Introduction

The following documentation serves as your guide to the new theme. Since this is Ghost theme documentation, it is assumed that you have a basic knowledge of the Ghost.

If you’re new to Ghost, it’s recommended to explore the guides in the official Ghost Help Center. Checking these resources will provide you with all the available information.

Uploading a theme

This is where the magic happens! You are able to upload, activate and delete a theme in the Ghost Admin of your publication.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Theme' settings in the Ghost Admin and click 'Change theme' button.
2. Then click the 'Upload theme' button in the upper right corner.
3. Once uploaded, click 'Activate' to activate the theme on your site.

Dark & Sepia

The dark or sepia version introduces a fresh and distinctive appearance for your website, bringing a modern and stylish aesthetic that enhances the visual experience for your visitors.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the 'Theme' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Color scheme' position.
3. Use the dropdown menu to select your option.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Tip: Dark version depending on operating system preferences

Modern operating systems (Windows, macOS, iOS, etc.) let users choose between light and dark themes – selecting the 'Auto' option enables automatic theme switching based on the system preference.

Welcome

Add and customize text in the welcome section on the homepage.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the 'Theme' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Welcome' position.
3. Enter your own text.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Tip: How to customize the text

To make text bold, use the <b> or <strong> tag, like this:

Your own <b>welcome text</b>

If you want to start a new line, use the <br> tag, for example:

First line<br>
Second line

Manifesto

Add and customize text in the manifesto section on the homepage.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the 'Theme' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Manifesto' position.
3. Enter your own text.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Tip: How to customize the text

To make text bold, use the <b> or <strong> tag, like this:

Your own <b>Manifesto text</b>

If you want to start a new line, use the <br> tag, for example:

First line<br>
Second line

Sidebar

Choose whether to display a dynamic post in the sidebar.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the tab 'Theme' – expand this settings list and go to the 'Sidebar' position.
3. Use the dropdown menu to select your option.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Tip: What are the differences between the options?

Post of the day – fetches and deterministically selects a post from the 50 most recent posts that have a featured image. The post changes at midnight local time.

Post of the day: #daily – fetches all posts tagged with #daily that have a featured image and deterministically selects one to display. The post changes at midnight local time.

Post of the day: Featured – fetches all posts tagged with featured that have a featured image and deterministically selects one to display. The post changes at midnight local time.

Each option is available in either partial or full height. 'Partial' means the sidebar has a maximum height of 700px, while 'Full' maintains the height of the browser window.

Curated topics

Add a curated topics section on the homepage, below the 'Load more' button.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the 'Theme' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Curated topics' position.
3. Enter tag slugs, separated by commas without spaces (e.g., travel,food) — maximum 6.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Social accounts

Link your social accounts to have them displayed in the footer of your publication.

For: Facebook and X

1. Go to the 'Social accounts' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. Once adding social accounts, click 'Save' to activate.

Tip: Adding other social accounts to the footer

1. Go to the 'Navigation' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. Click on the 'Secondary' navigation.
3. Add a service name into the 'New item label', like @instagram, and then set the URL to your social profile.
4. Drag the item to the end of the navigation list.
5. Click 'Save' to activate.

The full list of available social accounts

@amazon, @applemusic, @baidu, @bandcamp, @behance, @bigcartel, @bitbucket, @blogger, @bluesky, @buymeacoffee, @cashapp, @codepen, @codewars, @dailymotion, @deezer, @deviantart, @discord, @discourse, @dribbble, @etsy, @facebook, @figma, @flickr, @github, @gitlab, @googleplay, @gumroad, @hackerrank, @imdb, @instagram, @justgiving, @kickstarter, @kofi, @lastfm, @line, @linkedin, @mastodon, @medium, @meetup, @messenger, @notion, @patreon, @pinterest, @producthunt, @quora, @redbubble, @reddit, @rss, @sellfy, @slack, @snapchat, @soundcloud, @spotify, @stackoverflow, @steam, @strava, @telegram, @threads, @tiktok, @tumblr, @twitch, @unsplash, @upwork, @vimeo, @vk, @vsco, @wechat, @weibo, @whatsapp, @x, @xbox, @youtube

Authors page

To present top authors from your publication in an elegant way, you can add a custom authors page.

