Get the free kit
MEET COMPASS · THE FREE LAUNCH KIT

Your next
help center.
Already started.

A beautiful template. A plan for your content.
Everything you need to turn repeat questions
into useful answers.

Free & open sourceYours to customize
BY THE PEOPLE AT HelpCenter.io
YOUR HELP CENTER, WITH A HEAD START01 / COMPASS
help.yourcompany.com
Compass knowledge base with search and six topic cards
YOUR BRAND. YOUR ANSWERS.Try a different look
HTML + CSS + JSNo framework required.
MADE FOR THE PEOPLE
BEHIND THE ANSWERS

Product & operations teams

Agencies & client teams

Teams making a fresh start

01 / MORE THAN A PRETTY HOMEPAGE

The design is done.
The useful part is, too.

Skip the empty canvas. Start with a working help center and the tools to fill it with answers your customers actually need.

THE TEMPLATE20 pages

Meet your new
support home.

Search that works. Topics that make sense.
Articles that get to the point.

Getting started / Your first workspace

Create your first workspace

The short answer

A workspace brings your team, projects, and settings together.

01 Choose a name your team will recognize.
02 Invite the people who need access.
Open an article
THE WORDS6 blueprints

No more “what do I write?”

Editable article structures for how-tos, troubleshooting, FAQs, billing, integrations, and product changes.

how-to.mdtroubleshooting.md+ 4 more
THE PLAN5 tools

Ready for the real world.

A launch checklist, content audit, redirect map, translation tracker, and client handoff. The small things that make a launch work.

Get the complete kit
02 / A LITTLE MORE YOU

One good template.
Plenty of personality.

Choose your color, set the mood, add your name.
Your download comes with your choices baked in.

Customize Compass
PineCalm & familiar
OceanClear & focused
VioletA little different
LIGHT OR DARK Always easy to read.
03 / BUILT AROUND YOUR NEXT STEP

Start where you are.

A FEW GOOD QUESTIONS

Before you
make it yours.

What is included in the free knowledge base template?

Compass includes 20 HTML pages: a home page, search page, six topic pages, and 12 editable example articles. The kit also includes six Markdown article blueprints, a launch checklist, an agency handoff document, and three planning CSVs.

Can I use it for a commercial or client project?

Yes. The template is open source under GPL-3.0, including for commercial use. If you distribute a modified version, preserve the license and provide the corresponding source under its terms. The kit includes the source and license.

Does it work without a framework or a build tool?

The downloaded site is ready to open and host as plain HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. You only need Node.js if you want to regenerate the pages from the editable source. No runtime framework or package installation is required.

Is this a Zendesk theme or a HelpCenter.io template?

It is a standalone HTML template. It is not directly installable in Zendesk Guide or HelpCenter.io. The article blueprints and planning files are portable, and HelpCenter.io has its own managed templates and editor.

Why is HelpCenter.io giving this away?

Useful help content is valuable whether you host it yourself or use our product. Start with the kit. If your team later wants a managed editor, multilingual content, analytics, and AI answers, HelpCenter.io is the next step.

THE NEXT CHAPTER

Love the head start.
Want the whole help center?

Let your team write and publish. Let HelpCenter.io handle hosting, search, translations, and AI answers from your content.

Try HelpCenter.io 14 days free · No credit card requiredCompare the two paths ↗