User Guide

Automad lets you edit content in two ways — through the dashboard or directly on the page while browsing the site when signed in. To start a session, visit /dashboard on your new site and sign in with your credentials.

Dashboard

The dashboard is the central administration area of an Automad site. It provides everything you need to manage content and pages, adjust site-wide settings, invite other users to collaborate, and install or update themes to shape the look and behavior of your site.

In-Page Editing

When browsing your site while signed in, you can edit content directly on the page using the small blue edit button that appears on editable areas. The floating dock at the bottom provides access to the dashboard, as well as the settings and files of the current page, and can be moved around whenever it’s in the way. It also lets you publish a page draft instantly.

Getting Started Publishing

In Automad, changes made to content fields — such as blocks or settings — are saved automatically. These changes are stored as drafts. Signed-in users can see and edit drafts at any time, while public visitors only see content that has been published. This makes it easy to work on content over a longer period without exposing unfinished pages to your visitors.

Global Defaults

One of Automad’s core ideas is the concept of global defaults. Many fields can be set either globally or individually for each page. When a page is displayed, Automad first checks the page itself for a value. If nothing is set there, it falls back to the global data.

Blocks are small, self-contained pieces of content such as text paragraphs, headings, galleries, slideshows, and more. You can also add dynamic content like Pagelists, Filelists, or custom snippets. The block editor offers an intuitive editing experience and lets users freely compose a page from multiple blocks.

Open Graph & Favicons

Automad takes care of most metadata and icon-related details automatically, so pages are ready for browsers, devices, and social platforms right from the start. Without any configuration, sensible defaults are generated for things like page titles, descriptions, icons, and social previews. At the same time, Automad keeps everything transparent and flexible, making it easy to customize or override individual parts whenever more control is needed.