Gatsby Plugin - Theme UI

The gatsby-plugin-theme-ui provides seamless Theme UI integration with Gatsby, including automatic color mode support and component shadowing.

Installation

Install Theme UI and the Gatsby plugin:

npm install theme-ui @theme-ui/mdx gatsby-plugin-theme-ui @emotion/react @mdx-js/react

Basic Setup

Add the plugin to your gatsby-config.js:

module.exports = {
  plugins: ['gatsby-plugin-theme-ui'],
}

That’s it! The plugin automatically:

Wraps your app with ThemeUIProvider
Integrates MDX support
Prevents color mode flash on page load
Sets up the theme context

Creating Your Theme

Create a theme file using Gatsby’s component shadowing:

export default {
  colors: {
    text: '#000',
    background: '#fff',
    primary: '#0066cc',
    secondary: '#cc0066',
    muted: '#f6f6f6',
  },
  fonts: {
    body: 'system-ui, sans-serif',
    heading: 'Georgia, serif',
  },
  fontSizes: [12, 14, 16, 20, 24, 32, 48, 64],
  space: [0, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128, 256],
  styles: {
    root: {
      fontFamily: 'body',
      lineHeight: 'body',
    },
    h1: {
      fontSize: 5,
      fontFamily: 'heading',
      fontWeight: 'bold',
    },
    h2: {
      fontSize: 4,
      fontFamily: 'heading',
      fontWeight: 'bold',
    },
    p: {
      fontSize: 2,
      lineHeight: 'body',
    },
  },
}

The theme must be the default export from src/gatsby-plugin-theme-ui/index.js.

Plugin Options

Configure the plugin with options:

module.exports = {
  plugins: [
    {
      resolve: 'gatsby-plugin-theme-ui',
      options: {
        prismPreset: 'night-owl',
        preset: '@theme-ui/preset-funk',
        injectColorFlashScript: true,
      },
    },
  ],
}

Available Options

prismPreset

string

default:"null"

The name of the preset for styling code blocks in markdown files. Available presets: 'dracula', 'duotone-dark', 'duotone-light', 'github', 'night-owl', 'nightOwl', 'oceanicNext', 'okaidia', 'prism', 'shadesOfPurple', 'ultramin', 'vsDark', 'vsLight'.

preset

string | object

default:"null"

A theme preset to use as a base. Can be a package name (string) or a theme object. The preset is merged with your shadowed theme.

injectColorFlashScript

boolean

default:"true"

Injects a script to prevent color mode flashing on page load. Set to false for AMP pages.

Using Presets

Install a Preset Package

npm install @theme-ui/preset-funk

Configure with Preset

module.exports = {
  plugins: [
    {
      resolve: 'gatsby-plugin-theme-ui',
      options: {
        preset: '@theme-ui/preset-funk',
      },
    },
  ],
}

Extend a Preset

Combine a preset with custom styles:

import { funk } from '@theme-ui/preset-funk'

export default {
  ...funk,
  colors: {
    ...funk.colors,
    // Override specific colors
    primary: '#0066cc',
    secondary: '#cc0066',
  },
}

Code Syntax Highlighting

The plugin integrates with @theme-ui/prism for syntax highlighting.

Configure Prism Preset

module.exports = {
  plugins: [
    {
      resolve: 'gatsby-plugin-theme-ui',
      options: {
        prismPreset: 'night-owl',
      },
    },
  ],
}

Available Prism Presets

Dark Themes
Light Themes
Other

'dracula'
'night-owl' or 'nightOwl'
'okaidia'
'duotone-dark'
'vsDark'
'shadesOfPurple'

'github'
'duotone-light'
'vsLight'
'prism' (default Prism theme)
'ultramin'

'oceanicNext'

Custom Prism Styles

Override Prism styles in your theme:

export default {
  styles: {
    pre: {
      fontFamily: 'monospace',
      fontSize: 1,
      padding: 3,
      backgroundColor: '#011627',
      borderRadius: 2,
      overflow: 'auto',
    },
    code: {
      fontFamily: 'monospace',
    },
  },
}

