A good Astro blog template saves you the slowest part of starting a blog: designing the post page, the archive, the category pages and the home page before you have written a single word. Astro is a strong fit for blogs because it ships mostly static HTML, so pages load fast and posts can live as plain Markdown files.
The catch is that most lists mix two very different things. Some Astro blog themes are free, minimal developer starters. Others are fully designed websites where the blog is one part of a bigger site for an author, a consultant or an organisation. Which one you need depends on what the site is for.
This list covers both. It starts with designed templates from the TNCFlow Astro templates catalog that suit blogging and content sites, then covers three well known free Astro blog themes. Prices are for the Astro version.
Quick picks
| Template | Best for | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Diary TNC | Personal blogs and online magazines | $49 |
| Diary Dark TNC | Dark themed personal blogs | $49 |
| BookAuthor TNC | Authors and independent publishers | $49 |
| Dossier | Consultants and freelancers who blog | $79 |
| Photographer TNC | Photographers with a journal | $59 |
| PRCOM | News and press driven sites | $59 |
| Politician TNC | Campaign and advocacy content | $59 |
| Neighborly | Nonprofit and community blogs | $49 |
| AstroPaper | Minimal developer blogs | Free |
| Astro Cactus | Simple blogs with notes and search | Free |
| Astro blog starter | Building your own design from scratch | Free |
The best Astro blog templates
1. Diary TNC
Diary TNC is the most direct answer if you want an Astro blog template and nothing else. It is a blog website template for personal bloggers, writers and online magazines, and it sits in the Blog and Editorial category alongside personal blog, magazine, news, tech blog and lifestyle use cases.
The design gives you six home page layouts to choose from, so the same template can look like a quiet personal journal or a busier magazine front page. The structure is built around posts, authors, categories and tags, which is what a blog needs once it grows past a handful of articles.
The Astro version costs $49. Diary TNC is also available for Webflow, Figma and HTML if you want the same design on another platform.
Diary TNC is available now.
2. Diary Dark TNC
Diary Dark TNC is the dark palette sibling of Diary. It is a personal blog template for writers, storytellers and independent bloggers who want a site that reads well at night and makes photos and cover images stand out.
Like Diary, it comes with six home page layouts, plus author profiles, category archives and tag archives. If your writing is about technology, film, music or games, a dark design often suits the subject better than a white page does.
The Astro version is $49. It also exists for Webflow, Figma and HTML.
Diary Dark TNC is available now.
3. BookAuthor TNC
BookAuthor TNC is an author website template for novelists, nonfiction writers and independent publishers. It suits you if the blog is there to support your books, not the other way round.
The design combines a blog with a book catalogue that can be filtered by genre, an events page for readings and launches, and an author About page. That mix lets readers move from a post to the book it relates to without leaving the site.
The Astro version costs $49. BookAuthor TNC is also sold for Webflow, Figma and HTML.
BookAuthor TNC is available now.
4. Dossier
Dossier is a resume website template for consultants, freelancers and independent professionals. Pick it if you want a personal site where articles sit next to your work and your services.
It includes three home pages, case studies, a services and pricing page and a blog. This is a common setup for people who write to win clients: the posts bring visitors in, and the case studies and pricing page do the selling.
The Astro version is $79, the highest price on this list. Dossier is also available for Webflow, Figma and HTML.
Dossier is available now.
5. Photographer TNC
Photographer TNC is a photography website template for portrait photographers, wedding studios and video agencies. It is a good choice for an image led blog, where each post is mostly a gallery with a short story around it.
The design covers portfolio, packages and blog sections, so you can publish recent shoots as posts and still send clients to a clear packages page.
The Astro version costs $59. It also comes in Webflow, Framer, Figma and HTML versions.
Photographer TNC is available now.
6. PRCOM
PRCOM is a PR agency website template for public relations firms, communications consultancies and media agencies. It is listed under Blog and Editorial as well as agency categories, and it works for any company site where news is the main content.
The design is built around a news index, six service pages and a press release submission page. If you publish announcements, coverage and commentary more than long personal essays, this layout fits better than a classic blog theme.
