The Astro and Next.js starter kits now come with a private DatoCMS plugin already wired up, giving you a ready-made foundation to start building custom editor experiences from day one, with no separate repo, and no manual installation.

Because the Plugin SDK and datocms-react-ui component library are built on React, this feature is available in the React-based starters (Astro and Next.js) but not in the SvelteKit or Nuxt starters.

Build custom plugins right inside your project

The plugin lives alongside your site code and is served as a regular page (/private-datocms-plugin). On your first deploy it installs itself automatically via the post-deploy hook — zero manual setup in the dashboard. The source mirrors the structure of official DatoCMS plugins.

The included config screen links straight to the docs to help you get started:

• Plugin SDK docs

• Build your first plugin guide

• Hooks overview

Astro starter upgraded to Astro 6

The Astro starter has also been upgraded to Astro 6 along with all official integrations (@astrojs/node, @astrojs/react, @astrojs/check) and @datocms/cli v4. The minimum Node version is now 22.