Setting Up Supabase in a React/Next.js App

Supabase is an open-source alternative to Firebase, offering a Postgres database, authentication, storage, and real-time capabilities...

Setting Up Supabase in a React/Next.js App

1. Create a Supabase Project:

Sign up at supabase.com and create a new project.

Note the supabaseUrl and anonKey from the project settings.

2. Install Supabase SDK:

npm install @supabase/supabase-js

3. Initialize Supabase Client:

  import { createClient } from "@supabase/supabase-js";
  
  const supabaseUrl = process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_URL;
  const supabaseAnonKey = process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY;
  
  export const supabase = createClient(supabaseUrl, supabaseAnonKey);
      

4. Fetching Data in React:

  import { useEffect, useState } from "react";
  import { supabase } from "../supabase";
  
  function App() {
    const [data, setData] = useState([]);
  
    useEffect(() => {
      async function fetchData() {
        let { data, error } = await supabase.from("your_table").select("*");
        if (!error) setData(data);
      }
      fetchData();
    }, []);
  
    return <div>{JSON.stringify(data)}</div>;
  }
  
  export default App;
      

Supabase SSR in Next.js

Next.js supports server-side rendering (SSR) with Supabase...

  import { supabase } from "../supabase";
  
  export async function getServerSideProps() {
    let { data, error } = await supabase.from("your_table").select("*");
  
    return {
      props: { data: data || [] },
    };
  }
  
  export default function Page({ data }) {
    return <pre>{JSON.stringify(data, null, 2)}</pre>;
  }
      

Benefits of Using Supabase SSR

• ✅ Faster initial page load with pre-fetched data.
• ✅ Improved SEO for content-heavy pages.
• ✅ Avoids client-side fetch delays for better user experience.

Pros and Cons of Supabase

✅ Pros

• PostgreSQL-based: A full relational database with SQL support.
• Real-time capabilities: Built-in real-time database subscriptions.
• Authentication: Easy-to-use auth system with providers like Google, GitHub, etc.
• Serverless & Scalable: Works well with serverless architectures like Vercel.
• Free Tier Available: Generous free plan for small projects.

❌ Cons

• Cold start delays: Free-tier projects may experience latency after periods of inactivity.
• Limited Edge Functions: Compared to Firebase’s Cloud Functions.
• Self-hosting complexity: Running Supabase on your own infrastructure requires extra setup.
• Pricing concerns: Can become costly for high-traffic applications.

Conclusion

Supabase is a fantastic backend for React and Next.js apps...