Uses Ghost as a headless CMS, with Eleventy generating a fully static website at build time
eleventy-starter-ghost — Eleventy Starter Template
By Ashutosh102
A static site starter based on Eleventy and the Ghost Content API that pulls content from Ghost to generate a fully static website, with Netlify deployment configuration included.
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What stands out
A quick read of the recorded project description.
Pulls demo content from https://eleventy.ghost.io by default, and can switch to your own Ghost site via contentApiKey in .env
Includes three Netlify deployment-related configuration files: netlify.toml, headers.njk, and redirects.njk
headers.njk outputs default security response headers to /_headers, and redirects.njk outputs custom redirects to /_redirects
You can enable Make this site private in Ghost to disable its built-in theme frontend, and output noindex so the Eleventy frontend handles SEO
Template Details
This is a starter template that uses Ghost as a headless CMS and Eleventy to generate static pages. During build, it reads content through Ghost's Content API and outputs a fully static site, so the frontend does not rely on Ghost theme rendering. By default, the template pulls content from the Ghost demo site at https://eleventy.ghost.io, making it easy to get the workflow running first.
To connect your own content, you need to fill in Ghost credentials in the .env configuration file, where contentApiKey can be obtained from the Integrations page in the Ghost admin. The README states that the minimum required Ghost version is 2.10.0. For development, run yarn start to launch the local service, and yarn build for local builds.
The repository contains three Netlify-oriented configuration files: netlify.toml handles build settings, headers.njk generates default security response headers (output to /_headers), and redirects.njk generates custom domain redirects (output to /_redirects). After deploying to Netlify, you can further configure the Ghost and Netlify integration to use deploy hooks to trigger rebuilds when Ghost content changes.
The template also mentions an optimization approach: enable Make this site private in Ghost settings to turn off the frontend output of Ghost's built-in Handlebars theme, and add a noindex meta tag so that the Eleventy-generated frontend becomes the sole source for SEO. Note that this template was last updated in 2022, so dependency versions and compatibility with the Ghost API need to be verified independently; the licensing of third-party assets such as demo images also needs separate confirmation.
Is it right for your project?
Use Cases
- Websites where you want to edit content in Ghost but publish purely static pages externally
- Projects preparing to deploy to Netlify and needing preconfigured build, security headers, and redirect settings
- Cases where you want to use the Ghost and Netlify integration to automatically trigger site rebuilds when content updates
Suitable For
- Developers already using or willing to use Ghost as a content backend
- Blogs or content sites that need static output and do not rely on server-side rendering
- Projects using Netlify as the primary hosting platform
Getting started & customization
Use these recorded setup notes alongside the repository instructions for your chosen version.
- 1
Install from source: git clone the repository, enter the directory, and run yarn to install dependencies
- 2
Run yarn start for development, and yarn build for local builds
- 3
Default content comes from https://eleventy.ghost.io; to use your own Ghost, edit .env, and obtain contentApiKey from the Integrations page in the Ghost admin
- 4
The README states that the minimum required Ghost version is 2.10.0
- 5
To deploy to Netlify, you can use the repository's netlify.toml, headers.njk, and redirects.njk; the Content API Key can also be set in Netlify environment variables instead
License & source material
Usage conditions & limitations
Free to use · keep license noticeThis listing covers the free version in the public repository under the MIT license; the free scope is the code of that version and does not mean external services or third-party assets are free.
Must comply with when using
- You are allowed to use, modify, commercialize, and distribute the code of this version for free.
- When distributing copies or substantial portions of the code, retain the original author's copyright notice and the complete MIT license notice.
- The code is provided as is; warranties and limitations of liability are governed by the original license and applicable law.
Additional costs & items to verify
- By default, content is pulled from the official Ghost demo site https://eleventy.ghost.io, and you need to replace it with your own Ghost site.
- Using your own content requires filling in Ghost credentials in .env, and contentApiKey must be obtained from the Integrations page in the Ghost admin, meaning it depends on an external Ghost service and account.
- Requires Ghost version 2.10.0 or higher; lower versions may not work properly.
- Deployment requires a Netlify account, which is an external hosting service and may incur corresponding service fees.
- Automatic rebuilds on content updates require additional configuration of the Ghost and Netlify integration, depending on coordination between two external services.
- Demo images, fonts, icons, and other third-party assets need to be checked under their respective licenses and cannot be judged solely by the code's MIT license.
- External services such as domains, hosting, databases, payments, or AI may incur separate charges.
