Decap Netlify CMS

Decap CMS for Astro JS

If you need your Astro JS project to work with a content management system, Decap CMS is one of the best options available. It is free, Git-based, and open source — content lives in your repository, and editors update it through a visual dashboard.

Decap CMS works especially well when your project is deployed to Netlify, but it can also run on other hosts with additional OAuth configuration.

This guide explains how Decap CMS integrates with Blacks and what it looks like in action.

What Is Decap CMS?

Decap CMS (formerly Netlify CMS) is a Git-based headless CMS. It adds a /admin route to your site where editors log in and manage content.

Key characteristics:

Free forever — no monthly fees
Git-based — every change is a commit to your repository
Open source — no vendor lock-in
Content stays in your repo — Markdown, YAML, and JSON files
Role-based access — control who can edit what
Editorial workflow — draft, review, publish

Your site stays static. The CMS is just an editor on top.

How It Works with Blacks

Once installed, Decap CMS adds a dashboard at /admin. Editors sign in with their Google or GitHub account, and can then:

Write new blog posts
Update existing pages
Manage images and media
Publish changes with one click

Every change becomes a Git commit. Your hosting provider rebuilds the site automatically.

Installation

To add Decap CMS to your Blacks project, install the package:

npm install decap-cms-app --save

For full setup instructions, see the Decap CMS documentation →

Note: Decap CMS requires configuration files for both the admin panel and your content collections. This is not a one-line install — it requires a proper setup.