React Foundations: About React and Next.js | Next.js (2024)

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Chapter 1

Next.js is a flexible React framework that gives you building blocks to create fast, full-stack web applications.

But what exactly do we mean by this? Let's spend some time expanding on what React and Next.js are and how they can help you build web applications.

Building blocks of a web application

There are a few things you need to consider when building modern applications. Such as:

  • User Interface - how users will consume and interact with your application.
  • Routing - how users navigate between different parts of your application.
  • Data Fetching - where your data lives and how to get it.
  • Rendering - when and where you render static or dynamic content.
  • Integrations - what third-party services you use (for CMS, auth, payments, etc.) and how you connect to them.
  • Infrastructure - where you deploy, store, and run your application code (serverless, CDN, edge, etc.).
  • Performance - how to optimize your application for end-users.
  • Scalability - how your application adapts as your team, data, and traffic grow.
  • Developer Experience - your team's experience building and maintaining your application.

For each part of your application, you will need to decide whether you will build a solution yourself or use other tools, such as packages, libraries, and frameworks.

What is React?

React is a JavaScript library for building interactive user interfaces.

By user interfaces (UI), we mean the elements that users see and interact with on-screen.

React Foundations: About React and Next.js | Next.js (1)React Foundations: About React and Next.js | Next.js (2)

By library, we mean React provides helpful functions (APIs) to build UI, but leaves it up to the developer where to use those functions in their application.

Part of React's success is that it is relatively unopinionated about the other aspects of building applications. This has resulted in a flourishing ecosystem of third-party tools and solutions, including Next.js.

It also means, however, that building a complete React application from the ground up requires some effort. Developers need to spend time configuring tools and reinventing solutions for common application requirements.

What is Next.js?

Next.js is a React framework that gives you building blocks to create web applications.

By framework, we mean Next.js handles the tooling and configuration needed for React, and provides additional structure, features, and optimizations for your application.

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You can use React to build your UI, then incrementally adopt Next.js features to solve common application requirements such as routing, data fetching, and caching - all while improving the developer and end-user experience.

Whether you're an individual developer or part of a larger team, you can use React and Next.js to build fully interactive, highly dynamic, and performant web applications.

In the next chapters, we will discuss how you can get started with React and Next.js.

React Foundations: About React and Next.js | Next.js (2024)

FAQs

Can React and Next.js work together? ›

Whether you're an individual developer or part of a larger team, you can use React and Next.js to build fully interactive, highly dynamic, and performant web applications. In the next chapters, we will discuss how you can get started with React and Next.js.

Is Next.js on top of React? ›

Next. js: Next. js, on the other hand, is a framework built on top of React. It adds extra features on top, like server-side rendering (SSR) and static site generation (SSG).

Is Next.js better for SEO than React? ›

Though Next. js is more opinionated and less flexible than React, the framework offers great out-of-the-box functionality for advanced projects targeting SEO or pre-rendering capabilities. With the foundations of Next. js in your toolkit, you can supercharge your site and get an edge over vanilla React applications.

What version of React does Next.js use? ›

Next. js suggests using, at a minimum, react@18.2.0 and react-dom@18.2.0 . Older versions of react and react-dom do work with Next. js, however, they do not enable all of Next.

Can Next.js replace React? ›

Choosing between Next. js and React depends on the specific needs of your project. If you're building a large-scale web application that requires complex routing and heavily data-driven components, React may be a better option. If you're looking to build a JAMstack application or a static site, Next.

Why use Next.js instead of React? ›

Next.js offers easy-to-code functionality compared to React. When it comes to writing code, Next.js requires less code, whereas React framework requires a long line of coding. React can be the right choice if you wish to build a large complex web application with complex routing and heavily data-driven components.

Is React still bad for SEO? ›

While React may make building beautiful, dynamic content more accessible, it's still a Single Page Application. This means that your entire web application lives on a single page. It's great for dynamic applications but not so much for SEO.

What problem does Next.js solve? ›

Next. jS has provided an excellent solution for the server-side rendering (SSR) of the React components. Developers can render the JavaScript code on the server which will allow them to send simple indexable HTML to the user.

Why is Next.js so popular? ›

Many engineers love using Next. js because it offers amazing performance benefits, such as server-side rendering and optimized images. It provides an excellent developer experience through features like Fast Refresh and reliable error handling.

Does Next.js use React hooks? ›

Some of the advantages of using React Hooks in Next. js include: Better code organization: With Hooks, you can separate state and lifecycle logic from your components, making the code more organized and easier to read.

What language does Next.js use? ›

Next.js
The Next.js Logo
Original author(s)Guillermo Rauch
Preview releasev14.3.0-canary.4
Repositorygithub.com/vercel/next.js
Written inJavaScript, TypeScript, and Rust
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Does Next.js support Redux? ›

If you use Next.js's support for client side SPA-style navigation by using next/navigation , then when customers navigate from page to page only the route component will be re-rendered. This means that if you have a Redux store created and provided in the layout component it will be preserved across route changes.

Can you add Next.js to React app? ›

There are also newer React features, like Server and Client Components, that require a framework. The good news is that Next.js handles much of the setup and configuration and has additional features to help you build React applications.

Can React and Nodejs work together? ›

The combination of Nodejs and React can aid in making web development process organized. You can create highly functional websites and web apps with these scalable, fast, and effective technologies.

Can React and JavaScript be used together? ›

js and React together can be beneficial . Node. js is a backend JavaScript framework that allows you to build server - side applications , while React is a frontend JavaScript library used for building user interfaces .

What is the best combination with react JS? ›

The combination of React for the front end and Node for the back end is perfect for developing a web application that will handle multiple simultaneous requests. It is also the best technology for creating real-time apps that will process data. Node. js is also a good option for the backend for developing SPAs.

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