Base Template
A minimal template for developers getting started with Squarespace, using developer mode. No tweaks, no web fonts, no static assets, no static pages, no system collections, no collection features, no modules at all.
For more information about the Squarespace Developer Platform see developers.squarespace.com.
Usage
See the Developer Getting Started page for an step-by-step guide for getting started with the Squaresapce Developer Platform. You can create a new website using this template by visiting base-template.squarespace.com and clicking the "Create a Site Like This" button. This template is also available on GitHub.
Squarespace Templates
Each Squarespace website is based on a template like this one. Templates contain regular web files like CSS and JavaScript. In addition, Squarespace recognizes a few special file types:
JSON-T Template Files
Squarespace template files are written in JSON Template, also known as JSON-T. It is a simple yet expressive template language. JSON-T files have different extensions depending on the type of file, for example .list, .item, and .region.
LESS Files
Template LESS files (.less) are processed through the LESS preprocessor. LESS extends CSS with dynamic behavior such as variables, mixins, operations and functions.
Template Folder Structure
Squarespace template files are organized using the following folder structure at the root of your site:
- assets: design assets β example: images, fonts and icons
- blocks: reusable blocks of JSON-T (AKA partials) β ex: navigation.block
- collections: collection files β [collection].list, [collection].item, [collection].conf
- scripts: Javascript files β site.js
- styles: stylesheet files β styles.css, styles.less
- [root]: sitewide files β site.region, template.conf
Essential Files
At the very minimum, your template needs a .region file and a template.conf.
/site.region
Typically this file is used as the global site template β containing the site header, footer, and sidebars. This is like the index.html of your site. Every template must have at least one .region file. Simple templates will have a single .region, more advanced templates will have multiple .region files describing header, body, and footer variants. Regions files live in the root directory of a template.
See the Layouts & Regions documentation for more details.
/template.conf
Contains the configuration settings for the template. This is where you can name your template, specify layouts, add navigation sections, specify stylesheets, and other general site options. Template configuration files must live in the root directory of a template.
See the Template Configuration documentation for more details.
Further Reading
For further reading please consult the Squarespace Template Overview and other documentation on the Squarespace developers website.