Getting Started with Vercel & Netlify
Welcome to Vercel & Netlify
Vercel and Netlify are frontend deployment platforms that make shipping web applications effortless. Connect your GitHub repository, and every push to main automatically builds and deploys your app to a global CDN — no server management, no Nginx config, no SSL setup.
They're purpose-built for the modern JavaScript ecosystem: React, Next.js, Vue, Svelte, and static site generators.
Vercel vs. Netlify
Both platforms are excellent. The main differences:
| Vercel | Netlify | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Next.js (built by the same team), React | Any static site, Gatsby, Hugo |
| Serverless functions | Edge Functions + Serverless Functions | Netlify Functions (AWS Lambda-based) |
| Preview deployments | Every PR gets a unique URL | Every PR gets a unique URL |
| Free tier | Generous, 1 team member | Generous, includes forms & identity |
| Next.js support | First-class (SSR, ISR, edge runtime) | Good, but some Next.js features need workarounds |
Rule of thumb: Use Vercel for Next.js. For anything else, either works.
What You'll Learn
- Connecting your repo — linking GitHub to Vercel or Netlify
- Build settings — configuring the build command and output directory
- Environment variables — setting secrets for production and preview environments
- Custom domains — pointing your domain to Vercel/Netlify
- Preview deployments — testing PRs in production-like environments before merging
- Serverless functions — adding backend logic without a separate server
- Deployment hooks — triggering rebuilds from a CMS or external service
Prerequisites
- A GitHub account with a frontend project (React, Next.js, Vue, etc.)
- A Vercel or Netlify account (free to sign up with GitHub)