Cereus Pro is a Hugo blog theme for developers, derived from the Cactus Plus theme, that builds a static site of about 143KB and scores 100/100 on performance tests.
What is Cereus Pro?
Cereus Pro is a minimal, fast Hugo theme for personal developer blogs, created by arhen as a fork of nodejh's Cactus Plus theme. It takes Markdown content files and Hugo configuration and outputs a static site; the repository includes a one-click Deploy to Netlify button that sets up hosting via a GitHub repository link. The theme is released under the MIT License and its demo is live at cereus-pro.netlify.com.
Key Features
- Performance-focused build — the theme weighs about 143KB and reports a 100/100 performance score in Lighthouse-style tests; the author lists testing with gtmetrix, pingdoom, pagespeed, and the Lighthouse plugin.
- About page with GitHub activity — an About page lets you introduce yourself and shows your GitHub activity, with a username field to personalize it.
- Now page with WakaTime embed — a "Now" page inspired by Derek Sivers shows what you're currently doing; you can paste your WakaTime share embed link to display coding activity.
- Disqus comments — add your Disqus shortname to config.toml to enable reader comments on blog posts.
- Social link footer — configure a social panel in the footer from the social block in config.toml, choosing between Font Awesome icons or Mono social icons.
- Stackoverflow cards and GitHub activity — inherited from Cactus Plus, the theme can surface Stack Overflow profile cards and GitHub contribution activity.
- Simple local development — fork or clone the repo, run the Hugo built-in server with the hugo serve command, and view the site at localhost:1313.
Who is it for?
Cereus Pro is aimed at developers who want a personal blog or portfolio site with minimal design and strong performance. It is also suitable for technical writers who need Markdown-based publishing and integrate their coding activity, and for Hugo users who want a fork of Cactus Plus with added accessibility, readability, and performance improvements.
What can you do with Cereus Pro?
- Developers: publish blog posts about coding, connect Disqus for comments, and display GitHub and WakaTime activity to show your open-source work.
- Technical bloggers: use the About and Now pages to share personal context and current projects, all generated statically with no database.
- Performance-conscious site owners: deploy with Netlify in one click and rely on a theme that weighs about 143KB for quick page loads.
How does it work?
Get started by forking or cloning the repository, running hugo serve to preview locally, then editing config.toml to set your Disqus shortname, GitHub username, WakaTime embed link, and social links. After customizing content and configuration, deploy to Netlify using the provided deploy button or any Hugo-compatible host.
Pricing and License
The theme is free and open source under the MIT License. There are no paid tiers or premium features listed; you host it yourself, so hosting costs depend on your chosen platform.
FAQ
Is Cereus Pro free?
Yes, Cereus Pro is released under the MIT License, so it is free to use and modify. You only pay for hosting if you choose a paid host; the demo itself runs on free Netlify hosting.
How do I enable comments?
Add your Disqus shortname to the config.toml file in the theme's configuration block. The theme then loads Disqus on blog posts so readers can comment.
Can I customize the Now page to show my own activity?
Yes. The Now page uses a WakaTime share embed link that you can replace with your own link from wakatime.com to display your personal coding activity.
How fast is the theme?
The theme is roughly 143KB and reports a 100/100 performance score in automated tests including Lighthouse, gtmetrix, pingdoom, and pagespeed. Actual performance depends on your host and content.
