Next.js Mastery Roadmap(Beginner → Industry Ready)
Phase 1: Beginner: Foundational Skills
Phase 1
Understand Next.js basics, React fundamentals, and build simple applications.
⚛️ React Fundamentals
- 1. JSX syntax and component structure (Functional & Class)
- 2. Props and State management basics
- 3. Event handling and conditional rendering
- 4. Lists & Keys, useState & useEffect hooks
🔗 Next.js Basics
- 1. Pages & Routing with file-based routing system
- 2. Link component & Navigation between pages
- 3. Image component for optimized image loading
- 4. CSS & Tailwind integration for styling
📁 Project Structure
- 1. Static assets management (public folder)
- 2. ES6+ features: destructuring, arrow functions, spread/rest
- 3. Modules & Imports for code organization
- 4. Async/Await & Fetch API for data handling
🎯 Beginner Projects
- 1. ✅ Personal Portfolio Website with responsive layout
- 2. ✅ Simple Blog displaying posts from JSON file
- 3. ✅ Contact form with Tailwind CSS styling
- 4. Basic routing and navigation implementation
Phase 1
Phase 2
Phase 2: Intermediate: Dynamic & Data-driven Apps
Phase 2
Learn dynamic routing, SSR, SSG, and API routes.
🛤️ Advanced Routing
- 1. Dynamic routes with [id].js file structure
- 2. Catch-all routes with [...slug].js patterns
- 3. Nested routing and route parameters
- 4. Route guards and protected pages
📊 Data Fetching Strategies
- 1. Static Site Generation (SSG) with getStaticProps
- 2. getStaticPaths for dynamic static generation
- 3. Server-Side Rendering (SSR) with getServerSideProps
- 4. Client-side fetching with useEffect + fetch/axios
🔌 API Routes & Backend
- 1. Creating backend endpoints in Next.js API routes
- 2. CRUD operations and RESTful API design
- 3. Handling POST requests and form submissions
- 4. API middleware and request validation
🎨 State Management & Styling
- 1. Context API for global state management
- 2. Local state vs global state patterns
- 3. Tailwind CSS advanced features and customization
- 4. CSS Modules & Styled JSX implementation
🚀 Intermediate Projects
- 1. ✅ E-commerce Product Pages with dynamic routing
- 2. ✅ Blog with Markdown parsing using gray-matter
- 3. ✅ CRUD Notes/Tasks app with API routes
- 4. Data fetching with SSG and SSR patterns
Phase 2
Phase 3
Phase 3: Advanced: Full-stack Next.js
Phase 3
Build production-ready apps with authentication, database, and real-time features.
🔐 Authentication & Authorization
- 1. NextAuth.js setup and configuration
- 2. JWT & session handling for secure authentication
- 3. Role-based access control implementation
- 4. OAuth providers and social login integration
🗄️ Database Integration
- 1. Prisma ORM for type-safe database operations
- 2. Mongoose for MongoDB integration
- 3. PostgreSQL, MongoDB, MySQL setup and queries
- 4. Database schema design and relationships
⚡ Performance & API Design
- 1. REST APIs in Next.js with proper error handling
- 2. GraphQL implementation with Apollo/Urql
- 3. Error handling & validation using Zod/Yup
- 4. Image optimization with next/image component
🔧 Advanced Features
- 1. Incremental Static Regeneration (ISR)
- 2. SWR for client-side data fetching and caching
- 3. Environment variables & configuration management
- 4. TypeScript integration for type safety
🏗️ Advanced Projects
- 1. ✅ Full-stack E-commerce with cart and checkout
- 2. ✅ Social Media App with posts, likes, comments
- 3. ✅ Job Portal with admin & user roles
- 4. Authentication, database, and real-time features
Phase 3
Phase 4
Phase 4: Expert: Industry-ready Patterns
Phase 4
Master scalability, performance, deployment, and best practices.
🚀 Performance & SEO Optimization
- 1. Lighthouse optimization and Core Web Vitals
- 2. Meta tags & Open Graph for social sharing
- 3. Image & font optimization techniques
- 4. Lazy loading & code splitting strategies
🔧 Advanced Next.js Features
- 1. Middleware implementation (middleware.ts)
- 2. Edge functions & serverless functions
- 3. Internationalization (i18n) setup
- 4. API rate limiting & caching strategies
📦 State Management & Architecture
- 1. Redux Toolkit for complex state management
- 2. Zustand / Jotai for lightweight state solutions
- 3. Monorepo setup with Turborepo / Nx
- 4. Microservices integration patterns
🌐 Deployment & Monitoring
- 1. Vercel deployment (preferred for Next.js)
- 2. Netlify / AWS Amplify / Docker containerization
- 3. CI/CD pipelines and automated testing
- 4. Sentry error tracking and analytics integration
🏆 Expert Projects
- 1. ✅ SaaS Dashboard with subscription billing
- 2. ✅ Multi-language Blog with i18n and SEO
- 3. ✅ Streaming/Media App with optimized loading
- 4. Production-ready applications with full DevOps
🏆 Final Tips to Become Industry-Ready
Congratulations! You've completed the Next.js Mastery Roadmap and are ready to build production-ready full-stack applications.