Step-by-Step

1. Create a new page, add a page title, and open the 'Page settings' panel using the icon in the top right of the screen.
2. At the bottom of the panel you’ll see a dropdown menu titled 'Template'.
3. Use the dropdown menu to select the 'Authors' template, close the panel.
4. Click 'Publish' to go live.

Featured section

Select which posts you want to featured in your publication.

Step-by-Step

1. Open the post you would like to add to the featured section.
2. Then, go to the 'Post settings' panel using the icon in the top right of the screen.
3. At the bottom of the panel, you'll find a switch labeled 'Feature this post.'
4. Click the switch and close the panel, to activate.

Featured page

To present all featured posts from your publication in an elegant way, you can add a custom featured page.

Step-by-Step

1. Create a new page, add a page title, and open the 'Page settings' panel using the icon in the top right of the screen.
2. At the bottom of the panel you’ll see a dropdown menu titled 'Template'.
3. Use the dropdown menu to select the 'Featured' template, close the panel.
4. Click 'Publish' to go live.

Tip: How to add a link to the ‘Featured’ page in the featured section and on post pages

1. Go to the 'Page settings' panel on your page (where you are using the 'Featured' template) and click the icon in the top right of the screen.
2. Add the #featured internal tag.
3. Close the panel, to activate.

Tags page

To present top tags from your publication in an elegant way, you can add a custom tags page.

Step-by-Step

1. Create a new page, add a page title, and open the 'Page settings' panel using the icon in the top right of the screen.
2. At the bottom of the panel you’ll see a dropdown menu titled 'Template'.
3. Use the dropdown menu to select the 'Tags' template, close the panel.
4. Click 'Publish' to go live.

Contact page

If you wish to have a direct way in which your readers can contact you, you can add a contact page based on Formspree or Getform.

Step 1: Add your Formspree or Getform endpoint

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the 'Theme' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Contact form endpoint' position.
3. Paste your Formspree or Getform endpoint, e.g. https://formspree.io/f/xhyplkej
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Step 2: Add a contact page

1. Create a new page, add a page title, and open the 'Page settings' panel using the icon in the top right of the screen.
2. At the bottom of the panel you’ll see a dropdown menu titled 'Template'.
3. Use the dropdown menu to select the 'Contact' template, close the panel.
4. Click 'Publish' to go live.

Tip: How to add custom text and a checkbox to agree to your terms of service on the contact page

1. Open the 'Page settings' panel using the icon in the top right of the screen.
2. At the bottom of the panel, you’ll see a menu titled 'Code injection'.
3. Click on the 'Code injection' section and paste your text into the 'Page footer' field, like this:

You have read and agreed to the <a href="https://your-site.com/privacy/">Privacy Policy</a>

1. Close the panel, to activate.

Logo

A publication logo is the primary logo for your brand and is displayed across your theme.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the 'Brand' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Publication logo' position.
3. Click 'Upload logo' to upload your logo.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Tip: How to change logo size

1. Go to the 'Code injection' settings in the Ghost Admin and paste this code to the 'Site header':

<style>
:root {
   /* Desktop */
   --height-logo-header: <value>;
   --height-logo-footer: <value>;
}
</style>

<style>
:root {
   /* Mobile */
   --height-logo-mobile-header: <value>;
   --height-logo-mobile-footer: <value>;
}
</style>

1. Adjust the current <value> to match the expected value, such as 30px
2. Click 'Save' to activate.

Tip: Uploading an additional logo for dark color scheme

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right, you’ll see the 'Theme' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Color scheme' position – select the option related to dark color scheme to display the option to upload an additional logo below.
3. Click 'Upload Image' to upload your logo.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Navigation

There are two types of navigation: 'Primary' and 'Secondary'. The primary navigation is used in the theme header, while the secondary navigation is used in the footer.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Navigation' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. Once here, you can remove any navigation items that you want by using the trash icon to the right of the item. You can add new items by just typing them in. You can change the order by clicking on the icon on the left and dragging it to the spot you want.
3. Click 'Save' to activate.

