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Next.js Quickstart

You will learn the following:

  • Install @clerk/nextjs
  • Set your Clerk API keys
  • Add clerkMiddleware()
  • Add <ClerkProvider /> and Clerk components

Install @clerk/nextjs

Clerk's Next.js SDK gives you access to prebuilt components, React hooks, and helpers to make user authentication easier.

Run the following command to install the SDK:

terminal
npm install @clerk/nextjs
terminal
yarn add @clerk/nextjs
terminal
pnpm add @clerk/nextjs
.env.local
NEXT_PUBLIC_CLERK_PUBLISHABLE_KEY=YOUR_PUBLISHABLE_KEY
CLERK_SECRET_KEY=YOUR_SECRET_KEY

Add clerkMiddleware() to your app

clerkMiddleware() grants you access to user authentication state throughout your app, on any route or page. It also allows you to protect specific routes from unauthenticated users. To add clerkMiddleware() to your app, follow these steps:

  1. Create a middleware.ts file.

    • If you're using the /src directory, create middleware.ts in the /src directory.
    • If you're not using the /src directory, create middleware.ts in the root directory alongside .env.local.
  2. In your middleware.ts file, export the clerkMiddleware() helper:

    middleware.ts
    import { clerkMiddleware } from '@clerk/nextjs/server'
    
    export default clerkMiddleware()
    
    export const config = {
      matcher: [
        // Skip Next.js internals and all static files, unless found in search params
        '/((?!_next|[^?]*\\.(?:html?|css|js(?!on)|jpe?g|webp|png|gif|svg|ttf|woff2?|ico|csv|docx?|xlsx?|zip|webmanifest)).*)',
        // Always run for API routes
        '/(api|trpc)(.*)',
      ],
    }
  3. By default, clerkMiddleware() will not protect any routes. All routes are public and you must opt-in to protection for routes. See the clerkMiddleware() reference to learn how to require authentication for specific routes.

Add <ClerkProvider> and Clerk components to your app

The <ClerkProvider> component provides session and user context to Clerk's hooks and components. It's recommended to wrap your entire app at the entry point with <ClerkProvider> to make authentication globally accessible. See the reference docs for other configuration options.

You can control which content signed-in and signed-out users can see with Clerk's prebuilt control components. Create a header using the following components:

Select your preferred router to learn how to make this data available across your entire app:

app/layout.tsx
import { ClerkProvider, SignInButton, SignedIn, SignedOut, UserButton } from '@clerk/nextjs'
import './globals.css'

export default function RootLayout({ children }: { children: React.ReactNode }) {
  return (
    <ClerkProvider>
      <html lang="en">
        <body>
          <header>
            <SignedOut>
              <SignInButton />
            </SignedOut>
            <SignedIn>
              <UserButton />
            </SignedIn>
          </header>
          <main>{children}</main>
        </body>
      </html>
    </ClerkProvider>
  )
}
pages/_app.tsx
import '@/styles/globals.css'
import { ClerkProvider, SignInButton, SignedIn, SignedOut, UserButton } from '@clerk/nextjs'
import type { AppProps } from 'next/app'

function MyApp({ Component, pageProps }: AppProps) {
  return (
    <ClerkProvider {...pageProps}>
      <SignedOut>
        <SignInButton />
      </SignedOut>
      <SignedIn>
        <UserButton />
      </SignedIn>
      <Component {...pageProps} />
    </ClerkProvider>
  )
}

export default MyApp

Create your first user

Run your project with the following command:

terminal
npm run dev
terminal
yarn dev
terminal
pnpm dev

Visit your app's homepage at http://localhost:3000. Sign up to create your first user.

Protect routes using Clerk Middleware

Learn how to protect specific routes from unauthenticated users.

Create custom sign-up and sign-in pages

Learn how add custom sign-up and sign-in pages with Clerk components.

Read user and session data

Learn how to use Clerk's hooks and helpers to access the active session and user data in your Next.js app.

Client-side helpers

Learn more about Next.js client-side helpers and how to use them.

Next.js SDK Reference

Learn more about additional Next.js methods.

Deploy to Production

Learn how to deploy your Clerk app to production.

Deploy to Vercel

Learn how to deploy your Clerk app to production on Vercel.

Clerk + Next.js App Router Quickstart Repo

The official companion repo for Clerk's Next.js Quickstart using App Router.

Clerk + Next.js Pages Router Quickstart Repo

The official companion repo for Clerk's Next.js Quickstart using Pages Router.

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