The Next.js App Router is a new paradigm for building applications using React’s latest features. It was introduced in Next.js 13 and is built on React Server Components. The App Router provides a number of benefits over the traditional Pages Router, including:
- Shared layouts
- Nested routing
- Loading states
- Error handling
- Shared layouts
The App Router makes it easy to create and share layouts across your application. This can help to improve consistency and reduce boilerplate code.
Nested routing
The App Router supports nested routing, which allows you to create complex routing structures without having to resort to hacks or workarounds.
Loading states
The App Router provides built-in support for loading states, which can help to improve the user experience by preventing users from seeing blank pages while content is loading.
Error handling
The App Router also provides built-in support for error handling. This can help you to gracefully handle errors and provide users with useful feedback.
Why the Next.js App Router is so nice
In addition to the benefits listed above, the App Router is also simply more elegant and expressive than the Pages Router. It is more aligned with the React programming model and makes it easier to build modern, complex applications.
Examples of how to use the App Router
Here are some specific examples of how the App Router can be used to improve your Next.js applications:
Sharing a layout across multiple pages: With the App Router, you can easily create a shared layout for your application and then reuse it across multiple pages. This can help to improve consistency and reduce boilerplate code.
Creating complex routing structures: The App Router supports nested routing, which allows you to create complex routing structures without having to resort to hacks or workarounds. For example, you could create a nested route for a blog post category, with sub-routes for each individual blog post.
Improving the user experience with loading states: The App Router provides built-in support for loading states. This means that you can easily show users a loading spinner or other indicator while content is loading. This can help to improve the user experience by preventing users from seeing blank pages.
Gracefully handling errors: The App Router also provides built-in support for error handling. This means that you can easily display a custom error page to users if an error occurs. This can help to provide users with useful feedback and prevent them from seeing generic error messages.
Conclusion
Overall, the App Router is a powerful and flexible tool that can help you to build better Next.js applications. It is more aligned with the React programming model and provides a number of benefits over the traditional Pages Router. If you are building a new Next.js application, I recommend that you use the App Router.
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