Next.js & Edge-first Web: React Server Components, Edge Functions, and Performance

Modern web apps require speed and SEO. With Next.js 14, React Server Components (RSC) and Edge Functions, you can deliver highly optimized, SEO-friendly experiences with minimal TTFB (Time to First Byte).

What’s new & why it matters

• Edge-first rendering reduces TTFB and improves perceived performance for global audiences.
• React Server Components let you fetch data server-side while keeping client bundles small.
• Turbopack and improved build pipelines speed up local dev and CI builds.

SEO best practices with Next.js

• Use generateMetadata in App Router to render meta tags server-side.
• Use server-side rendered content for critical SEO pages (blog posts, product pages).
• Pre-render structured data (JSON-LD) for rich snippets.

Architecture patterns

1. Edge-rendered landing pages: serve marketing pages from the edge with incremental revalidation.
2. Hybrid product pages: RSC for product data, client components for interactive widgets.
3. Edge middleware: A/B tests, geo-redirects, and personalization at the edge.

Implementation tips

• Cache at CDN and use stale-while-revalidate for frequently updated content.
• Keep server components free of client-only hooks.
• Use next/image and modern image formats (AVIF/WebP) for performance and SEO signals.

Example: server component fetching data at edge

Copy
1// app/products/[slug]/page.tsx
2export async function generateMetadata({ params }) {
3  const product = await fetchProduct(params.slug);
4  return { title: product.title, description: product.description };
5}
6
7export default async function ProductPage({ params }) {
8  const product = await fetchProduct(params.slug);
9  return (
10    <article>
11      <h1>{product.title}</h1>
12      <p>{product.description}</p>
13    </article>
14  );
15}