In this guide, we'll delve into the what, why, and how of Next.js SSG, along with practical code examples to help you get started.
What is Next.js Static Site Generation (SSG)?
Static Site Generation (SSG) is a technique where a website's HTML pages are generated at build time rather than on each request. This results in faster page loads, improved SEO performance, and reduced server load. Next.js, with its SSG capabilities, allows developers to pre-render pages as static HTML files, which can be served directly from a content delivery network (CDN).Why Use Next.js Static Site Generation?
Enhanced Performance: By pre-rendering pages at build time, Next.js SSG ensures blazing-fast loading times, resulting in an optimal user experience.Improved SEO: Search engines favor fast-loading, static HTML pages. With Next.js SSG, your site's content is readily available for crawlers, leading to better search engine rankings.
Reduced Server Load: Since pages are generated ahead of time, there's no need for server-side processing on each request, resulting in lower server load and operational costs.
When to Use Next.js Static Site Generation?
Next.js SSG is particularly beneficial for:Content-driven Websites: Blogs, documentation sites, and marketing pages benefit greatly from SSG as content changes infrequently.
E-commerce Sites: Product pages, category listings, and static content can be pre-rendered for improved performance and SEO.
Landing Pages: Campaign-specific landing pages can be generated statically, ensuring fast loading times during peak traffic.
How to Implement Next.js Static Site Generation? Below is a simple example of how to implement SSG with Next.js:
// pages/index.js
import { getStaticProps } from 'next';
export default function Home({ data }) {
return (
<div>
<h1>Welcome to My Next.js SSG Site</h1>
<p>{data.message}</p>
</div>
);
}
export const getStaticProps = async () => {
// Fetch data from an API or CMS
const res = await fetch('https://api.example.com/data');
const data = await res.json();
return {
props: {
data,
},
};
};
The `getStaticProps` function fetches data from an external API or CMS at build time. The fetched data is passed to the `Home` component as props, which is then rendered as part of the page. To build your Next.js project with static site generation, run:
npm run build