Tip: How to add a dropdown menu to the 'Primary' navigation

1. Add a new item to the 'Primary' navigation.
2. Enter the item name (this will serve as the column name).
3. Set the URL to start:/ – this begins the dropdown.
4. Add another item (any name) and set the URL to end:/ – this will always be the closing element of the column.
5. Place all navigation items that should appear inside the dropdown between the start:/ and end:/ items.
6. Click 'Save' to activate.

| Label              | URL                          |
|--------------------|------------------------------|
| Dropdown name      | start:/                      |
| Item               | https://yoursite/item        |
| Item               | https://yoursite/item        |
| Item               | https://yoursite/item        |
| Dropdown end       | end:/                        |
...

Tip: Description of available options in 'Primary' navigation

To create a dropdown that starts with a special section, use one of the following markers:

start--tag:/ – starts the dropdown from a tag
start--author:/ – starts the dropdown from an author
start--post:/ – starts the dropdown from a post
start--page:/ – starts the dropdown from a page

After the chosen marker, you must add the slug of the tag, author, post or page, for example: 

start--tag:design/
start--author:breana/ 
start--post:we-are-stronger-as-a-group-than-an-individual/ 
start--page:membership/ 

Example usage:

| Label              | URL                          |
|--------------------|------------------------------|
| Dropdown name      | start--tag:design/           |
| Item               | https://yoursite/item        |
| Item               | https://yoursite/item        |
| Item               | https://yoursite/item        |
| Dropdown end       | end:/                        |
| Dropdown name      | start--author:breana/        |
| Item               | https://yoursite/item        |
| Item               | https://yoursite/item        |
| Item               | https://yoursite/item        |
| Dropdown end       | end:/                        |
...

Special sections are only displayed in the desktop view and are skipped on mobile. They should be treated as optional enhancements rather than a permanent part of your navigation structure.

Tip: How to divide the footer navigation into columns with custom names

1. Add a new item to the 'Secondary' navigation.
2. Enter the item name (this will serve as the column name). 
3. Set the URL to column:/ – this marks the beginning of a new column.
4. Place the links you want inside this column directly under the column item.
5. Click 'Save' to activate.

| Label              | URL                          |
|--------------------|------------------------------|
| Column name        | column:/                     |
| Item               | https://yoursite/item        |
| Item               | https://yoursite/item        |
| Item               | https://yoursite/item        |
| Column name        | column:/                     |
| Item               | https://yoursite/item        |
| Item               | https://yoursite/item        |
| Item               | https://yoursite/item        |
...

In the 'Secondary' navigation there is no need to use end:/ – each new column:/ item automatically starts a new column.

Accent color

The primary color that defines the overall look of your publication.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the 'Brand' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Accent color' position.
3. Choose your color.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Appearance

Choose between a blurred style or a colorful tag-based style.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the 'Theme' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Appearance' position.
3. Use the dropdown menu to select your option.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Tip: What are the differences between the options?

Blurred – uses images blurred with a filter, creating a soft, subtle effect. This style gives a simple, delicate, and modern look.

Colorfull – uses colors applied to tags, giving a more vivid and distinctive character. It’s ideal for creating a unique publication that highlights your branding and delivers a bolder, more striking result.

Both styles also blend together, with the colors you’ve added to tags always visible, whether in the widget on the homepage or in the 'Curated topics' section.

Tip: How to add color to a tag

1. Go to the 'Tags' in the Ghost Admin.
2. Select the tag you want to assign a color to.
3. Add your color in the 'Color' field.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Variable headers

Customize the weight of main headings to give your publication the right tone and character.

