Simplecho is a minimal single-column theme for the Hexo static site generator that turns Markdown posts into a clean blog page with support for featured images, link posts, and video embedding.
What is Simplecho?
Simplecho is a theme for the Hexo static site generator, released under the MIT License and available on GitHub. It accepts standard Hexo Markdown posts and renders them as a static HTML blog, with a live demo hosted at garwih.github.io/hexo-theme-simplecho. The theme was created by Garwih and can be customized through its own _config.yml file as well as the Hexo root _config.yml.
Key Features
- Featured images — Add an
imagefield to a post's front matter to display an image at the top of that article. - Link posts — Set a
linkfield in front matter to convert a post into a link post, suitable for sharing external URLs. - No-title posts — Leave the
titlefield empty and the post's published date becomes its title automatically. - Responsive video embedding — Put any video share code inside a
divwith the classvideoto make embedded videos adapt to the page width. - Disqus and Duoshuo comments — Configure a Disqus shortname or a Duoshuo ID in the theme config; both can optionally load on the homepage to display comment counts.
- Customizable header — Menu items (Home and Archives), RSS feed URL, favicon, and subtitle visibility are all set via
simplecho/_config.yml. - Browser support — Works on IE 8 and later, plus Opera, Chrome, Firefox, and Safari.
- Language support — English by default, with a Chinese (zh-CN) translation; switch by setting
languagein the Hexo root config.
Who is it for?
Simplecho suits Hexo users who want a lightweight personal blog theme without heavy JavaScript or complex layouts. It is especially useful for developers who write posts with front matter and need quick support for featured images, link posts, and comment systems. The built-in Chinese language option also makes it a practical choice for Chinese-speaking bloggers.
What can you do with it?
- Personal bloggers — Publish Markdown posts with optional featured images and automatically generated date titles for untitled posts.
- Link curators — Create link posts by adding a
linkfield, turning each post into an outbound link card. - Video posters — Embed videos from YouTube, Youku, or other services inside a
.videocontainer to keep the layout responsive. - Comment-enabled sites — Enable Disqus or Duoshuo from the theme config, and optionally show comment counts on the homepage.
How do I configure it?
Installation follows the standard Hexo theme workflow: clone the repository to themes/simplecho inside your Hexo project, then set theme: simplecho in the root _config.yml. To update, run git pull inside the theme directory. The theme's own _config.yml exposes menu items, RSS path, favicon, subtitle display, and comment settings, while the Hexo root config requires archive, category, and tag to be set to numeric values to enable archive pages.
