mintlify

Mintlify reference

Reference for building documentation with Mintlify. This file covers essentials that apply to every task. For detailed reference on specific topics, read the files listed in the reference index below.

Reference index

Read these files only when your task requires them. They are in the reference/ directory next to this file.

File	When to read
reference/components.md	Adding or modifying components (callouts, cards, steps, tabs, accordions, code groups, fields, frames, icons, tooltips, badges, trees, mermaid, panels, prompts, colors, tiles, updates, views).
reference/configuration.md	Changing docs.json settings (theme, colors, logo, fonts, appearance, navbar, footer, banner, redirects, SEO, integrations, API config). Also covers snippets, hidden pages, .mintignore, custom CSS/JS, and the complete frontmatter fields table.
reference/navigation.md	Modifying site navigation structure (groups, tabs, anchors, dropdowns, products, versions, languages, OpenAPI in nav).
reference/api-docs.md	Setting up API documentation (OpenAPI, AsyncAPI, MDX manual API pages, extensions, playground config).
reference/cli.md	Running CLI commands (dev, validate, analytics, workflow, score, broken-links, a11y, config, and all flags).

MCP servers

Two Mintlify MCP servers are available. Use them alongside the reference files in this skill.

Mintlify (docs MCP)

Read-only access to Mintlify's published documentation. Use it when the reference files don't cover a specific detail, when you need an up-to-date component signature, or to verify an unfamiliar config option.

Tools:

• search_mintlify — Search the Mintlify knowledge base by query. Good for finding guides, examples, and API references.
• query_docs_filesystem_mintlify — Browse the docs file tree (ls, cat, grep, find, etc.). Good for reading a specific docs page.

Mintlify MCP (dashboard MCP)

Write access to a Mintlify project. Requires OAuth login on first use — Claude Code will open a browser window to authenticate.

Use this server when the user wants to edit their Mintlify content, restructure navigation, or open a pull request. All changes happen on a branch and must be reviewed before merging.

Workflow: call checkout first (always), then use read/search/edit_page/write_page/list_nodes/create_node/update_node/move_node/delete_node/update_config to make changes, then call save to open a PR (or discard_session to abandon).

Key tools:

• checkout — Start a session on a branch (required first call). Returns an editorUrl to preview changes live.
• list_branches — List existing branches; call before checkout to attach to one.
• read / search — Fetch a page's MDX or search across pages.
• edit_page / write_page — Apply targeted edits or overwrite a page.
• list_nodes / create_node / update_node / move_node / delete_node — Manage the navigation tree.
• update_config — Modify docs.json (theme, nav roots, integrations, SEO).
• diff — See all changes relative to main.
• save — Open a PR (mode: "pr") or push to the branch (mode: "commit").
• discard_session — Drop all in-session changes.

Keep each session focused on one change. Smaller sessions produce easier-to-review PRs. Open the `editorUrl` to watch changes render live.

Before you start

Read the project's docs.json file first. It defines the site's navigation, theme, colors, and configuration.

Search for existing content before creating new pages. You may need to update an existing page, add a section, or link to existing content rather than duplicating.

Read 2-3 similar pages to match the site's voice, structure, and formatting.

File format

Mintlify uses MDX files (.mdx or .md) with YAML frontmatter.

project/
├── docs.json           # Site configuration (required)
├── index.mdx
├── quickstart.mdx
├── guides/
│   └── example.mdx
├── openapi.yml         # API specification (optional)
├── images/             # Static assets
│   └── example.png
└── snippets/           # Reusable components
    └── component.jsx

File naming

• Match existing patterns in the directory
• If no existing files or mixed file naming patterns, use kebab-case: getting-started.mdx
• Add new pages to docs.json navigation or they won't appear in the sidebar

Internal links

• Use root-relative paths without file extensions: /getting-started/quickstart
• Do not use relative paths (../) or absolute URLs for internal pages

Images

Store images in an images/ directory. Reference with root-relative paths. All images require descriptive alt text.

![Dashboard showing analytics overview](/images/dashboard.png)

Page frontmatter

Every page requires title in its frontmatter. Include description and keywords for SEO.

---
title: "Clear, descriptive title"
description: "Concise summary for SEO and navigation."
keywords: ["relevant", "search", "terms"]
---

Common frontmatter fields

Field	Type	Required	Description
title	string	Yes	Page title in navigation and browser tabs.
description	string	No	Brief description for SEO. Displays under the title.
sidebarTitle	string	No	Short title for sidebar navigation.
icon	string	No	Lucide, Font Awesome, or Tabler icon name. Also accepts a URL or file path.
tag	string	No	Label next to page title in sidebar (e.g., "NEW").
hidden	boolean	No	Remove from sidebar. Page still accessible by URL.
mode	string	No	Page layout: default, wide, custom, frame, center.
keywords	array	No	Search terms for internal search and SEO.
api	string	No	API endpoint for interactive playground (e.g., "POST /users").
openapi	string	No	OpenAPI endpoint reference (e.g., "GET /endpoint").

Quick component reference

Below are the most commonly used components. For full props and all 24 components, read reference/components.md.

Callouts

<Note>Supplementary information, safe to skip.</Note>
<Info>Helpful context such as permissions or prerequisites.</Info>
<Tip>Recommendations or best practices.</Tip>
<Warning>Potentially destructive actions or important caveats.</Warning>
<Check>Success confirmation or completed status.</Check>
<Danger>Critical warnings about data loss or breaking changes.</Danger>

Steps

<Steps>
  <Step title="First step">
    Instructions for step one.
  </Step>
  <Step title="Second step">
    Instructions for step two.
  </Step>
</Steps>

Tabs and code groups

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="npm">
    ```bash
    npm install package-name
    ```
  </Tab>
  <Tab title="yarn">
    ```bash
    yarn add package-name
    ```
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

<CodeGroup>

```javascript example.js
const greeting = "Hello, world!";

greeting = "Hello, world!"

```

Cards and columns

<Columns cols={2}>
  <Card title="First card" icon="rocket" href="/quickstart">
    Card description text.
  </Card>
  <Card title="Second card" icon="book" href="/guides">
    Card description text.
  </Card>
</Columns>

Use <Columns> to arrange cards (or other content) in a grid. cols accepts 1-4.

Accordions

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="First section">Content one.</Accordion>
  <Accordion title="Second section">Content two.</Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

CLI commands

Install with npm i -g mint. Key commands: mint dev (local preview), mint validate, mint broken-links, mint a11y, mint score, mint analytics, mint workflow, mint new. Read reference/cli.md for full flags and subcommands.

Writing standards

• Second-person voice ("you").
• Active voice, direct language.
• Sentence case for headings ("Getting started", not "Getting Started").
• Sentence case for code block titles.
• All code blocks must have language tags.
• All images must have descriptive alt text.
• No marketing language, filler phrases, or emoji.
• Keep code examples simple, practical, and tested.

Common mistakes

• Using mint.json — it is deprecated. The config file is always docs.json.
• Missing language tag on a code block (use ```python, not ```).
• Using relative paths (../page) instead of root-relative (/section/page).
• Forgetting to add new pages to docs.json navigation.
• Images without alt text.
• Adding file extensions to internal links (/page.mdx instead of /page).