Install Astro

How to install Astro and start a new project.

The create astro CLI command is the fastest way to start a new Astro project from scratch. It will walk you through every step of setting up your new Astro project and allow you to choose from a few different official starter templates.

You can also run the CLI command with the template flag to begin your project using any existing theme or starter template. Explore the themes and starters showcase where you can browse themes for blogs, portfolios, documentation sites, landing pages, and more!

Prefer to try Astro in your browser? Visit astro.new to browse our starter templates and spin up a new Astro project without ever leaving your browser.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, make sure you have the following installed:

• Node.js - v18.20.8 or v20.3.0, v22.0.0 or higher. (v19 and v21 are not supported.)
• Text editor - We recommend VS Code with the Official Astro extension.
• Terminal - Astro is accessed through its command-line interface (CLI).

Browser compatibility

Astro is built with Vite which targets browsers with modern JavaScript support by default. For a complete reference, you can see the list of currently supported browser versions in Vite.

Install from the CLI wizard

You can run create astro anywhere on your machine, so there’s no need to create a new empty directory for your project before you begin. If you don’t have an empty directory yet for your new project, the wizard will help create one for you automatically.

1. Run the install wizard

   Run the following command in your terminal to start the install wizard:

   npm

   # create a new project with npm
   npm create astro@latest
   

   If all goes well, you will see a success message followed by some recommended next steps.

2. Navigate to your project

   Now that your project has been created, you can cd into your new project directory to begin using Astro.

   cd my-astro-project
   
3. Install dependencies

   If you skipped the “Install dependencies?” step during the CLI wizard, then be sure to install your dependencies before continuing.

   npm

   npm install
   
4. Start the dev server

   You can now start the Astro dev server and see a live preview of your project while you build!

   npm

   npm run dev
   

CLI installation flags

You can run the create astro command with additional flags to customize the setup process or your new project.

Add integrations

You can start a new Astro project and install any official integrations or community integrations that support the astro add command at the same time by passing the --add argument.

npm

# create a new project with React and Partytown
npm create astro@latest -- --add react --add partytown

Use a theme or starter template

You can start a new Astro project based on an official example or the main branch of any GitHub repository by passing a --template argument to the create astro command.

npm

# create a new project with an official example
npm create astro@latest -- --template <example-name>

# create a new project based on a GitHub repository's main branch
npm create astro@latest -- --template <github-username>/<github-repo>

By default, this command will use the template repository’s main branch. To use a different branch name, pass it as part of the --template argument: <github-username>/<github-repo>#<branch>.

Manual setup

This guide will walk you through the steps to manually install and configure a new Astro project if you prefer not to use the automatic create astro CLI tool.

1. Create your directory

   Create an empty directory with the name of your project, and then navigate into it.

   mkdir my-astro-project
   cd my-astro-project
   

   Once you are in your new directory, create your project package.json file. This is how you will manage your project dependencies, including Astro.

   npm

   npm init --yes
   
2. Install Astro

   First, install the Astro project dependencies inside your project.

   Astro must be installed locally, not globally. Make sure you are not running npm install -g astro, pnpm add -g astro, or yarn add global astro.

   npm

   npm install astro
   

   Then, replace any placeholder “scripts” section of your package.json with the following:

   package.json

   {
     "scripts": {
       "dev": "astro dev",
       "build": "astro build",
       "preview": "astro preview"
     }
   }
   

   You’ll use these scripts later in the guide to start Astro and run its different commands.

3. Create your first page

   In your text editor, create a new file in your directory at src/pages/index.astro. This will be your first Astro page in the project.

   For this guide, copy and paste the following code snippet (including --- dashes) into your new file:

   src/pages/index.astro

   ---
   // Welcome to Astro! Everything between these triple-dash code fences
   // is your "component frontmatter". It never runs in the browser.
   console.log('This runs in your terminal, not the browser!');
   ---
   <!-- Below is your "component template." It's just HTML, but with
        some magic sprinkled in to help you build great templates. -->
   <html>
     <body>
       <h1>Hello, World!</h1>
     </body>
   </html>
   <style>
     h1 {
       color: orange;
     }
   </style>
   
4. Create your first static asset

   You will also want to create a public/ directory to store your static assets. Astro will always include these assets in your final build, so you can safely reference them from inside your component templates.

   In your text editor, create a new file in your directory at public/robots.txt. robots.txt is a simple file that most sites will include to tell search bots like Google how to treat your site.

   For this guide, copy and paste the following code snippet into your new file:

   public/robots.txt

   # Example: Allow all bots to scan and index your site.
   # Full syntax: https://developers.google.com/search/docs/advanced/robots/create-robots-txt
   User-agent: *
   Allow: /
   
5. Create astro.config.mjs

   Astro is configured using astro.config.mjs. This file is optional if you do not need to configure Astro, but you may wish to create it now.

   Create astro.config.mjs at the root of your project, and copy the code below into it:

   astro.config.mjs

   import { defineConfig } from "astro/config";
   
   // https://astro.build/config
   export default defineConfig({});
   

   If you want to include UI framework components such as React, Svelte, etc. or use other tools such as MDX or Partytown in your project, here is where you will manually import and configure integrations.

6. Add TypeScript support

   TypeScript is configured using tsconfig.json. Even if you don’t write TypeScript code, this file is important so that tools like Astro and VS Code know how to understand your project. Some features (like npm package imports) aren’t fully supported in the editor without a tsconfig.json file.

   If you do intend to write TypeScript code, using Astro’s strict or strictest template is recommended. You can view and compare the three template configurations at astro/tsconfigs/.

   Create tsconfig.json at the root of your project, and copy the code below into it. (You can use base, strict, or strictest for your TypeScript template):

   tsconfig.json

   {
     "extends": "astro/tsconfigs/base"
   }
   
7. Next steps

   If you have followed the steps above, your project directory should now look like this:

   ├── node_modules/
   ├── public/
   │   └── robots.txt
   ├── src/
   │   └── pages/
   │       └── index.astro
   ├── astro.config.mjs
   ├── package.json
   └── tsconfig.json
   

   Congratulations! You’re now set up to use Astro. You can now start the Astro dev server and see a live preview of your project while you build!