Starter templates
Compare the built-in PreactPress init templates and choose the right starting shape.
Starter templates#
PreactPress ships nine official starters. Use preactpress init (or pnpm dlx @kamod-ch/preactpress init) and optionally --template <name> to scaffold one.
See the template gallery on the home page for screenshots, Open live demo links, and copyable commands. Each starter (except the docs site itself) is also published under /demos/<template>/ on GitHub Pages.
Start with documentation, a technical blog, an API reference, SaaS docs, or a complete knowledge base—all powered by PreactPress.
Which template should I use?#
| Template | CLI name | Theme | Best for | Notable extras |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Documentation | docs |
Default | Full framework docs (this site) | Guides, examples, EN/DE locales |
| Blog | blog |
Custom engineering | Technical blogs and changelogs | RSS, tags, authors, reading time |
| Product docs | product-docs |
Default + branding | SDK / library documentation | Install panel, version badge, changelog |
| API reference | api-docs |
Custom Protocol | REST + TypeScript SDK hybrid | Protocol theme, OpenAPI plugin, ApiSignature MDX |
| SaaS docs | saas-docs |
Custom product | SaaS onboarding and admin docs | Workspace landing, role hints, integrations |
| Knowledge base | knowledge-base |
Default + help home | Help centers and support | Search-first home, categories, contact CTA |
| Product + Docs | hono |
Custom | Marketing site + docs area | Landing layout, i18n demo |
| Magazine | magazine |
Custom editorial | Editorial / magazine layouts | Teaser grid, German demo content |
| Minimal | default (omit --template) |
Default | Quick trials | Smallest file tree |
Scaffold commands#
# Documentation (canonical reference starter)
pnpm dlx @kamod-ch/preactpress init my-docs --template docs
# Technical blog with RSS
pnpm dlx @kamod-ch/preactpress init my-blog --template blog
# Product / library documentation
pnpm dlx @kamod-ch/preactpress init my-product --template product-docs
# API reference
pnpm dlx @kamod-ch/preactpress init my-api --template api-docs
# SaaS product documentation
pnpm dlx @kamod-ch/preactpress init my-saas --template saas-docs
# Help center / knowledge base
pnpm dlx @kamod-ch/preactpress init my-help --template knowledge-base
# Product landing + docs
pnpm dlx @kamod-ch/preactpress init my-site --template hono
# Editorial / magazine
pnpm dlx @kamod-ch/preactpress init my-mag --template magazine
# Minimal (default)
pnpm dlx @kamod-ch/preactpress init my-site
After scaffolding:
cd my-site
pnpm install
pnpm run dev
Build and deploy#
Every starter includes pnpm run build and pnpm run preview. Set site.url in .preactpress/config.ts before enabling sitemap, robots, or RSS (build.feed on the blog starter).
Maintainers (PreactPress repository)#
Live demos and gallery screenshots are produced from the monorepo:
pnpm run build:docs
pnpm run build:template-demos -- --pages-base /preactpress/ # match your GitHub Pages repo name
pnpm run capture:template-previews
If templates/docs fails to build after core changes, run pnpm run link:templates/docs from the repository root (see Contributing on GitHub).
Customization#
| Area | Where to edit |
|---|---|
| Site title & description | site in .preactpress/config.ts |
| Navigation & sidebar | themeConfig.nav / themeConfig.sidebar |
| Colors & layout | Default theme CSS variables (--pp-*) or custom theme in .preactpress/theme/ |
| Branding assets | public/ and themeConfig.logo |
Comparison highlights#
- Blog — Dark engineering header, featured post, RSS, tags, authors, and reading time.
- Product docs — SDK-branded default theme, install panel, version badge, changelog.
- API docs — Protocol-style custom theme; OpenAPI-generated REST resources plus SDK MDX helpers (
ApiSignature,ParameterTable,HttpMethodBadge,EndpointLine). - SaaS docs — Light product landing with workspace preview, setup paths, and admin role hints.
- Knowledge base — Search-first help-center home, category hubs, and support CTAs.