Static Site Starter is an opinionated boilerplate for building static websites with Eleventy (11ty), bundling a PostCSS asset pipeline and one-command Netlify deployment.
What is Static Site Starter?
Static Site Starter is an opinionated boilerplate that you can use to start a new static site project. It is built around the Eleventy (11ty) static site generator and includes a minimal asset pipeline using PostCSS, with JavaScript used throughout the toolchain. The starter compiles Nunjucks templates, processes SCSS, optimizes images, and is configured for one-click deployment to Netlify. It is authored by Danny de Vries and released under the MIT license.
Key Features
- Eleventy-based site generation — Uses 11ty to compile Nunjucks templates into static HTML files, giving you a fast, JavaScript-friendly build pipeline.
- PostCSS asset pipeline — Compiles SCSS with PostCSS, then minifies the CSS with cssnano and adds vendor prefixes using autoprefixer.
- Linting and browser targeting — Stylelint enforces CSS style rules, and a browserslist configuration sets which browsers to support during the build.
- Image optimization — Minifies images using imagemin and several of its plugins, reducing file sizes for production.
- Netlify deployment — The project includes a Netlify deploy button and a status badge, enabling direct deployment from the GitHub repository.
Who is it for?
- Front-end developers — who want a ready-made 11ty setup with SCSS compilation and image optimization without configuring each tool themselves.
- Static site hobbyists — who need a simple boilerplate to experiment with Eleventy, Nunjucks, and PostCSS in one project.
- Netlify users — who want a starter that is pre-wired for Netlify deploys, right down to a one-click deploy button.
What can you do with Static Site Starter?
- Launch a static site quickly: run
git cloneand thennpm run devto get a local live-reload development server. - Build a production-ready static site: the pipeline minifies CSS and images, producing optimized assets suitable for deployment.
- Deploy to Netlify instantly: use the provided Deploy to Netlify button to create a new site connected to your repository without leaving the browser.
How does Static Site Starter work?
The README gives two installation steps: clone the repository from GitHub and then run npm run dev to start a local development server with live reload. The starter's PostCSS pipeline compiles SCSS and its imagemin setup optimizes images as part of the build.
Pricing
Static Site Starter is free and open source under the MIT license. There are no paid tiers or subscriptions; you can use the code commercially and modify it freely.
FAQ
Is Static Site Starter free?
Yes. The project is open source under the MIT license, so you can use it, modify it, and include it in commercial projects at no cost.
What static site generator does Static Site Starter use?
It uses Eleventy (11ty), a popular static site generator that compiles Nunjucks templates into static HTML. The project is JavaScript-based end to end.
How do I install Static Site Starter?
Clone the repository from GitHub and run npm run dev in the project folder. This starts a local development server with live reload for immediate development.
Which templating language does Static Site Starter use?
It uses Nunjucks, a templating engine from Mozilla, which is compiled by Eleventy during the build process.
Does Static Site Starter include image optimization?
Yes. It uses imagemin with plugins to minify images, which helps reduce file sizes for faster page loads.
