Full setup of Jekyll on GitHub Pages

Here’s a minimalist approach to setting up Jekyll on GitHub Pages using only the _config.yml and .md files. No external tools or plugins—just pure Jekyll and GitHub Pages. So to setup this follow the following steps:

(/blogs/images/blog.png)

Steps 1: Create a GitHub Repository

  1. Go to GitHub and log in.
  2. Click New Repository.
  3. Name: Blogs (also you can give any other name) (This is required for GitHub Pages hosting.)
  4. Choose Public.
  5. Click Create Repository. (/blogs/images/repo create.png)

Step 2: Add Jekyll Files to Your Repository

1. Create _config.yml

This file tells GitHub how to build your Jekyll site.

  1. In your GitHub repository, click Add file > Create new file.

  2. Name it _config.yml.

  3. Write some content inside the file, like

---
title: "My Blog"
author: "Jayanta Kumar Kamila"
description: "A personal blog created using Jekyll."
baseurl: "/blogs"
url: "https://jayantakr.github.io" ("https://username-github.github.io")
theme: minima
---
  1. Click Commit changes.

2. Create an index.md File

This is your homepage.

  1. Click Add file > Create new file.

  2. Name it index.md.

  3. Write some content inside this, like

---
layout: default
title: "BLOG"
---
  1. Click Commit changes.

3. Create a _posts Directory

This is where your blog posts will go.

  1. In your repository, click Add file > Create new file.

  2. Name it _posts/2025-02-08-Jekyll-Setup.md.

  3. Write some content inside the file like

---
layout: post
title: "Full Jekyll Setup"
date: 2025-02-08
categories: [Blog, Personal]
---

Welcome to my first blog post! This is a simple post written using Markdown.

  1. Click Commit changes.

Step 3: Enable GitHub Pages (as live)

  1. Go to Settings > Pages in your GitHub repository.

(/blogs/images/pic.jpg)

(/blogs/images/pic1.jpg)

  1. Under “Branch”, select main. (/blogs/images/pic3.png)
  2. Click Save.

Step 4: Add More Blog Posts

To add a new post, follow these steps:

  1. Click Add file > Create new file.
  2. Name it in the format: _posts/YYYY-MM-DD-title.md
  3. Write the content:
---
layout: post
title: "Second Blog Post"
date: 2025-02-09
categories: [Thoughts]
---

This is my second blog post.

  1. Click Commit changes.

Step 5: Customize Your Blog

Edit _config.yml to personalize:

  • Change the title and description.
  • Modify the theme.(Choose the theme whichi will be suitable for your blog)

Conclusion: How to setup of Jekyll on Github Pages?

With this configuration, you now have a complete Jekyll-powered blog hosted for free on GitHub Pages with only _config.yml and .md files—no complicated installations! Your blog is lightweight, customizable, and entirely in your control. With this easy yet powerful configuration, you now have a complete website that is:

  • Free to host on GitHub Pages
  • Simple to manage with Markdown
  • Customizable with themes and plugins
  • SEO-friendly using Jekyll’s native capabilities

This tutorial took you through setting up your repository, setting up Jekyll, creating posts, setting up GitHub Pages, and customizing your site—all with minimal work.