The Power of Next.js: Why You Should Care About Server-Side Rendering (SSR)
If you’re a React developer, chances are you’ve heard about Next.js. It’s the framework that’s all the rage for building fast, scalable and SEO-friendly web applications. Picture this: you’re building a website and you want it to load incredibly quickly but also look beautiful. You also want search engines like Google to easily find your content so that you rank higher in search results. The issue is, traditional client-side rendering (the way most React apps work) can sometimes feel slow and is not always ideal for SEO. What if there was a way to combine React's features with faster loading times and better search engine visibility? That's exactly what server-side rendering offers.
Next.js is a helpful tool for React developers. It makes something called Server-Side Rendering (SSR) very easy to use. If you’re wondering what all the fuss is about, and how Next.js can help solve some typical web performance issues then keep reading! We’ll talk about what SSR is, why it’s good for us and how to get started with Next.js.
Before diving into Next.js, First let us understand what is Server-Side Rendering(SSR).
Server-Side Rendering (SSR)
To understand why Server-Side Rendering (SSR) is such a big deal, let’s first recap how standard React apps work using Client-Side Rendering (CSR):
- Client-Side Rendering (CSR): The browser receives a mostly empty HTML page, then JavaScript takes control and constructs the page. All the browser work provides an initially slow page load experience, especially in a more complex app.
- Server-Side Rendering (SSR): In SSR, the server generates the HTML for the page before sending it to the browser. This means users see a fully-rendered page faster because the content is already there—no waiting for JavaScript to do its work.
Real-World Example: Think of a restaurant. With CSR, you get an empty plate, and the chef comes to your table to prepare the dish right in front of you—it’s cool, but it takes time. With SSR, the dish is fully prepared in the kitchen (the server), and it’s served to you immediately—no waiting around!
Why SSR is Beneficial
- Improved SEO (Search Engine Optimization):
One of the biggest advantages of SSR is Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Traditional client-side React apps often struggle with SEO because search engine crawlers like GoogleBot might not execute JavaScript properly. SSR solves this by sending fully-rendered HTML to the client, making it easier for crawlers to index your website’s content.
Imagine you’re building a website for a local business. You want customers to find your services on Google, but if the content is hidden behind JavaScript, you might miss out on potential customers. SSR ensures that search engines can see your content clearly.
- Faster Initial Load Times:
SSR makes your website faster, especially for the first page load. In a client-side React app, the browser needs to download and run JavaScript before it can render anything. With SSR, the server sends pre-rendered HTML, so users can view your content right away while JavaScript is loading and hydrating in the background.
For example, think of a news website. You want the content to be there right away and SSR makes sure that happens i.e the page loads fast enough such that users do not bounce because it takes too long to load.
- Better User Experience:
Users get a fully-loaded page faster with SSR, thus making your website feel faster and reducing user bounce rate due to slow load times.
- Performance Benefits:
As a client, you are offloading some rendering work to server which can be done by it( the browser). Thus your client(browser) has to handle less things. This is especially beneficial when you are on low performance devices or mobile networks.
How Next.js Makes SSR Easy
If you're familiar with React, you know how it helps build user interfaces in a modular way. But React, by itself, doesn’t handle SSR or routing well. This is where Next.js comes in.
Next.js is a React framework that gives you out-of-the-box support for:
- Server-Side Rendering (SSR)
- Static Site Generation (SSG)
- Client-Side Rendering (CSR) for dynamic pages
- API routes for backend logic
Here’s why developers love Next.js for SSR:
- Automatic Code Splitting: Only the code necessary for a particular page is sent to the client, resulting in faster load times.
- Built-in Routing: Next.js comes with file-based routing, so you don’t need a separate library like react-router-dom.
- Data Fetching Simplified: With Next.js’s getServerSideProps, you can fetch data on the server and send it to the client along with the rendered HTML.
Step-by-Step Guide to Setting Up a Simple SSR Project with Next.js
First, we need to set up a new Next.js project. If you haven’t already, you’ll need Node.js installed on your machine.
Step 1: Install Next.js
To start, you’ll need to have Node.js installed. Open your terminal and create a new Next.js project using the following command:
This command sets up a new Next.js project with some boilerplate code.
Step 2: Create a Basic Page with SSR
Next.js uses a file-based routing system. Each file inside the pages directory automatically becomes a route. Let’s create a simple page that uses SSR.
Create a new page called hello.js inside the pages folder:
In this example:
- getServerSideProps: This function is the key to SSR in Next.js. It runs on the server for every request and fetches data. The data is then passed to the page component as props.
Run your Next.js app:
Visit http://localhost:3000/hello, and you’ll see the server-rendered page: "Hello, World!"
Step 3: Understand What’s Happening
When you visit the /hello route:
- Next.js runs getServerSideProps on the server, fetching data.
- The server generates the HTML with the data and sends it to the client.
- The client sees a fully-rendered page immediately.
Step 4: Integrating an API for Dynamic Data (Optional)
Let’s make it a bit more dynamic by fetching data from a public API.
Modify your getServerSideProps function to fetch data from an API:
Now, when you reload the page, the server fetches fresh data each time, making it truly dynamic.
Use Cases for Next.js and SSR
- E-commerce Sites: E-commerce sites need faster load times to decrease bounce rates and increase conversion. SSR ensures products, images, descriptions etc are fast for the users to view.
- News Websites: News sites often require SEO as a top priority. SSR ensures that articles are easily indexed by search engines, resulting in more organic traffic.
- Dynamic Dashboards: Dashboards that need real-time data and also need to be SEO-friendly, SSR can pre-render the data while keeping the interface snappy.
Pros and Cons of Server-Side Rendering
Pros:
- Better SEO: Fully-rendered HTML is easily indexed by search engines.
- Faster First Load: Users get to see content faster, leading to a better user experience.
- Consistent Rendering: Content is rendered the same way across devices and browsers.
Cons:
- Increased Server Load: Rendering content on the server can be resource-intensive, especially if your site gets heavy traffic.
- Latency: If the server is slow, it could increase page load times.
- Complexity: SSR can add complexity to the development process, especially for larger apps.
Conclusion: Why Next.js is the Future for Modern Web Development
In a matter of just a few years, Next.js has won the hearts and projects of many developers looking to enjoy the best of both worlds; React’s flexibility and Server-Side Rendering’s speed & SEO benefits. It simplifies the process of creating complex, performant web applications without sacrificing ease of use. Whether you’re building an e-commerce platform, content heavy website or a single page dynamic dashboard, you can’t go wrong with choosing Next.js.
If you’re serious about modern web development, Next.js is a tool you should definitely have in your toolkit. With features like SSR, Static Site Generation, and easy API integration, it’s not hard to see why developers are making the switch to Next.js.
I hope this post helped you understand why Next.js and SSR are so powerful. Keep an eye out for future posts where we will be covering more interesting topics diving into the latest trends in frontend development!
Top comments (2)
This is a great breakdown of Next.js and server-side rendering. I'm excited to start experimenting with it in my own projects. The step-by-step guide is particularly helpful, thanks for that!
@programmerraja Thank you so much! I’m glad you found this helpful.