Deployment Platforms – Netlify, Vercel, and GitHub Pages for React Apps

Once your React application is ready for production, the next step is deployment — making your app accessible online for users. Fortunately, modern platforms like Netlify, Vercel, and GitHub Pages make React app deployment fast, free, and beginner-friendly.

In this guide, you’ll learn how to deploy your React project on each of these platforms step-by-step.

What Is Deployment?

Deployment means hosting your React app’s optimized build (/build folder) on a server so users can access it via a URL.

When you run:

npm run build

React generates:

• Minified JavaScript and CSS files
• Optimized static assets
• A single-page index.html entry point

This build folder is what you’ll deploy.

1. Deploying to Netlify

Netlify is one of the easiest and most popular platforms for hosting React apps.

It offers free SSL, continuous deployment, and instant rollbacks.

Steps:

1. Build your project:

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   npm run build
   

2. Login or sign up at Netlify.com.

3. Connect your GitHub repository (or drag and drop your /build folder into Netlify).

4. Set build settings:

   • Build Command: npm run build
   • Publish Directory: build

5. Click Deploy Site.

Features:

• Free custom domain (yourapp.netlify.app)
• HTTPS automatically
• Git-based automatic redeploys
• Environment variable support

2. Deploying to Vercel

Vercel, created by the Next.js team, is another excellent option for deploying React and Next.js apps.

It’s optimized for frontend performance, global CDN, and easy integration.

Steps:

1. Install the Vercel CLI (optional):

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   npm i -g vercel
   

2. Run the build:

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   npm run build
   

3. Deploy via command:

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   vercel
   

   or connect your project through the Vercel Dashboard (vercel.com).

4. Configure settings:

   • Framework: React
   • Output Directory: build

5. Vercel automatically builds and deploys your app.

Features:

• Global CDN and fast performance
• Continuous integration with GitHub/GitLab
• Easy environment variable setup
• Custom domains and SSL support

3. Deploying to GitHub Pages

If your React project is hosted on GitHub, GitHub Pages is a simple and free hosting option for static websites.

Steps:

1. Install the gh-pages package:

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   npm install gh-pages --save-dev
   

2. Add these lines to your package.json:

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   "homepage": "https://<your-username>.github.io/<your-repo-name>",
   "scripts": {
     "predeploy": "npm run build",
     "deploy": "gh-pages -d build"
   }
   

3. Run:

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   npm run deploy
   

4. Your React app will be live at:

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   https://<your-username>.github.io/<your-repo-name>/
   

Features:

• 100% free hosting
• Integrated with GitHub version control
• Great for portfolios and small projects

Tips for Deployment Success

• Always test your app using npm run build && npx serve -s build before deploying.
• Use environment variables for API keys and secrets (never hardcode them).
• Enable HTTPS and compression (gzip) for better performance.
• Add a 404.html file for routing support in SPAs (especially on GitHub Pages).