1. Create a project
Sign up at app.nookdocs.com and create a new project. Pick a name and URL slug — your docs go live at {slug}.nookdocs.site (add a custom domain later) — then choose how to start:
Start with a template → we create a managed repo seeded with the starter; your site is live instantly and you edit in the browser.
Connect your own GitHub repo → link an existing repo with your MDX docs (or output from the migrate CLI / an AI assistant).
2. Pick your path
The rest of setup depends on where your content comes from. Pick one:
Path A — AI assistant (LLM-first)
NookDocs is built so an AI assistant can author your docs end to end. The starter repo ships an AGENTS.md at its root — an instruction file every capable assistant (Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf, Copilot) reads automatically.
Open the repo in your AI editor
Use the managed starter repo (Path D) or your own connected repo (Path C). Open it in Claude Code / Cursor / Windsurf.
Let the assistant read AGENTS.md
It detects your situation and follows the right protocol: an existing docs platform (run the migrate CLI), custom/hand-rolled docs (convert by hand), an API-only project (build from the OpenAPI spec), or greenfield (adapt the starter).
Ask it to build
e.g. "Add a guide for webhooks and wire it into the navigation." The assistant writes .mdx at the repo root, updates nookdocs.config.json, and you git push.
See the per-tool guides: Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf.
Path B — migrate with the CLI
Moving an existing docs site? The nookdocs CLI converts it to NookDocs format in one command. Mintlify is fully supported today.
npx nookdocs migrate ./my-mintlify-docs -o ./nookdocs-outputIt writes the flat NookDocs layout (contentRoot: "/", api-reference/openapi.json, global.anchors preserved) and prints a report of what to review. Then commit the output to a repo and connect it (Path C).
See Migrating from Mintlify for the full walkthrough, and Migration playbooks for the strategy around a cutover (redirects, SEO, timing).
Path C — your own Git repo
Already have MDX docs, or output from Path A/B? Connect the repo and push.
Connect GitHub
On your project page, click Install GitHub App and select the repository holding your docs.
Lay out your content
MDX files sit flat at the docs base directory (the repo root), alongside nookdocs.config.json:
my-repo/
├── nookdocs.config.json
├── index.mdx
├── quickstart.mdx
└── api-reference/
└── introduction.mdxEach page needs frontmatter:
---
title: My Page Title
description: A brief description of this page.
---
Your content here...Configure navigation
nookdocs.config.json declares the sidebar as tabs → groups → pages:
{
"$schema": "https://nookdocs.com/schema.json",
"name": "My Docs",
"contentRoot": "/",
"navigation": [
{
"tab": "Documentation",
"groups": [
{
"group": "Getting Started",
"pages": ["index", "quickstart"]
}
]
}
]
}Push and deploy
git add .
git commit -m "docs: add initial documentation"
git pushEvery push triggers an automatic deploy — no separate build or upload step. Your docs are live at {slug}.nookdocs.site.
Path D — the starter template
Picked "Start with a template" in the wizard? We create a private managed repo already seeded with a working starter — your site is live instantly. Edit pages in the dashboard web editor (live preview, no local setup), or open the repo in an AI assistant (Path A). There is no local dev server; preview is the editor.