Quickstart

Deploy your documentation site and make your first change.

After you complete this guide, you’ll have a live documentation site ready to customize and update.

Before you begin

You’ll need a GitHub account to deploy your documentation site. Mintlify uses a docs-as-code approach where every page on your site has a corresponding file stored in your documentation repository.

Your documentation repository connects to your Mintlify deployment, allowing you to work locally or in the web editor and sync changes automatically.

Deploy your documentation site

1. Start onboarding

   Go to mintlify.com/start to begin the onboarding process.

2. Connect GitHub

   Connect your GitHub account and create or select a repository for your documentation.

3. Install GitHub App

   Install the Mintlify GitHub App to enable automatic deployments when you push changes.

After completing onboarding, your documentation site is deployed and accessible at your .mintlify.app URL.

Want to get started quickly? You can skip connecting your own repository during onboarding. Mintlify will create a private repository for you, letting you use the web editor immediately and migrate to your own repository later.

View your deployed site

Your documentation site is now deployed at https://<your-project-name>.mintlify.app.

Find your exact URL on the Overview page of your dashboard.

Your site is live and ready to view. Use this URL for testing and sharing with your team. Add a custom domain before sharing with users.

Make your first change

CLI

1. Install the CLI

   The CLI requires Node.js v20.17.0 or higher. Use an LTS version for stability.

   npm

   npm i -g mint
   

   See Install the CLI for full details and troubleshooting.

2. Clone your repository

   If you haven’t already cloned your repository locally, follow the instructions in Clone your repository.

3. Edit a page

   Open index.mdx in your preferred editor and update the description in the frontmatter:

   ---
   title: "Introduction"
   description: "Your custom description here"
   ---
   
4. Preview locally

   Run the following command from your documentation directory:

   mint dev
   

   View your preview at http://localhost:3000.

5. Push your changes

   Commit and push your changes to trigger a deployment:

   git add .
   git commit -m "Update description"
   git push
   

   Mintlify automatically deploys your changes. View your deployment status on the Overview page of your dashboard.

Web editor

1. Open the web editor

   Navigate to the web editor in your dashboard.

2. Edit a page

   Open the Introduction page and update the description.

   
3. Publish

   Click the Publish button in the top-right of the web editor toolbar.

4. View live

   On the Overview page of your dashboard, you can see your site’s deployment status. When it finishes deploying, refresh your documentation site to see your changes live.

Next steps

Use the web editor

Edit documentation in your browser and preview how your pages will look when published.

Explore CLI commands

Find broken links, check accessibility, validate OpenAPI specs, and more.

Add a custom domain

Use your own domain for your documentation site.

Customize your theme

Configure colors, fonts, and branding to match your product.

Organize your navigation

Structure your documentation with groups, tabs, and sections.

Add API documentation

Auto-generate interactive API reference from your OpenAPI spec.