Upgrading v4 to v5

The main changes when upgrading a Docsify v4 site to v5 involve updating CDN URLs and theme files. Your configuration settings remain mostly the same, so the upgrade is fairly straightforward.

Before You Begin

Some older Docsify sites may use non-version-locked URLs like:

html

<script src="//cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/docsify/lib/docsify.min.js"></script>

If your site uses URLs without @4 or a specific version number, follow the same steps below. You'll need to update both the version specifier and the path structure.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Update the Theme CSS

Replace the theme (v4):

html

<link
  rel="stylesheet"
  href="//cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/docsify@4/lib/themes/vue.css"
/>
<!-- OR if you have non-versioned URL: -->
<link
  rel="stylesheet"
  href="//cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/docsify/lib/themes/vue.css"
/>

With this (v5):

html

<!-- Core Theme -->
<link
  rel="stylesheet"
  href="//cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/docsify@5/dist/themes/core.min.css"
/>
<!-- Optional: Dark Mode Support -->
<link
  rel="stylesheet"
  href="//cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/docsify@5/dist/themes/addons/core-dark.min.css"
  media="(prefers-color-scheme: dark)"
/>

Note: If you were using a different v4 theme (buble, dark, pure), the v5 core theme replaces these, though Vue and Dark themes are available as add-ons if preferred.

View Themes for more details.

2. Add Optional Body Class (for styling)

Update your opening body tag:

html

<body class="sidebar-chevron-right"></body>

This adds a chevron indicator to the sidebar. You can omit this if you prefer.

View Theme Classes for more details.

3. Update the Main Docsify Script

Change:

html

<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/docsify@4/lib/docsify.min.js"></script>
<!-- OR if you have non-versioned URL: -->
<script src="//cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/docsify/lib/docsify.min.js"></script>

To:

html

<script src="//cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/docsify@5/dist/docsify.min.js"></script>

4. Update Plugin URLs

Search Plugin:

html

<!-- v4 -->
<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/docsify@4/lib/plugins/search.js"></script>
<!-- OR non-versioned: -->
<script src="//cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/docsify/lib/plugins/search.js"></script>

<!-- v5 -->
<script src="//cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/docsify@5/dist/plugins/search.min.js"></script>

Zoom Plugin:

html

<!-- v4 -->
<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/docsify@4/lib/plugins/zoom-image.min.js"></script>
<!-- OR non-versioned: -->
<script src="//cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/docsify/lib/plugins/zoom-image.min.js"></script>

<!-- v5 -->
<script src="//cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/docsify@5/dist/plugins/zoom.min.js"></script>

Note: If you're using additional Docsify plugins (such as emoji, external-script, front-matter, etc.), you'll need to update those URLs as well following the same pattern:

Change /lib/plugins/ to /dist/plugins/
Update version from @4 (or non-versioned) to @5
Example: //cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/docsify/lib/plugins/emoji.min.js becomes //cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/docsify@5/dist/plugins/emoji.min.js

Key Differences Summary

CDN Path: Changed from /lib/ to /dist/
Version: Updated from @4 to @5
Themes: v5 uses a core theme (with optional add-ons available)
Plugin Names: zoom-image → zoom

Additional Notes

Your configuration in window.$docsify stays the same
All your markdown content remains unchanged
The upgrade is non-breaking for most sites (however, legacy browsers like Internet Explorer 11 are no longer supported)
To maintain the same visual styling as Docsify v4, the Vue theme (Add-on) is available
Custom CSS targeting v4 theme-specific classes or elements may need to be updated for v5
The v5 core theme can be customized using CSS variables - view Theme Customization for more details

That's it! Your Docsify site should now be running on v5.