Massively is a Jekyll blog theme that reproduces the text-heavy, article-oriented HTML5UP design around a full-width background image, and it ships with Slapform email integration and an auto-generating sitemap.
What is Jekyll Massively?
Jekyll Massively (often called simply “Massively”) is a Jekyll port of the HTML5UP template of the same name, originally designed by AJ (ajlkn) and integrated with Jekyll by JekyllUp: Jekyll Themes. It is an article-oriented, text-heavy design built around a huge background image with a parallax implementation and scroll effects powered by Scrollex. As a Jekyll theme, it takes your posts and pages as input and outputs a static, blog-ready website. Setup is done by downloading the zip archive or cloning the repository, running bundle install, and launching a local server with bundle exec jekyll serve.
Key Features
- Slapform.com Integration — Add your email to
_config.ymland the contact form forwards every submission to your inbox; Slapform also enables AJAX submissions and webhooks. - Auto-Generating Sitemap — Pages can declare
sitemapfront matter withpriority,lastmod, andchangefreqfields, and the sitemap is generated automatically. - Text-Heavy Article Layout — The design prioritizes long-form content with a massive background image and minimal distraction, ideal for blog posts and editorial stories.
- Parallax Background Image — The full-width hero uses a new parallax implementation to create depth as the page scrolls.
- Scroll Effects via Scrollex — Scroll-triggered animations are handled by the Scrollex jQuery plugin, which is a dependency of the original HTML5UP build.
- Sass-Powered Styling — Stylesheets are written in Sass, and the template bundles jQuery and Font Awesome icons for interactivity and iconography.
- Easy Local Setup — With a zip download or a clone,
bundle installandbundle exec jekyll serveget the site running athttp://127.0.0.1:4000/. - Free License — Released under the CCA 3.0 license, so you can use it freely in both personal and commercial projects.
Who is it for?
Jekyll Massively is aimed at writers, bloggers, and editors who want a layout that emphasizes text and long-form articles rather than a typical landing page. Journalists can publish news or opinion pieces with minimal visual clutter. Personal bloggers can build an editorial-style site with a strong hero image and clean article pages. Photographers or creatives who want a full-width showcase image with text content can also use the parallax background to present portfolios.
What can you do with Jekyll Massively?
- Bloggers: create a self-hosted blog on GitHub Pages or any Jekyll-compatible host, with a built-in contact form that forwards submissions to your email.
- Writers/Journalists: publish long-form articles and use the automated sitemap to help search engines index each page with custom priority and change frequency.
- Freelancers/Professionals: present a text-focused personal site with a full-screen background image, and easily extend the contact form with Slapform webhooks for automation.
How does Jekyll Massively work?
You start by downloading the zip archive or cloning the repository, then run bundle install to fetch Ruby dependencies. After that, running bundle exec jekyll serve launches the site locally at http://127.0.0.1:4000/. To activate the contact form, put your email in _config.yml; to control the sitemap, set the sitemap front matter fields on any page.
Pros and cons
- Pros: free for personal and commercial use; includes Slapform email integration and an auto-generating sitemap; setup is a simple three-command workflow.
- Cons: demo images are not included in the repository; installation uses the multi-folder port style rather than a gem-based theme, so you'll need to copy or clone the full source.
Pricing
Massively is free for personal and commercial use under the CCA 3.0 license.
FAQ
Is Jekyll Massively free to use?
Yes, Massively is free for both personal and commercial projects under the CCA 3.0 license. You don't need to pay a license fee, but you should review the HTML5UP license terms.
How do I set up the contact form?
Set your email address in _config.yml, then the Slapform integration will take over. When a visitor submits the contact form, your inbox receives the submission. You can also enable AJAX submissions or webhooks via Slapform.
Are the demo images included?
No. The demo images shown in the preview are courtesy of Unsplash and are not included in the template files. You'll need to supply your own images or download free ones from Unsplash.
Can I install it as a gem-based theme?
No. This port uses the multi-folder style rather than a gem-based Jekyll theme. You install it by copying or cloning the repository into your site directory and running bundle install.
What should I do if I'm new to Jekyll?
Consult the official Jekyll documentation first. Once you understand the basics, grab the zip, follow the bundle install / bundle exec jekyll serve steps, and you'll have the site running at http://127.0.0.1:4000/.
