Building a Serverless React App with Next.js and Vercel: A Step-by-Step Guide

Majd Muhtaseb09/27/202510 minutes

Introduction

Serverless architecture is revolutionizing web development, and Next.js coupled with Vercel provides a seamless experience for building and deploying serverless React applications. This guide will walk you through the essential steps.

Prerequisites

Node.js and npm (or yarn) installed.
A Vercel account (free tier available).

Step 1: Create a Next.js App

Use create-next-app to scaffold your project:

npx create-next-app my-serverless-app
cd my-serverless-app

This creates a basic Next.js application in a directory named my-serverless-app.

Step 2: Develop Your Application

Modify the pages/index.js file (or any other page) to create your desired UI. For example:

function HomePage() {
  return (
    <div>
      <h1>Welcome to My Serverless App!</h1>
      <p>This app is powered by Next.js and deployed on Vercel.</p>
    </div>
  );
}

export default HomePage;

You can add components, API routes (pages/api), and any other Next.js features as needed.

Step 3: Create an API Route (Optional)

Let's create a simple API route to fetch data. Create a file pages/api/hello.js:

export default function handler(req, res) {
  res.status(200).json({ message: 'Hello from the API!' });
}

You can access this API endpoint at /api/hello.

Step 4: Deploy to Vercel

Deploying to Vercel is incredibly straightforward. First, push your code to a Git repository (e.g., GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket).

Then, install the Vercel CLI:

npm install -g vercel

Now, run the following command in your project directory:

vercel

Vercel will automatically detect your Next.js project and guide you through the deployment process. You'll be prompted to link your project to your Vercel account and a Git repository.

Alternatively, you can import your project directly from your Git provider via the Vercel dashboard.

Step 5: Verify Deployment

Once deployed, Vercel will provide a URL for your live application. Visit the URL to verify that your application is running correctly.

Conclusion

This guide demonstrates the ease of building and deploying serverless React applications with Next.js and Vercel. The combination offers excellent performance, scalability, and a simplified development workflow. You can expand upon this basic setup to create complex and powerful web applications.