Getting Started

A code-first CMS for Astro. Define collections in TypeScript and get a generated admin UI and typed content API.

Supports Astro’s route caching with tag-based invalidation.

Try live demo

Quick start

pnpx create-kide-app

It then asks how you want the CMS runtime:

Package or Embedded?

Package - recommended for most projects. The runtime is an @kidecms/core dependency, so most updates are just a version bump. If you outgrow it, pnpm exec kide eject converts the project to embedded in place.

Embedded - gives you full control. The CMS source scaffolds into src/cms/ as part of your project, so you can read, modify, and audit it directly, with no plugin API in the way. Upgrades arrive as patches you review and apply.

Both modes share the same runtime, API, and admin UI. The difference is where the runtime lives and how updates arrive.

Commands

Command	What it does
pnpm dev	Start dev server (auto-generates schema, pushes to DB)
pnpm build	Production build
pnpm check	astro check + Cloudflare TS profile + eslint
pnpm test	Run the test suite (vitest)
pnpm format	Format with Prettier
pnpm cms:generate	Regenerate .generated/ from cms.config.ts
pnpm cms:admin	Create an admin user from the CLI
pnpm cms:mcp	Start the local MCP server for AI-assisted editing
pnpm cms:push	Sync the local SQLite DB to the generated schema
pnpm cms:upgrade	Upgrade to a newer Kide release (see Updates)
pnpm cms:restore	Roll back a failed upgrade from its backup
pnpm db:generate	Generate migration SQL from schema changes (D1)

In dev mode, schema changes are pushed to the DB automatically. On the Node target, cms:push is the same sync used in deploys; migration files are for Cloudflare D1 only.

Project structure

src/cms/
  cms.config.ts           # CMS config (locales, admin, collection imports)
  collections/            # One file per collection (schema, access rules)
  adapters/               # db / email / storage adapters (project-owned)
  fields/                 # Custom admin field components (optional)
  runtime.ts              # Wires adapters into the core runtime
  .generated/             # Auto-generated (don't edit)
    schema.ts             # Drizzle tables
    types.ts              # TypeScript interfaces
    validators.ts         # Zod schemas
    api.ts                # Typed API
  core/, admin/, routes/  # CMS runtime (embedded mode only — in package
  middleware/, platform/  # mode these ship inside @kidecms/core)

Environment variables

Set these in .env for local development or through your deployment platform. The full table with production requirements is in Deploy.

Variable	Description
AI_PROVIDER	AI provider (openai)
AI_API_KEY	AI provider API key
AI_MODEL	AI model name (e.g. gpt-4o-mini)
RESEND_API_KEY	Enables automatic invite emails for new users
RESEND_FROM_EMAIL	Email sender address
CMS_TRUSTED_ORIGIN	Canonical public origin for admin CSRF checks
CRON_SECRET	Secures the cron endpoints (publish, tasks)

Stack

Astro 7, React 19, Drizzle ORM, SQLite (local) / D1 (Cloudflare), Zod, Tiptap, shadcn/ui, Tailwind CSS v4