--- title: Build with a Nitro starter template description: Deploy a Nitro app to Vercel from a starter template. Compare the Nitro Starter, route rules, cached HTTP handler, plugins, Slack Bolt, and iMessage AI agent templates, then ship to a live URL. url: "https://vercel.com/kb/guide/build-with-a-nitro-starter-template" published: 2026-06-07 last_updated: 2026-07-16 authors: Ben Sabic install_vercel_plugin: npx plugins add vercel/vercel-plugin --- Nitro is a TypeScript-first full-stack framework for building servers and APIs, and it deploys to Vercel with zero configuration. On Vercel, your Nitro routes become [Vercel Functions](https://vercel.com/docs/functions) running on [Fluid compute](https://vercel.com/fluid), with Incremental Static Regeneration (ISR) and Observability available with minimal configuration. Vercel maintains a [Nitro template directory](https://vercel.com/templates/nitro) with starters from both Vercel and the community, so you can begin from a working project instead of a blank repo. ## Which Nitro template should you use? These templates range from a minimal API to Slack and AI agent apps: | Template | What it gives you | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | [Nitro Starter](https://vercel.com/templates/nitro/nitro-starter) | A minimal Nitro API that deploys with zero configuration. Start here if you're new to Nitro on Vercel. | | [Nitro - Route Rules](https://vercel.com/templates/nitro/nitro-route-rules) | An example of Nitro route rules, which set per-route behavior such as caching, headers, redirects, and ISR from a single config file. | | [Nitro - Cached HTTP handler](https://vercel.com/templates/nitro/nitro-cached-http-handler) | An HTTP handler that serves cached responses with ISR, so repeated requests skip recomputation. | | [Nitro - Plugins](https://vercel.com/templates/nitro/nitro-plugins) | An example of Nitro plugins, which run on server startup to extend the runtime with shared setup and lifecycle hooks. | | [Slack Bolt with Nitro](https://vercel.com/templates/nitro/slack-bolt-with-nitro) | A starting point for Slack apps built with Bolt for JavaScript (TypeScript) on Nitro. | | [Durable iMessage AI Agent](https://vercel.com/templates/nitro/durable-imessage-ai-agent) | A durable iMessage AI agent built with [Chat SDK](https://vercel.com/kb/chat-sdk) and Nitro. | | [Caltext](https://vercel.com/templates/hono/caltext) | An iMessage calorie-tracking assistant, powered by AI SDK, Chat SDK, and more. | If you're not sure where to begin, deploy the Nitro Starter and add features such as [route rules](https://nitro.build/docs/routing) or [plugins](https://nitro.build/docs/plugins) as your project grows. ## Deploy a Nitro template Every Nitro template deploys to Vercel the same way. Open the template you want, select **Deploy**, and Vercel clones the repository into your Git provider, creates a project, and ships it to a live URL. 1. **Open the template**: Choose a template from the table above, then select **Deploy**. 2. **Connect your Git provider**: Vercel creates a new repository for the template in your GitHub, GitLab, or Bitbucket account. 3. **Deploy the project**: Vercel builds and deploys the template, then returns a production URL. Each later push to the repository triggers a new deployment. ### Run the template locally After deploying, clone your new repository and start the development server: ```bash git clone your_repository_url_here cd your_project_name_here npm install npm run dev ``` The development server starts on `http://localhost:3000`. Open that URL to see the template running, then edit the route handlers to make it your own. ### Start from the command line instead To scaffold the Nitro example with [Vercel CLI](https://vercel.com/docs/cli), run: ```bash vercel init nitro ``` This clones the Nitro boilerplate into a `nitro` directory, so you can develop locally first and deploy with `vercel` when you're ready. ## Resources and next steps - Follow the end-to-end [How to ship a Nitro app on Vercel](https://vercel.com/kb/guide/ship-a-nitro-app-on-vercel) guide to deploy and configure your app - Read the full [Nitro on Vercel documentation](https://vercel.com/docs/frameworks/backend/nitro) - Configure Vercel-specific features through the [Deploy Nitro to Vercel](https://nitro.build/deploy/providers/vercel) provider docs - Learn how [Vercel Functions](https://vercel.com/docs/functions) run your server code - Understand pricing and scaling with [Fluid compute](https://vercel.com/docs/fluid-compute) - Cache and revalidate content with [Incremental Static Regeneration](https://vercel.com/docs/incremental-static-regeneration) - Explore [Nitro templates](https://vercel.com/templates/nitro) you can deploy in one step ## More Nitro guides - [How to ship a Nitro app on Vercel](/kb/guide/ship-a-nitro-app-on-vercel): Deploy a Nitro app to Vercel with zero configuration. Learn how to ship from a template, the Vercel CLI, or Git, and configure ISR, cron jobs, Vercel Queues, per-route function settings, and Observability. - [TanStack Start on Vercel vs Cloudflare](/kb/guide/tanstack-start-on-vercel-vs-cloudflare): Compare running TanStack Start on Vercel Functions with Fluid compute against Cloudflare Workers. Learn how the runtimes, storage, background jobs, pricing, and developer experience differ so you can choose the right platform. - [TanStack Start on Vercel vs Netlify](/kb/guide/tanstack-start-on-vercel-vs-netlify): Compare running TanStack Start on Vercel Functions with Fluid compute against Netlify Functions. Learn how the compute models, storage, background jobs, pricing, and developer experience differ so you can choose the right platform.