This option is available only for font sets included with the theme or added through Google Fonts library.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Code injection' settings in the Ghost Admin and paste this code to the 'Site header':

<style>
:root {
   --font-weight-display: 700;
}
</style>

1. Click 'Save' to activate.

Fonts

You can use either the native font options or the fonts specially prepared for the theme.

Using the native font options might not always give the best results, as these fonts are designed for different purposes and can vary in size. The theme does not modify the list of available fonts or adjust them, so it’s a good idea to experiment and find what works best for your needs.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right, you’ll see the 'Brand' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Typography' position.
3. Use the dropdown menu to select your option.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Tip: GDPR-compliant font sets included with the theme

Unlike the option above, the theme offers an alternative specifically crafted for it: font sets from the Google Fonts library. It’s worth noting that these fonts are GDPR-compliant because they are included in the theme, and the theme does not make any connections to Google servers. These fonts have been carefully selected to highlight the theme’s unique character, with sizes and individual attributes precisely tailored to complement it.

However, for optimization purposes, the fonts include character sets for Latin and Latin-Ext, so if you need support for other languages, you will need to use the solution below.

You can also select the 'System fonts' option to use local fonts. This choice ensures the best performance for the theme.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right, you’ll see the 'Theme' tab – expand this settings list and find the 'Fonts' position.
3. Use the dropdown menu to select your option.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Please remember to set the option to 'Theme default' in the 'Typography' section before using the 'Fonts' settings.

Tip: Selecting any font from Google Fonts or Bunny Fonts library

1. Generate your font code on Google Fonts website (not GDPR-compliant) or on Bunny Fonts website (GDPR-compliant).
2. Then, go to the 'Code injection' settings in the Ghost Admin and paste your code into the 'Site header' (for example, the code for the 'Roboto' font):

<link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.googleapis.com">
<link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.gstatic.com" crossorigin>
<link href="https://fonts.googleapis.com/css2?family=Roboto:ital,wght@0,100..900;1,100..900&display=swap" rel="stylesheet">

<link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.bunny.net">
<link href="https://fonts.bunny.net/css?family=roboto:400,400i,700,700i" rel="stylesheet">

Next, add the code with the <style> tag where you define your chosen font:

<style>
:root {
	--font-family-body: 'Roboto', sans-serif;
}
</style>

If you want to use two fonts, there are additional variables you can use:

<style>
:root {
	--font-family-display: 'Inter', sans-serif;
	--font-family-heading: 'Inter', sans-serif;
	--font-family-subheading: 'Inter', sans-serif;
	--font-family-body: 'Roboto', sans-serif;
}
</style>

1. Click 'Save' to activate.

Hero title

Add and customize your own title on the homepage directly below the header on homepage.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the 'Theme' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Hero title' position.
3. Enter your own text.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Tip: How to customize the text

To make text bold, use the <b> or <strong> tag, like this:

Your own <b>hero text</b>

Tip: How to change the text size

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the 'Theme' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Hero title size' position.
3. Enter your desired size (e.g., 120%).
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Tags widget

Display a list of the most popular tags or choose your own.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the 'Theme' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Tags widget' position.
3. Use the dropdown menu to select your option.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Tip: What are the differences between the options?

Hero: <option> – tags are displayed directly in the 'Hero' section. On mobile, they appear in a slider for easier browsing.

Content: <option> – tags are displayed below the 'Welcome' section. Unlike the 'Hero' option, they do not have a slider on mobile, so all tags are shown.

Tip: How to display your own list of tags

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the 'Theme' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Selected tags for widget' position.
3. Enter tag slugs, separated by commas without spaces (e.g., travel,food).
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Feed layout

Switch between different view styles in the feed.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the tab 'Theme' – expand this settings list and go to the 'Feed layout' position.
3. Use the dropdown menu to select your option.
4. Finally, click 'Save' to activate.