View Original Text Basis
Permission is hereby granted, free of charge
Original License Text
By default, the starter will populate content from a default Ghost install located at https://eleventy.ghost.io.
Original README
To use your own install, edit the `.env` config file with your credentials. You can find your `contentApiKey` in the "Integrations" screen in Ghost Admin.
Original README
The minimum required version for Ghost is `2.10.0` in order to use this starter without issues.
Original README
To deploy to your Netlify account, hit the button below.
Original README
https://github.com/Ashutosh102/eleventy-starter-ghost/blob/main/LICENSEhttps://github.com/Ashutosh102/eleventy-starter-ghost/blob/main/README.mdOnce deployed, you can set up a [Ghost + Netlify Integration](https://docs.ghost.org/integrations/netlify/) to use deploy hooks from Ghost to trigger Netlify rebuilds.
Original README
Compiled by DeepSeek based on repository license and README ·2026-10-01. Results only cover the materials read; dependencies, images, fonts, and subsequent term changes are subject to their respective original texts.
Project checks & description sources
Template Information
- Source platforms
- GitHub
- Documentation and maintenance reference score
- Partly documented · 56 / 100
- Technologies
- Eleventy
- Website type
- Starter
How this score is calculated
Our heuristic uses license records (up to 30), a demo link (12), a preview (10), stars (15), recorded maintenance (15), description completeness (8), feature records (5) and classification data (5). It is not a code, security or performance test, or a Google score. A link does not establish tested functionality.
What to verify for this project
- Repository update recorded
- 2022-05-14
- Screenshot last checked
- 2026-10-01
No demo link is recorded. Use the repository instructions to evaluate the project locally; the screenshot alone cannot establish interactive behavior.
The catalog identifies Eleventy as the primary stack. Check the actual dependency manifest and lockfile for versions and hosting requirements. These notes use recorded metadata, not a code audit or a deployment test.
Use a selection guide →How this description was prepared
AI-assisted description based on catalog records and repository material. Repository authors are not automatically the reviewers of this description.
Automatically checked against source and license rules; no manual editorial review.
Inspect the recorded source material
SHA-256: 6a6310c69e4e7a2398b8fbfc2ee06043fc4fbc275f4e55691e582c907e41098c
2026-10-01T14:10:25.359Z
Source file / repository# Eleventy Starter Ghost A starter template to build completely static websites with [Ghost](https://ghost.org) & [Eleventy](https://www.11ty.io) **Demo:** https://627fc7648889307ff8082294--silver-starship-be9aea.netlify.app/  # Installing ```bash # From Source git clone https://github.com/TryGhost/eleventy-starter-ghost.git cd eleventy-starter-ghost ``` Then install dependencies ```bash yarn ``` # Running Start the development server ```bash yarn start ``` You now have a completely static site pulling content from Ghost running as a headless CMS. By default, the starter will populate content from a default Ghost install located at https://eleventy.ghost.io. To use your own install, edit the `.env` config file with your credentials. You can find your `contentApiKey` in the "Integrations" screen in Ghost Admin. The minimum required version for Ghost is `2.10.0` in order to use this starter without issues. # Deploying with Netlify The starter contains three config files specifically for deploying with Netlify. A `netlify.toml` file for build settings, a `headers.njk` file with default security headers set for all routes (builds to `/_headers` path), and `redirects.njk` to set Netlify custom domain redirects (builds to `/_redirects` path). To deploy to your Netlify account, hit the button below. [](https://app.netlify.com/start/deploy?repository=https://github.com/TryGhost/eleventy-starter-ghost) Content API Keys are generally not considered to be sensitive information, they exist so that they can be changed in the event of abuse; so most people commit it directly to their `.env` config file. If you prefer to keep this information out of your repository you can remove this config and set [Netlify ENV variables](https://www.netlify.com/docs/continuous-deployment/#build-environment-variables) for production builds instead. Once deployed, you can set up a [Ghost + Netlify Integration](https://docs.ghost.org/integrations/netlify/) to use deploy hooks from Ghost to trigger Netlify rebuilds. That way, any time data changes in Ghost, your site will rebuild on Netlify. # Optimising You can disable the default Ghost Handlebars Theme front-end by enabling the `Make this site private` flag within your Ghost settings. This enables password protection in front of the Ghost install and sets `<meta name="robots" content="noindex" />` so your Eleventy front-end becomes the source of truth for SEO. # Extra options ```bash # Build the site locally yarn build ``` # Copyright & License Copyright (c) 2013-2022 Ghost Foundation - Released under the [MIT license](LICENSE).
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