Next.js
Next.js is a framework for building React apps at production scale. Built by Vercel, it powers a large share of the modern web, from Notion and Hulu to OpenAI and Linear.
Key features
- App Router: an advanced file-system routing architecture with built-in support for React Server Components, Streaming and Suspense.
- Server Components: server-side rendering that reduces JS shipped to the client and improves performance.
- Image Optimization: a built-in Image component that handles optimization, lazy loading and automatic srcset.
- Advanced routing: Dynamic Routes, Parallel Routes, Intercepting Routes for complex experiences.
- API Routes: build a full backend in the same project, with Edge Runtime and Node Runtime.
- ISR (Incremental Static Regeneration): re-render static pages in the background.
- Turbopack: a new Rust-based bundler that is up to 10× faster than Webpack.
Common uses
- SaaS sites and online stores with high performance requirements.
- Internal dashboards that need heavy optimization.
- Professional corporate sites with top-tier SEO.
- AI and RAG apps with streaming responses.
- Content platforms with a headless CMS (Sanity, Contentful).
Next.js is open source (MIT) and free. It's considered the new standard for modern React development, and it's currently pushing toward a server-first architecture that's changing how we build the web.
On this site: it itself runs on Next.js 16.2.4 with the App Router. Everything you see, from the 3D particle field to the contact form, is built on this architecture.
