next-flat-routes v0.1.6
next-flat-routes
Enabling flat routes for Next.js
Table of Contents
Introduction
With the introduction of Next.js 13, a new folder-based routing mechanism was unveiled. While this approach offers powerful and flexible routing capabilities, it brings with it the challenge of managing deeply nested route files. In large projects with a myriad of routes, locating a specific route or deciphering the intricate structure of the application becomes increasingly complex.
Enter next-flat-routes
.
Designed specifically for Next.js 13, next-flat-routes
is a CLI tool that allows developers to work with a flat route file structure that is easier to manage and understand. With next-flat-routes
your routes can be structured like this:
app/
|-- shop/
|-- routes/
|-- basket.(page).tsx
|-- product.(page).tsx
|-- product.[id].(page).tsx
... and next-flat-routes
will ensure that these routes are transformed into the nested format that Next.js expects.
app/
|-- shop/
|-- (.routes)/
| |-- basket/
| | |-- page.tsx
| |-- product/
| |-- page.tsx
| |-- [id]/
| |-- page.tsx
|-- routes/
|-- basket.(page).tsx
|-- product.(page).tsx
|-- product.[id].(page).tsx
Usage
To start using the next-flat-routes
, run the following command in the Next.js project root:
npx @ifyio/next-flat-routes@latest
This will initiate the next-flat-routes
CLI in watch mode.
Then add flat route files within any /routes/
folder located within the app
directory. As you add, rename, or remove these flat route files, the equivalent nested route file will be generated or updated within a parallel /(.routes)/
directory.
Note: The
/(.routes)/
directory should be considered as "private", similar to the.next
directory that Next.js uses for its build output. Files within this directory are auto-generated and should not be manually edited.
About flat routes
Flat routes can be created for page.tsx
, layout.tsx
, loading.tsx
, error.tsx
and route.tsx
files. All that is required is for their flat route equivalent filenames to end with .(page).tsx
, .(layout).tsx
, .(loading).tsx
, .(error).tsx
and .(route).tsx
.
Example:
/app/shop/routes/basket.(page).tsx
/app/shop/routes/product.(layout).tsx
/app/shop/routes/product.[productId].(page).tsx
/app/admin/routes/settings.(page).tsx
Additionally, each route segment should be delimited by a period (.), as seen in the example above.
Index route files
For flat index route files, there's no need to prefix the route filename. For instance, the admin homepage will be:
/app/admin/(page).tsx
/app/admin/(error).tsx
/app/admin/(layout).tsx
/app/admin/(loading).tsx
Supported file extensions
next-flat-routes
supports .ts
, .tsx
, .jsx
, and .js
file extensions for flat route files.