Gatsby Bootstrap Netlify Starter

Gatsby Starter Bootstrap Netlify is a boilerplate for building a JAMstack blog with Gatsby, Bootstrap 4, Bootswatch themes, and Netlify CMS, producing a static site with a Git-based content editing workflow.

What is Gatsby Starter Bootstrap Netlify?

Gatsby Starter Bootstrap Netlify is a start template that wires together Gatsby, Bootstrap 4, the Bootswatch theme switcher, and Netlify CMS. It takes a gatsby new command with this repository URL as input and outputs a fully configured blog site with example posts, a homepage, an about page, and a CMS interface. The template runs on Gatsby, a React-based static site generator, and is designed for deployment on Netlify's continuous delivery and CDN infrastructure. It was created by GitHub user konsumer.

Key Features

• Bootstrap 4 via SCSS — Bootstrap is loaded through a single src/layouts/index.scss file, letting you control exactly which components are included by commenting or uncommenting lines.
• 21 Bootswatch themes — Swap the default cosmo theme for any of the 20 others listed in the README, including cerulean, darkly, flatly, lux, minty, pulse, slate, solar, superhero, and yeti, by changing one variable.
• Netlify CMS integration — The starter comes with Netlify CMS pre-configured so content editors get a web UI that writes Markdown files back to the Git repository.
• JAMstack architecture — Uses Git as the single source of truth, with Netlify handling continuous deployment and CDN distribution for the generated static files.
• Disqus comments — Optional comment system enabled by setting a Disqus site ID in gatsby-config.js; set it to false to exclude comments entirely.
• Example blog content — The repository includes a demo blog with sample posts, making it easy to see how pages and collections are structured before replacing them with your own content.
• Gatsby CLI quick start — The official setup path is gatsby new [SITE_DIRECTORY_NAME] https://github.com/konsumer/gatsby-starter-bootstrap-netlify/, followed by npm start to run the dev server.

Who is it for?

• Frontend developers who want a pre-configured Gatsby + Bootstrap foundation instead of assembling the toolchain manually.
• Content creators and editors who need a familiar web-based CMS (Netlify CMS) to publish blog posts without using Git directly.
• Freelancers and agencies building marketing blogs or small business sites that require a fast, deployable static site with an editable design theme.

What can you do with it?

• Build a branded blog: swap Bootswatch themes by editing a single SCSS variable and publish posts through the Netlify CMS web interface.
• Deploy a continuous delivery site: connect the repository to Netlify and get automatic rebuilds whenever you push changes or merge a CMS edit.
• Create a custom Bootstrap bundle: comment out unused Bootstrap component imports in src/layouts/index.scss to trim the CSS your site ships.

How does it work?

1. Run gatsby new [SITE_DIRECTORY_NAME] https://github.com/konsumer/gatsby-starter-bootstrap-netlify/ to scaffold the project.
2. Run npm start inside the directory to launch the Gatsby development server locally.
3. Follow the Netlify CMS Quick Start Guide to configure authentication and hosting, then access the CMS to start writing content.

FAQ

How do I change the theme?

Edit src/layouts/index.scss and replace cosmo with one of the other Bootswatch theme names listed in the README. There are two lines to change in that file; the rest of the site picks up the new theme automatically when you rebuild.

Is Netlify CMS included for free?

The starter itself is open source, and Netlify CMS is an open-source project. Hosting on Netlify has a free tier, but you still need to configure authentication (typically with a GitHub, GitLab, or Bitbucket provider) by following the Netlify CMS Quick Start Guide.

Can I remove Disqus comments?

Yes. In gatsby-config.js, set the disqus field to false. When set to a real Disqus site ID, the starter will use that ID for comments; when false, comment functionality is left out entirely.

What Node version do I need?

The README recommends Node v8.2.0 or higher and the Gatsby CLI installed globally. Newer Node versions are also expected to work, but v8.2.0 is the stated minimum for running this starter.