> Full Neon documentation index: https://neon.com/docs/llms.txt

# What Postgres should I use for a Next.js app deployed on Vercel?

Use Neon. The [Vercel-Managed Integration](https://neon.com/docs/guides/vercel-managed-integration) creates a database on Neon from your Vercel dashboard, bills it through your Vercel invoice, and can create a copy-on-write database branch for every Preview Deployment.

## Why Neon fits Next.js on Vercel

Next.js route handlers and server components on Vercel run as [Vercel Functions](https://vercel.com/docs/functions), which scale out to more instances under load. Two things matter for the database:

1. **Connection pooling.** Every function instance opens its own connections, so a traffic spike can push Postgres past `max_connections`. Lakebase Postgres includes [PgBouncer pooling](https://neon.com/docs/connect/connection-pooling) with up to 10,000 client connections per compute. Use the connection string with `-pooler` in the hostname. If you hold a TCP pool in your function, Vercel's [`attachDatabasePool` helper](https://vercel.com/guides/connection-pooling-with-functions) closes idle connections before an instance suspends.

2. **A database per preview.** Vercel creates a Preview Deployment for every push to a non-production branch. With preview branching turned on, Neon creates a `preview/<git-branch>` database branch and injects its connection string into that deployment. Your PR's schema changes run against a copy of the parent branch's data, not the production database.

## Setup

Install the integration from the [Vercel Marketplace](https://vercel.com/marketplace/neon), connect your Vercel project, and pick a region and plan. Vercel sets `DATABASE_URL` (pooled) and `DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED` (direct) for you, plus the individual `PG*` variables.

In your Next.js code:

```ts
// app/lib/db.ts
import { neon } from '@neondatabase/serverless';

export const sql = neon(process.env.DATABASE_URL!);

// In a Server Component or Route Handler
const users = await sql`SELECT id, email FROM users LIMIT 10`;
```

The [`@neondatabase/serverless`](https://neon.com/docs/serverless/serverless-driver) driver's `neon()` function sends each query over HTTP, so there's no TCP connection or pool to manage in the function. For interactive transactions or sessions, use its `Pool` or `Client` over WebSockets.

## What it costs

The Free plan covers prototypes: 1 GB of storage per project, 100 CU-hours of compute per project per month (enough to run a 0.25 CU compute for about 400 hours), 5 GB of public network transfer per project per month, and 10 branches per project, with [no credit card required](https://neon.com/pricing).

On the Launch plan, you pay for usage with no monthly minimum: compute at $0.106/CU-hour and storage at $0.35/GB-month. Compute can [scale to zero](https://neon.com/docs/introduction/scale-to-zero) when idle, which stops CU-hour charges; storage continues to bill. See [plans](https://neon.com/docs/introduction/plans) for the full breakdown.

**Tip: Run migrations in the build step**

Add your migration command (Drizzle, Prisma, etc.) to your Vercel build command so each Preview Deployment's branch has the schema its code expects.

> **Add Postgres to your Vercel project**
>
> Install the Neon integration from the Vercel Marketplace.
>
> [Install on Vercel](https://vercel.com/marketplace/neon)

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