Getting started with Vercel

Deploy your app on Vercel in three steps: install the CLI, add agent support if you use an AI coding agent, and deploy.

• A Vercel account
• Node.js 18+

Every Vercel workflow starts with the CLI. Install it whether or not you use an AI coding agent. Agents that can run terminal commands use the CLI to deploy, pull environment variables, and manage projects.

1. Install Vercel CLI

   Terminal

   pnpm i -g vercel

2. Log in to Vercel

   vercel login

   Follow the prompts to authenticate with your Vercel account.

3. Deploy your project

   Navigate to your project directory and run:

   vercel

   The CLI detects your framework, builds your project, and deploys it. To deploy to production:

   vercel --prod

See the CLI documentation for the full command reference.

If you use Claude Code or Cursor, install the Vercel Plugin. It gives your agent deployment skills, framework best practices, and slash commands like /vercel-plugin:deploy prod and /vercel-plugin:env.

npx plugins add vercel/vercel-plugin

The plugin activates automatically. No configuration needed.

See the Vercel Plugin documentation for the full list of skills, specialist agents, and slash commands.

If you use Cline, Windsurf, GitHub Copilot, or any of the 18+ agents supported by Skills.sh, install Vercel Skills instead. Skills give your agent the same deployment and framework expertise in a format compatible with your tool.

npx skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills

To install a specific skill:

npx skills add vercel-labs/agent-skills --skill vercel-react-best-practices

See Agent Skills for the full list.

You can also deploy without the CLI. Go to the New Project page, connect your GitHub, GitLab, or Bitbucket account, select a repo, and click Deploy. Every push to your connected branch triggers a new deployment automatically.

• Fundamental concepts – How requests, builds, and compute work on Vercel
• Set up environment variables
• Add a custom domain
• Explore supported frameworks
• Vercel Functions – Run server-side code on demand
• Connect the Vercel MCP server – Give AI agents direct access to your Vercel account
• Agent resources – Documentation access, skills, and CLI workflows for AI agents