refactored. In many enterprise setups, this is just carry forward code.

    If you see JSTL in a current project, it is most likely legacy. Best practice is to refactor it into HTL components backed by Sling Models. This improves security and aligns better with AEM as a Cloud Service standards.

    Hope this helps

     

    Thanks

    Veena

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      Harwinder-singh
      Community Advisor
      Harwinder-singhCommunity Advisor
      Community Advisor
      May 1, 2026 7:18 PM UTC

      ​@Rama_KrishnaNy  Do you have any use case in mind that warrants use of JSTL?

      Translate
      Rama_KrishnaNyAuthor
      Level 3
      May 4, 2026 1:49 AM UTC

      No ​@Harwinder-singh .

       

      I am just thinking aloud for JSTL applicability in AEM.

       

      Thanks,

      RK.

      Translate
      BrianKasingli
      Adobe Champion and Community Advisor
      BrianKasingliAdobe Champion and Community Advisor
      Adobe Champion and Community Advisor
      May 5, 2026 9:16 PM UTC

      Hi ​@Rama_KrishnaNy ,

      ​@VeenaVikraman  already covered the core point. Adding a bit more from a current AEM perspective.

      JSTL is tied to JSP, and JSP itself is now considered legacy in AEM. While it still works, it does not align with how modern AEM applications are built, especially in AEM as a Cloud Service.

      Today, the standard approach is:

      • HTL for rendering view logic
      • Sling Models for handling business logic (heavy lifting backend)

      Why Sling Models are preferred?

      • Clear separation of concerns
        Logic stays in Java, markup stays in HTL
      • Cleaner code
        HTL remains simple and easy to maintain
      • Better security
        HTL handles output escaping automatically
      • Reusability
        Sling Models can be reused across multiple components
      • Testability
        Easy to unit test using JUnit5 and AEMContext
      • Dependency Injection
        Simple access to properties and OSGi services using annotations

      JSTL belongs to older JSP-based implementations. In modern AEM, HTL combined with Sling Models is the recommended and standard approach.

      Hope this helps :)

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