Hide author

Decide whether you want to display the author in the feed and on the post page.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the 'Theme' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Show author' position.
3. Use the toggle switch.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Images orientation

You can easily change the orientation of your images.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the tab 'Theme' – expand this settings list and go to the 'Images orintation' position.
3. Use the dropdown menu to select your option.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Post & Page templates

The template option lets you choose different layouts, and apply additional settings, giving you flexibility in how titles, images, and content are displayed.

Step-by-Step

1. Open the 'Post' or 'Page' settings panel using the icon in the top right of the screen.
2. At the bottom of the panel you’ll see a dropdown menu titled 'Template'.
3. Use the dropdown menu to select the template, for example: Template 'Full'.
4. Close the panel and click 'Update' to activate.

Tip: What are the differences between the options?

Template 'Full' – this template places the image below the title. It is useful when the title is long or when you want to emphasize the image more.

Template 'Split' – this template divides the header area into two sections, with the smaller section occupied by the image. Choose this if you want to keep the page more text-focused.

Template 'Compact' – in this template, the title and image are arranged in a column and share the same width as the post content. This is the default template for Pages.

Additional options

'Appearance' – templates with this label respect the value set in the 'Appearance' setting.

'Image orientation' – templates with this label respect the 'Images orientation' setting.

'TOC' – templates with this label add a 'Table of Contents' to the Post/Page. The TOC captures h2 headings and generates a list from them.

Tip: How to choose the default template?

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the 'Theme' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Default template' position.
3. Use the dropdown menu to select your option.
4. Finally, click 'Save' to activate.

Auto – this is an automatic template that is based on the title length. If the title has more than 55 characters, the 'Full' template is selected, if it has fewer, the 'Split' template is selected.

Footer copyright

Customize your own text in the footer by replacing the default value 'Published with Ghost and (...)'.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the 'Theme' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Footer copyright' position.
3. Enter your own copyright text.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Custom pages

By default, the theme utilizes Portal. If you want to use links to custom pages, follow the instructions below.

Step-by-Step

1. Configure your custom Signup & Signin and Membership pages.
2. Then, go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
3. On the right you’ll see the 'Theme' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Use portal' position.
4. Set the toggle switch to 'off' – at this point, you will see an additional option for the CTA button below. Enter your custom URL path (for example /signup/). If the field is left empty, Portal will be used.
5. Click 'Save' to activate.

Signup & Signin pages

The 'Signup' and 'Signin' pages are allowing your visitors to sign up to your site in order to access members only content.

Step-by-Step

1. Create a new page, add a page title, and open the 'Page settings' panel using the icon in the top right of the screen.
2. Provide the appropriate 'Page URL' as /signin/ for the 'Signin' page and /signup/ for the 'Signup' page.
3. At the bottom of the panel, you’ll see a dropdown menu titled 'Template'.
4. Use the dropdown menu to select the 'Signin' for the signin page and 'Signup' for the signup page.
5. Click 'Publish' to go live.

Membership page

The 'Membership' page is helping your visitors to quickly visualize and compare the different pricing plans you offer.

Step-by-Step

1. Create a new page, add a page title, and open the 'Page settings' panel using the icon in the top right of the screen.
2. At the bottom of the panel you’ll see a dropdown menu titled 'Template'.
3. Use the dropdown menu to select the 'Membership' template, close the panel.
4. Click 'Publish' to go live.

Tip: You can choose one of the 'Membership' template options

Membership (Cards) – a classic card-based layout, best suited for 2–4 plans. Each card clearly shows the price, benefits, and includes its own checkout button at the bottom, making it easy for users to compare options at a glance.

Membership (Choice) – ideal for 2–3 plans, this layout encourages users to actively select a plan before proceeding. Cards highlight the options, but a single shared checkout button updates dynamically, making the decision process more interactive and guided.

Membership (Focus) – perfect for multiple plans, this layout emphasizes one plan at a time while keeping all options visible. Users can browse the list on the left, see a detailed view of the selected plan in the center, and access checkout on the right, creating a focused and structured decision experience.

