Pico is a free, open-source Ghost theme built for running a paid-membership publication, combining a minimal front-end design with a routes.yaml file that wires up member-specific pages on the Ghost platform.
What is Pico?
Pico is a minimal, functional Ghost theme originally created by Paul Jarvis and Jack Ellis, now stewarded by the Ghost Foundation (TryGhost) and released under the MIT license. It takes a standard Ghost website and turns it into a paid-membership publication by including a custom routes configuration that enables sign-up, sign-in, and account pages for members. The theme provides the templates and styles for the public site, while Ghost's built-in membership engine handles payments and member management. The repository sits on GitHub under TryGhost/Pico and is maintained by the Ghost core team.
Key Features
- Free and open source — Released under the MIT license, with no license fees for personal or commercial use.
- Membership-ready — Includes a
routes.yamlfile that adds the routes needed for Ghost's free and paid membership features, such as signup, signin, and account pages. - Minimal design — A lightweight, content-focused layout that loads quickly and puts articles front and center.
- PostCSS build system — Styles are compiled with Gulp and PostCSS, including Autoprefixer for automatic browser prefixing, CSS variables for theming, and the Color Function plugin for advanced color manipulation.
- Easy installation — Install by uploading the theme zip under Ghost's Design settings, then uploading
routes.yamlunder Labs > Custom Routes. - Development workflow — Developers can run
pnpm install, thenpnpm devto build and watch for CSS changes, andpnpm zipto package the theme into a distributable zip. - Official Ghost stewardship — Maintained by TryGhost, the same team that builds the Ghost platform itself, so compatibility is assured.
Who is it for?
Pico is for independent journalists, newsletter writers, and content creators who want to sell subscriptions to their writing using Ghost. It is also for developers building custom Ghost publications who need a clean starting point with membership support already configured. The minimal design suits publications that emphasize long-form articles rather than complex layouts.
What can you do with Pico?
- Independent writers and journalists: Launch a paid newsletter or magazine on Ghost by uploading Pico and configuring free and paid membership tiers through Ghost admin.
- Small publishers: Use Pico's minimal template as a base for a media site, customizing the CSS variables and PostCSS build to match a brand.
- Developers: Extend the theme's Gulp/PostCSS pipeline to add new features or restyle the publication, then package updates with the
ziptask.
How does Pico work?
Pico works as a standard Ghost theme, but it adds a crucial routes.yaml file that tells Ghost where to render member-facing pages. After uploading the theme zip under Design, you download the theme archive, extract routes.yaml, and upload it in the Ghost admin under Labs > Custom Routes. Once uploaded, the publication automatically gains the membership pages that wire into Ghost's payment and subscription backend. For development, styles live in /assets/css/ and are compiled by Gulp/PostCSS into /assets/built/, so you only edit the source CSS files.
Pricing
Pico is completely free. It is an open-source theme released under the MIT license, so there is no cost to download, use, or modify it. You do, however, need a Ghost installation (self-hosted or Ghost(Pro)) to run it, which may have its own hosting costs.
FAQ
Is Pico free?
Yes, Pico is released under the MIT license and is available at no cost. It is maintained by the Ghost Foundation as an open-source project.
How do I install Pico on my Ghost site?
Download the theme zip from the GitHub repository, then in Ghost admin go to Design > Upload a theme to upload the zip. Next, unzip the theme archive on your computer, locate routes.yaml, and upload it in Labs > Custom Routes. That configures the membership pages.
Does Pico support paid memberships?
Yes. Pico is specifically designed for paid-membership publications. The included routes.yaml file activates the routes needed for Ghost's membership features, including sign-up, sign-in, and account pages, and it works with Ghost's built-in Stripe payment integration for paid tiers.
Does Pico require coding skills to customize?
No. Basic installation only requires uploading two files through the Ghost admin. To restyle Pico beyond what the Ghost theme settings allow, you would need to edit the CSS source files and rebuild them using Node, pnpm, and Gulp, as described in the theme's development instructions.
What is the license for Pico?
Pico is licensed under the MIT license, giving you freedom to use, modify, and distribute the theme, including in commercial projects.
