Getting Started with Astro: A Comprehensive Guide

Astro is a modern static site builder that allows you to build faster websites with less client-side JavaScript. It’s perfect for content-focused websites like blogs, marketing sites, and portfolios.

Why Choose Astro?

Astro offers several advantages over traditional frameworks:

• Zero JS by default: Astro websites ship with zero JavaScript by default, resulting in extremely fast load times.
• Component Islands: Use your favorite UI components from React, Vue, Svelte, and more.
• Content-focused: Built specifically for content-rich websites.
• Server-first: Moves expensive hydration off the client and onto the server.

Setting Up Your First Astro Project

Getting started with Astro is straightforward:

# Create a new project with npm
npm create astro@latest

# Or with yarn
yarn create astro

# Or with pnpm
pnpm create astro

Follow the prompts to set up your project, then navigate to your project directory and start the development server:

cd my-astro-project
npm run dev

Building Components in Astro

Astro components use a .astro extension and have a syntax similar to HTML with frontmatter:

---
// Your component script goes here
const greeting = 'Hello, Astro!'
---

<h1>{greeting}</h1>
<p>This is my first Astro component!</p>

<style>
	h1 {
		color: purple;
		font-size: 2rem;
	}
</style>

Conclusion

Astro provides a modern approach to building websites that prioritizes performance and developer experience. By shipping less JavaScript and focusing on content, you can create faster, more efficient websites that your users will love.

In future posts, we’ll explore more advanced Astro features like content collections, image optimization, and deployment strategies.