Tip: How to add premium tier

1. Go to the 'Tiers' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. Click on the 'Connect with Stripe' and configure your Stripe account.
3. If you have Stripe connected, click '+Add tier' – add your own tier name, description, monthly and yearly prices and list of benefits.
4. Click 'Save'.
5. Making tiers available to visitors – from the 'Portal settings', you can control which tiers appear on your site.

Tip: How to add position to FAQ

You can add FAQ items in your page content using the 'Toggle card' in the Ghost editor.

The page content on the 'Membership' page only serves to add FAQ items, it is not designed for other types of content.

Continue the journey

The 'Continue the journey' section appears automatically at the bottom of your site when you have added a free plan to your publication.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Tiers' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. Click on the 'Free' option and configure your description and list of benefits.
3. Click 'Save' to activate.

Tip: How to add the background cover

1. Go to the 'Design & branding' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. On the right you’ll see the 'Brand' tab – expand this settings list and go to the 'Publication cover' position.
3. Click 'Upload cover' to upload your image.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Tip: How to add additional links to pages

You can select up to two pages that will additionally appear next to the ‘Join for free’ button.

1. Open the page you would like to add to the 'Continue the journey' section.
2. Then, go to the 'Page settings' panel using the icon in the top right of the screen.
3. At the bottom of the panel, you'll find a switch labeled 'Feature this page'.
4. Click the switch and close the panel.

Comments

The native comments feature in Ghost allows you to invite members to join the discussion and participate in a community directly on your website.

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the 'Access' settings in the Ghost Admin.
2. Change the 'Who can comment on posts?' level to 'All members' or 'Paid-members only'.
3. Click 'Save' to activate.

Editing a theme

To edit files, you will need to unzip the theme archive — at this point you will have access to the necessary files indicated in the theme documentation.

Step-by-Step

1. To edit your theme files, download a copy of the theme. For this purpose go to the 'Theme' settings in the Ghost Admin and click 'Change theme' in the bottom right corner.
2. Use the 'Installed' tab menu in the upper right corner to download your theme, then unzip the theme locally.
3. Once the theme is unzipped, the files can be edited using an code editor – make the changes indicated in the theme documentation.

You can edit files using applications such as Sublime Text, Visual Studio Code or Brackets. Using native text editors like TextEdit on macOS may add formatting may cause the theme to work incorrectly.

1. When you’ve finished making changes to the theme code, re-zip the theme directory for uploading back to Ghost.

To create a zip archive on a macOS, right-click on the theme folder to view the context menu. Then, click the 'Compress' option. On Windows right-click on the theme folder, select 'Send to', and then select 'Compressed (zipped) folder'.

1. To upload a theme, go to the 'Theme' settings in the Ghost Admin and click 'Change theme' in the bottom right corner.
2. Then click the 'Upload theme' button in the upper right corner.
3. Once uploaded, click 'Activate' to activate the theme on your site.

Updating a theme

Updates to the theme ensure compatibility with the latest Ghost version, performance improvements and minor bug fixes. So it is important that you use the latest available theme version.

If your theme features custom code, updating it with the latest versions will overwrite all your customizations.

Step-by-Step

1. Download the latest version of the theme, then unzip the archive locally.
2. Choose a theme version that is compatible with your Ghost version.
3. Go to the 'Theme' settings in the Ghost Admin and click 'Change theme' button.
4. Then click the 'Upload theme' button in the upper right corner.
5. Once uploaded, click 'Activate' to activate the theme on your site.

Tip: What if you’ve already edited the theme, and want to update it without losing your changes?

That’s a bit trickier to deal with but not impossible, as long as you can remember what the changes were, or more specifically which files you edited. Unfortunately in Ghost when updating a theme you have to re-enter your changes.

For more advanced users, it can be helpful to use a comparing files app like Sublime Merge – that way you can find your changes if you don’t remember them.

Tip: After uploading the theme my settings in 'Design & branding' section were reset, what should I do?