The Astro version is $59. PRCOM is also available for Webflow, Framer, Figma and HTML.
PRCOM is available now.
7. Politician TNC
Politician TNC is a political website template for candidates, parties, campaigns and advocacy groups. It is not a blog theme in the strict sense, but it is a content site: the design is organised around issues, movements, events and speakers.
That makes it useful for campaign writing, where each issue needs its own page and readers should be able to act on what they read. Donate and volunteer pages are part of the design.
The Astro version costs $59. It also exists for Webflow, Framer, Figma and HTML.
Politician TNC is available now.
8. Neighborly
Neighborly is a charity website template for nonprofits, community groups and neighborhood associations. Choose it when the blog is how you keep supporters up to date.
Along with the blog, the design includes a donation page, an events page and a resource directory, so stories about your work can point straight to a way to help.
The Astro version is $49. Neighborly is also available for Webflow, Framer, Figma and HTML.
Neighborly is available now.
9. AstroPaper
AstroPaper is one of the best known free Astro blog themes. It is minimal, accessible and built with TypeScript and Tailwind CSS, with light and dark mode, static search through Pagefind, draft posts, pagination, a sitemap, an RSS feed and generated social images. It is released under the MIT license. It suits developers who want a clean writing site and are happy to edit code.
AstroPaper is available from GitHub.
10. Astro Cactus
Astro Cactus is a simple, free theme for a blog or small personal site. It supports Markdown and MDX posts, light and dark themes, Pagefind search, an RSS feed, generated Open Graph images and Webmentions, and it is styled with Tailwind CSS. It is MIT licensed. Pick it if you want a plain, text first blog with very little to configure.
Astro Cactus is available from GitHub.
11. Astro blog starter
The official Astro blog starter is the template maintained by the Astro team. It is a bare starting point with Markdown posts and very little styling, which is the point: use it when you plan to design the blog yourself and want a clean base that follows current Astro conventions.
Astro blog starter is available from the official Astro repository on GitHub.
How to choose an Astro blog template
Start with what the site is for, then look at design.
- Blog only or a full site. If writing is the whole site, a dedicated blog template such as Diary or a free theme such as AstroPaper is enough. If the blog supports books, services or a cause, pick a template that already has those pages.
- How much design work you want to do. Free starters are light on design by intent. A paid template gives you finished home, archive and post layouts.
- Who will edit it. Astro sites are edited in code and content files. If nobody on your team is comfortable with that, plan for help or consider the Webflow or Framer version of the same design.
- Archive structure. Check for category, tag and author pages if you plan to publish often. They are tedious to add later.
- Light or dark. Choose the palette that suits your content and images, since changing it later means restyling every page.
A TNCFlow purchase covers one website. If you want to compare designs beyond blogs, see our wider list of the best Astro themes and templates.
Want it built for you?
If you would rather not set up an Astro project yourself, TNCFlow can customise the template you pick with your branding, content and pages, then launch it for you. Book a free call to talk it through.
Frequently asked questions
Is Astro good for a blog?
Yes. Astro produces mostly static HTML, so blog pages load quickly, and posts can be written in Markdown or MDX. That makes it a practical choice for blogs and other content heavy sites.
Are there free Astro blog templates?
Yes. AstroPaper, Astro Cactus and the official Astro blog starter are all free and open source. They are minimal by design, so expect to do your own styling if you want a distinctive look.
What is the difference between an Astro blog theme and an Astro blog template?
In practice the two terms are used for the same thing: a ready made Astro project with blog layouts that you adapt with your own content and branding.
Do I need to know how to code to use an Astro blog template?
Some comfort with code helps, because Astro sites are edited in project files and deployed through a build step. If that is not for you, TNCFlow can set up and launch the template for you.
How much does an Astro blog template cost?
The free themes on this list cost nothing. The TNCFlow Astro templates listed here range from $49 to $79, and one purchase covers one website.
Can I get the same design on another platform?
Yes, for the TNCFlow templates. Each one on this list is also available for Webflow, Figma and HTML, and several also have a Framer version.