layout.js
A layout is UI that is shared between routes.
export default function DashboardLayout({
children,
}: {
children: React.ReactNode
}) {
return <section>{children}</section>
}A root layout is the top-most layout in the root app directory. It is used to define the <html> and <body> tags and other globally shared UI.
export default function RootLayout({
children,
}: {
children: React.ReactNode
}) {
return (
<html lang="en">
<body>{children}</body>
</html>
)
}Props
children (required)
Layout components should accept and use a children prop. During rendering, children will be populated with the route segments the layout is wrapping. These will primarily be the component of a child Layout (if it exists) or Page, but could also be other special files like Loading or Error when applicable.
params (optional)
The dynamic route parameters object from the root segment down to that layout.
| Example | URL | params |
|---|---|---|
app/dashboard/[team]/layout.js | /dashboard/1 | { team: '1' } |
app/shop/[tag]/[item]/layout.js | /shop/1/2 | { tag: '1', item: '2' } |
app/blog/[...slug]/layout.js | /blog/1/2 | { slug: ['1', '2'] } |
For example:
export default function ShopLayout({
children,
params,
}: {
children: React.ReactNode
params: {
tag: string
item: string
}
}) {
// URL -> /shop/shoes/nike-air-max-97
// `params` -> { tag: 'shoes', item: 'nike-air-max-97' }
return <section>{children}</section>
}Good to know
Layouts do not receive searchParams
Unlike Pages, Layout components do not receive the searchParams prop. This is because a shared layout is not re-rendered during navigation which could lead to stale searchParams between navigations.
When using client-side navigation, Next.js automatically only renders the part of the page below the common layout between two routes.
For example, in the following directory structure, dashboard/layout.tsx is the common layout for both /dashboard/settings and /dashboard/analytics:
When navigating from /dashboard/settings to /dashboard/analytics, page.tsx in /dashboard/analytics will rerender on the server, while dashboard/layout.tsx will not rerender because it's a common UI shared between the two routes.
This performance optimization allows navigation between pages that share a layout to be quicker as only the data fetching and rendering for the page has to run, instead of the entire route that could include shared layouts that fetch their own data.
Because dashboard/layout.tsx doesn't re-render, the searchParams prop in the layout Server Component might become stale after navigation.
- Instead, use the Page
searchParamsprop or theuseSearchParamshook in a Client Component, which is re-rendered on the client with the latestsearchParams.
Root Layouts
- The
appdirectory must include a rootapp/layout.js. - The root layout must define
<html>and<body>tags.- You should not manually add
<head>tags such as<title>and<meta>to root layouts. Instead, you should use the Metadata API which automatically handles advanced requirements such as streaming and de-duplicating<head>elements.
- You should not manually add
- You can use route groups to create multiple root layouts.
- Navigating across multiple root layouts will cause a full page load (as opposed to a client-side navigation). For example, navigating from
/cartthat usesapp/(shop)/layout.jsto/blogthat usesapp/(marketing)/layout.jswill cause a full page load. This only applies to multiple root layouts.
- Navigating across multiple root layouts will cause a full page load (as opposed to a client-side navigation). For example, navigating from
Version History
| Version | Changes |
|---|---|
v13.0.0 | layout introduced. |
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