The best solution is to always use the same name e.g. theme-name.zip – that way you will not have to enter your settings again after uploading a theme.

Ghost assigns the settings in the 'Design & branding' section to the name of the uploaded archive. If you upload theme-v1.zip and theme-v2.zip – Ghost will recognize them as two different themes – so the settings will reset.

Theme translation

Translations are used both when you want to add a new language and when you want to edit current phrases used in the theme.

Editing current phrases used in the theme (Requires theme editing)

1. You’ll need to open the theme’s ../locales/en.json file in your code editor.
2. Change the sentences used in the theme following the pattern:

{
    "Old translate": "New translate",
    ...
}

1. After making your changes, save your file, compress the theme into a zip format, and upload it to Ghost.

Translation to another language (Requires theme editing)

1. Inside the ../locales/ folder, add target language file for example es.json for Spanish and pl.json for Polish (a valid language code must be used).
2. Based on the translation from the en.json file, add translations for your language in your code editor. For example, for Spanish, use in the es.json file:

{
    "Back": "Volver",
    "Newer Posts": "Artículos Siguientes",
    "Older Posts": "Artículos Anteriores",
    ...
}

1. After making your changes, save your file, compress the theme into a zip format, and upload it to Ghost.
2. Then, go to the 'Publication language' settings in the Ghost Admin.
3. Enter the correct language code into the 'Site language' field.
4. Click 'Save' to activate.

Posts per page

The number of posts provided will depend on the 'post per page' setting which you can configure in your package.json file.

Step-by-Step (Requires theme editing)

1. You’ll need to open the theme’s package.json file in your code editor and find:

"config": {
    ...
    "posts_per_page": <value>
    ...
}

1. Change the current value to the expected value.
2. Save your package.json file in root folder.

Troubleshooting

Guidance for handling common issues and questions that may arise during use.

I am trying to activate the theme but I get the following error 'A template file called index.hbs and post.hbs must be present'

The error indicates that you are uploading the whole file downloaded from Themeforest.

After downloading the file – unzip it – on Windows (assuming that's the system you're using) you have to do it a certain way. Right-click on the archive you downloaded from Themeforest and select 'Extract All'. This will extract the files to your new location. This will give you access to theme files like e.g. theme-name.zip.

After uploading the theme my settings in 'Design & branding' section were reset, what should I do?

The best solution is to always use the same name e.g. theme-name.zip – that way you will not have to enter your settings again after uploading a theme.

Ghost assigns the settings in the 'Design & branding' section to the name of the uploaded archive. If you upload theme-v1.zip and theme-v2.zip – Ghost will recognize them as two different themes – so the settings will reset.

Note that the above instructions apply to the same theme, different themes have different custom settings, which are individual for each one.

What to do in case of an 400 error with message e.g. 'Missing template members/signin.hbs for route /signin/'

The error indicates that there was previously used a routes.yaml file with another theme that required it. To solve the problem, reset the routes.yaml file to its default settings.

routes:

collections:
  /:
    permalink: /{slug}/
    template: index

taxonomies:
  tag: /tag/{slug}/
  author: /author/{slug}/

How to remove featured posts from the main collection

1. Go to the 'Labs' settings in the Ghost Admin to find the 'Routes' section.
2. Upload the routes.yaml file with these settings:

routes:

collections:
  /:
    permalink: /{slug}/
    filter: featured:false
    template: index
  /featured/:
    permalink: /featured/{slug}/
    filter: featured:true
    template: index

taxonomies:
  tag: /tag/{slug}/
  author: /author/{slug}/

Using local storage and session storage by a theme

The theme utilizes local storage for features such as the 'Pinned area' and 'Post of the day', and session storage for the 'Back' button functionality. No personally identifying user data is transmitted.

Because the data stored in local storage and session storage is used solely for technical purposes and does not identify users, it is considered 'necessary for the provision of the service'.

For transparency and best practice, it is recommended to inform users about the use of local storage and session storage in the Privacy Policy or Cookie Policy.