Next.js best practices: engineering conventions for production
Field-tested Next.js practices from production, avoiding the common anti-patterns.
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Quick answer
Which config enables Next.js static export?
Use output:export. Export behavior changes across Next majors — check the export limitations list before upgrading.
Machine-readable page data: /data/nextjs-best-practices.json
In-depth analysis
Next.js is the dominant React meta-framework. output:export produces pure static output, but the core engine here is still Astro — Next pages exist here only for comparison and traffic capture. Production engineering conventions revolve around "single source of truth + explicit boundaries", steering clear of the common anti-patterns.
// next.config.mjs — pure static export (no server functions)
const nextConfig = { output: 'export', images: { unoptimized: true } };
export default nextConfig;
// Build: next build && next exportNext.js Best Practices · Key takeaways
- Config centralized in a single source
- CI uses --frozen-lockfile
- Secrets are placeholders, never real values in code
- Docs and code live in separate places
FAQ & pitfalls
How do I invalidate cache for Next static export?
The export is pure static files; atomically replace and use long cache for hash-named assets. HTML must-revalidate ensures the origin refreshes.
Explore the hub
See all 5 guides in Next.jsSame category as this article, sorted across the codebase.
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Git-driven Next.js deployment in practice: commit to build, atomic publish to every edge node.
Next.js performance tuning: push first paint and edge response to the limit
Around Next.js's real bottlenecks, an actionable LCP / INP / CLS checklist.
Next.js in practice: pure static export
Use output:export to ship Next.js as pure static files, capturing React ecosystem traffic without server-side dependencies.
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What readers are asking
Questions that keep coming back in reader feedback, already answered.
- 01
How do I fix a failing Next.js output: export build?
Server-side data fetching in dynamic routes, and middleware, both break the export; next/image also needs unoptimized or the export aborts.
See the full guide → - 02
Why is my Astro component's interactivity not working?
Components ship as zero-JS HTML by default, so an interactive one needs a client:* directive (client:load, client:visible, …). Without it the script is never bundled into the page.
See the full guide → - 03
Why is my custom Tailwind v4 brand colour not applied?
Colours must be declared in @theme (for example --color-brand). A missing @tailwindcss/vite plugin, or a leftover v3 config, makes bg-brand silently render nothing.
See the full guide →