Color Modes

Add color modes to your theme:

export default {
  colors: {
    text: '#000',
    background: '#fff',
    primary: '#0066cc',
    modes: {
      dark: {
        text: '#fff',
        background: '#000',
        primary: '#3399ff',
      },
    },
  },
}

Color Mode Toggle

Create a color mode toggle component:

import { useColorMode } from 'theme-ui'

export function ColorModeToggle() {
  const [colorMode, setColorMode] = useColorMode()
  
  return (
    <button
      onClick={() => {
        setColorMode(colorMode === 'default' ? 'dark' : 'default')
      }}
      sx=
        padding: 2,
        bg: 'primary',
        color: 'white',
        border: 'none',
        borderRadius: 2,
        cursor: 'pointer',
      }}
    >
      Toggle {colorMode === 'default' ? 'Dark' : 'Light'} Mode
    </button>
  )
}

Prevent Color Flash

The plugin automatically injects a script to prevent color mode flashing. This script runs before React hydrates and sets the correct color mode. To disable this (e.g., for AMP pages):

module.exports = {
  plugins: [
    {
      resolve: 'gatsby-plugin-theme-ui',
      options: {
        injectColorFlashScript: false,
      },
    },
  ],
}

Custom MDX Components

Shadow the components file to customize MDX rendering:

import React from 'react'

const components = {
  // Add linked headings
  h1: (props) => (
    <h1 {...props}>
      <a href={`#${props.id}`}>{props.children}</a>
    </h1>
  ),
  h2: (props) => (
    <h2 {...props}>
      <a href={`#${props.id}`}>{props.children}</a>
    </h2>
  ),
  
  // Custom image component
  img: (props) => (
    <img
      {...props}
      sx={{
        maxWidth: '100%',
        height: 'auto',
        borderRadius: 2,
      }}
    />
  ),
}

export default components

Component Shadowing

Gatsby’s component shadowing allows you to override plugin files.

Shadow Files

You can shadow these files:

src/
└── gatsby-plugin-theme-ui/
    ├── index.js       # Theme configuration
    └── components.js  # MDX components

Example: Complete Override

import { merge } from 'theme-ui'
import { base } from '@theme-ui/presets'

const theme = merge(base, {
  colors: {
    primary: '#0066cc',
    modes: {
      dark: {
        text: '#fff',
        background: '#000',
      },
    },
  },
  styles: {
    root: {
      fontFamily: 'body',
    },
  },
})

export default theme

Extending Gatsby Themes

Extend a Gatsby theme that uses Theme UI:

import baseTheme from 'gatsby-theme-blog/src/gatsby-plugin-theme-ui'

export default {
  ...baseTheme,
  colors: {
    ...baseTheme.colors,
    text: '#111',
    background: '#fff',
    primary: '#0066cc',
  },
}

Load Theme from Custom Path

If you prefer a different location for your theme:

module.exports = {
  plugins: [
    {
      resolve: 'gatsby-plugin-theme-ui',
      options: {
        preset: require('./src/theme'),
      },
    },
  ],
}

// Note: Use module.exports for gatsby-config.js
module.exports = {
  colors: {
    text: '#000',
    background: '#fff',
    primary: '#0066cc',
  },
}

gatsby-config.js doesn’t support ES6 modules. Use module.exports instead of export default.

Plugin Implementation

Here’s how the plugin works internally:

gatsby-node.js

The plugin processes theme presets and creates a Gatsby node:

exports.onPreInit = ({ reporter }, options) => {
  let { preset, prismPreset } = options

  // Load preset if it's a string
  if (typeof preset === 'string') {
    try {
      options.preset = require(preset)
    } catch {
      reporter.warn(
        'Theme dependency not installed. Only local styles will appear.'
      )
    }
  }

  // Load Prism preset
  if (prismPreset) {
    try {
      options.prismPreset = require(prismPreset)
    } catch {
      reporter.warn('Prism dependency not installed.')
    }
  }
}

exports.sourceNodes = (
  { actions, createContentDigest },
  { preset = {}, prismPreset = {} }
) => {
  const { createNode } = actions

