The Portfolio Problem
A developer’s portfolio is a paradox. It should showcase your best work, yet many devs (myself included) let it rot while chasing deadlines on client projects.
I’ve rebuilt mine three times. Each time I thought “this one’s the final version.” Each time I was wrong.
What I’ve Tried
Next.js — Powerful, but overkill for a static site. SSR for a portfolio? I don’t need it.
Gatsby — Once the darling of static sites. The plugin ecosystem was impressive but the build times were not.
Plain HTML — Genuinely great until you need components and want to reuse a nav across 10 pages.
Enter Astro
Astro’s pitch is simple: ship zero JavaScript by default. Add interactivity only where you need it. For a content-heavy portfolio, this is exactly right.
npm create astro@latest my-portfolioWhat I love most:
- Content Collections for type-safe Markdown
- Component Islands for opt-in interactivity
- View Transitions for smooth page changes
- Zero config image optimization
The Result
My Lighthouse scores went from mid-70s to consistent 98–100 across the board. Pages load in milliseconds. And the dev experience? Actually enjoyable.
If you’re building a portfolio, blog, or documentation site — give Astro a serious look. It respects your users’ bandwidth and your own time.