Gatsby Starter Lunash is a free, MIT-licensed Gatsby.js v3 boilerplate for building static blogs with TypeScript, styled-components, and Atomic Design.
What is Gatsby Starter Lunash?
Gatsby Starter Lunash is a blog-focused starter template built on Gatsby.js v3, configured with TypeScript and styled-components for CSS-in-JS. It takes Markdown files placed in a contents directory as input and compiles them into a fully static blog site that can be hosted on GitHub Pages. The template was created by the developer behind the Lunash blog (snamiki1212), who uses it for his own Japanese-language blog. It includes a GitHub Actions workflow for continuous integration, and its UI was originally designed in Figma following Atomic Design principles.
Key Features
- Gatsby.js v3 and TypeScript — The starter uses Gatsby v3 with TypeScript for type-safe page and component development, reducing runtime errors and improving maintainability.
- styled-components styling — All styles are written as CSS-in-JS with styled-components, eliminating the need for an external CSS framework like Tailwind or Bootstrap.
- Atomic Design organization — UI components are structured using Atomic Design, splitting them into atoms, molecules, organisms, templates, and pages for clear separation of concerns.
- GitHub Actions CI — A preconfigured GitHub Actions workflow provides continuous integration, enabling automated builds and tests on every push to the repository.
- GitHub Pages hosting — The static site is set up for direct deployment to GitHub Pages; a live demo is available at the starter's demo site.
- Figma-designed interface — The template's visual design was created in Figma, giving it a distinctive look compared to typical default starters.
- Organized directory structure — A
contentsfolder stores blog articles, adatafolder holds constant values, and agatsby-nodefolder contains build-time logic for generating static files. - MIT license — The starter is fully open source under the MIT License, so it can be reused freely in personal and commercial projects.
Who is it for?
- Developers starting a Gatsby blog — You can scaffold a new blog with a single command and then write posts in the
contentsdirectory using Markdown. - TypeScript users — Because the template is fully written in TypeScript, it suits teams that prefer type-safe development from the start.
- GitHub Pages users — If you want a simple hosting setup, the built-in GitHub Actions workflow automates deployment to GitHub Pages.
- Design-minded bloggers — The Atomic Design-based component structure and Figma-designed UI make it easy to restyle and extend the appearance.
What can you do with it?
- Personal blog: Publish articles in Markdown under the
contentsfolder and deploy a static blog to GitHub Pages with CI. - Learning project: Study how Gatsby v3, TypeScript, and styled-components work together in a real, minimal codebase.
- Designer portfolio: Adapt the Atomic Design components to build a portfolio site that keeps the same static-site workflow.
How does it work?
The starter is used through the Gatsby CLI: after installing the gatsby-cli package globally, run yarn to install dependencies and yarn start to launch a development server. The site content lives in the contents directory as Markdown files; during a build, gatsby-node scripts transform those files into static pages, and the GitHub Actions workflow handles CI and publication to GitHub Pages.
Pricing
Free — the template is released under the MIT license, and there are no paid tiers or usage fees. You only pay for your own hosting if you choose a service other than GitHub Pages.
Alternatives
- gatsby-starter-blog — the official Gatsby blog starter, which uses plain JavaScript instead of TypeScript and styled-components.
- gatsby-starter-hello-world — a minimal starter that only sets up the Gatsby boilerplate without blog features.
FAQ
Is Gatsby Starter Lunash free?
Yes, the starter is completely free to use. It is released under the MIT License, so you can use, modify, and distribute it without charge, including for commercial projects.
What Gatsby version does it use?
The template is built on Gatsby.js v3, the third major version of the static site generator. This affects the plugin ecosystem and API patterns you will work with.
How do I start a new blog with this template?
Install the Gatsby CLI globally, then run yarn to install dependencies and yarn start to preview the site locally. To create a new project, you would use the Gatsby CLI to clone the starter repository.
Can I deploy to GitHub Pages?
Yes, the repo includes a GitHub Actions workflow configured for GitHub Pages deployment. The demo site is hosted on GitHub Pages and updates automatically through CI.
Does the template include TypeScript support out of the box?
Yes. The starter is written in TypeScript and includes type definitions for its components, so you get compile-time type checking during development.
