Fundamentals:
- HTML, CSS, and JavaScript: A solid understanding of these web development building blocks is essential. You should be comfortable creating basic web pages and manipulating them with JavaScript.
Optional (but Highly Recommended):
- React: While not strictly mandatory, familiarity with React will significantly ease the learning curve. Next.js leverages React components and concepts, so having a foundation in React will give you a head start in understanding Next.js’s functionalities.
Development Environment:
- Node.js (version 18.17.0 or later): This is the runtime environment for Next.js applications. It provides the necessary tools to execute JavaScript code outside of a web browser. You can download Node.js from the official website https://nodejs.org/en/download.
- Package Manager (npm or yarn): Node.js comes bundled with npm (Node Package Manager). You can also use yarn, a popular alternative package manager. They are used to manage dependencies (external libraries) that your Next.js project will rely on.
Additional Tools (Optional but Helpful):
- Code Editor or IDE: Any text editor or Integrated Development Environment (IDE) that supports Node.js and JavaScript development will work. Popular options include Visual Studio Code, WebStorm, Sublime Text, Atom, etc.
That’s all you need to get started with Next.js! The official documentation also provides clear installation instructions: https://nextjs.org/docs/getting-started/installation