  // Create a node with theme config
  createNode({
    preset,
    prismPreset,
    id: 'gatsby-plugin-theme-ui-config',
    parent: null,
    children: [],
    internal: {
      type: 'ThemeUiConfig',
      contentDigest: createContentDigest({ preset, prismPreset }),
    },
  })
}

Provider Component

The plugin wraps your app with providers:

import { ThemeUIProvider, merge } from 'theme-ui'
import { useThemedStylesWithMdx } from '@theme-ui/mdx'
import { MDXProvider, useMDXComponents } from '@mdx-js/react'
import React from 'react'

import localTheme from './index'
import components from './components'
import useThemeUiConfig from './hooks/configOptions'

const Root = ({ children }) => {
  const themeUiConfig = useThemeUiConfig()
  const { preset, prismPreset } = themeUiConfig

  const theme = preset.default || preset

  // Merge with Prism preset
  const themeWithPrism = merge(theme, {
    styles: {
      pre: prismPreset,
    },
  })

  // Merge with local theme
  const fullTheme = merge(themeWithPrism, localTheme)

  return (
    <ThemeUIProvider theme={fullTheme}>
      <MDXProvider
        components={useThemedStylesWithMdx(useMDXComponents(components))}
      >
        {children}
      </MDXProvider>
    </ThemeUIProvider>
  )
}

export const WrapRootElement = ({ element }) => {
  return <Root>{element}</Root>
}

Complete Example

Here’s a complete Gatsby site setup:

module.exports = {
  plugins: [
    'gatsby-plugin-theme-ui',
    {
      resolve: 'gatsby-plugin-mdx',
      options: {
        extensions: ['.mdx', '.md'],
      },
    },
  ],
}

Troubleshooting

Theme Not Applying

Make sure your theme file exports a default:

// ✅ Correct
export default { colors: { ... } }

// ❌ Incorrect
export const theme = { colors: { ... } }

Color Flash on Load

Ensure injectColorFlashScript is true (default):

{
  resolve: 'gatsby-plugin-theme-ui',
  options: {
    injectColorFlashScript: true, // default
  },
}

Preset Not Loading

Verify the preset package is installed:

npm install @theme-ui/preset-funk

Resources

Gatsby Shadowing

Learn about component shadowing in Gatsby

Theme UI Presets

Browse available Theme UI presets

MDX in Gatsby

Using MDX with Gatsby

Prism Themes

Code syntax highlighting themes

Get Started

Core Concepts

Guides

Components

Presets

​Installation

​Basic Setup

​Creating Your Theme

​Plugin Options

​Available Options

​Using Presets

​Install a Preset Package

​Configure with Preset

​Extend a Preset

​Code Syntax Highlighting

​Configure Prism Preset

​Available Prism Presets

​Custom Prism Styles

​Color Modes

​Color Mode Toggle

​Prevent Color Flash

​Custom MDX Components

​Component Shadowing

​Shadow Files

​Example: Complete Override

​Extending Gatsby Themes

​Load Theme from Custom Path

​Plugin Implementation

​gatsby-node.js

​Provider Component

​Complete Example

​Troubleshooting

​Theme Not Applying

​Color Flash on Load

​Preset Not Loading

​Resources

Gatsby Shadowing

Theme UI Presets

MDX in Gatsby

Prism Themes

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Installation

Basic Setup

Creating Your Theme

Plugin Options

Available Options

Using Presets

Install a Preset Package

Configure with Preset

Extend a Preset

Code Syntax Highlighting

Configure Prism Preset

Available Prism Presets

Custom Prism Styles

Color Modes

Color Mode Toggle

Prevent Color Flash

Custom MDX Components

Component Shadowing

Shadow Files

Example: Complete Override

Extending Gatsby Themes

Load Theme from Custom Path

Plugin Implementation

gatsby-node.js

Provider Component

Complete Example

Troubleshooting

Theme Not Applying

Color Flash on Load

Preset Not Loading

Resources