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Next.js & React - The Complete Guide (Udemy.com)

Learn NextJS from the ground up and build fullstack ReactJS + NextJS apps with the App Router or Pages Router!

Created by: Maximilian Schwarzmüller

Last updated January 2026

Our take

Based on the ratings of 25,807 students, a sample of their written reviews and the syllabus, as the course stood in January 2026. No course pays to be reviewed.

This is Maximilian Schwarzmüller's Next.js course, and it is really two courses stacked together. One track teaches the newer App Router. The other teaches the older Pages Router. The syllabus shows 452 lectures across 19 sections, about 40 hours, including a 75 lecture React refresher near the start. It is aimed at React developers who want to go full stack. More than 166,000 students and a 4.6 average from over 25,000 reviews make it a well proven pick.

Reviewers love the teaching. They describe calm, clear explanations that answer the why behind each feature, and several had followed his other courses or YouTube videos before. Most ratings are four or five stars. The complaints are about structure. Lower scored reviews say the App Router material repeats itself, that outdated videos are still in the mix, and that one concept gets explained, then redone a better way. A few want TypeScript examples, or quizzes and exercises like his React course has.

Value depends on how it gets used. Anyone who knows React can skip the refresher and treat the Essentials module as the quick way in. Reviewers who only want the App Router will sit through sections they don't need, and one says the certificate requires watching the older videos. The last update was January 2026, and one recent reviewer asks for a newer Next.js release. Still recommended for React developers who can tolerate some skipping.

Best forReact developers who want one course covering both Next.js routers and don't mind skipping older sections.
Skip it ifYou want a tight App Router only course, or need TypeScript and Tailwind examples.

Pros

  • Reviewers say Maximilian explains the why behind each feature, not just the steps
  • Covers App Router, Server Actions, caching and authentication, plus the Pages Router
  • Optional React refresher and summary modules let learners skip ahead
  • Last updated January 2026 and built around Next.js 15, with several real projects

Cons

  • Sections repeat material, and outdated videos are still in the course
  • No quizzes or coding exercises, so practice means coding along the whole time
  • Examples are plain JavaScript, and reviewers wanted TypeScript and Tailwind
Every detail is carefully explained in this course. All the "why"s that can ever come have been answered.
Tiyasha Mohanty, a student

Suits developers who already know some React. No Next.js needed, and a long React refresher covers gaps.

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What you will learn

  • Learn how to build fullstack React apps with NextJS 15 & the App Router
  • Build real projects and apply what you learned with hands-on projects and examples
  • Learn about different ways of building NextJS app - App Router vs Pages Router
  • Get started with React Server Components, Client Components, data fetching & more!
  • Handle data submissions via Server Actions
  • Learn all key NextJS features like pre-rendering, SSR, data fetching, file-based routing and authentication
  • Take the full course or the "NextJS Summary" module for a quickstart if you have limited time

Course content

19 sections · 452 lectures · 40 hours of video 35 articles

  1. 1Getting Started 8 free previews9 lectures · 22 min
  2. 2Optional: React Refresher75 lectures · 7.7 hours
  3. 3NextJS Essentials (App Router)49 lectures · 4 hours
  4. 4Routing & Page Rendering - Deep Dive23 lectures · 2.1 hours
  5. 5Data Fetching - Deep Dive8 lectures · 54 min
  6. 6Mutating Data - Deep Dive16 lectures · 1.6 hours
  7. 7Understanding & Configuring Caching12 lectures · 55 min
  8. 8NextJS App Optimizations12 lectures · 54 min
  9. 9User Authentication19 lectures · 1.5 hours
  10. 10Roundup & Next Steps2 lectures · 5 min

Who it is for

The instructor says it suits

  • React developers who want to take the next step and build production-ready React apps
  • React developers who aim to build fullstack React apps
  • Web developers in general, who want to work with one of the most popular and in-demand tech stacks

What you need before you start

  • ReactJS knowledge is strongly recommended, but the course also includes a complete React refresher module
  • NO prior NextJS knowledge is required

How it compares

Against the other 173 rated Udemy courses in React on CourseDuck:

  • Rating4.6 out of 5higher than 71% of them
  • Reviews25,807#4 of 174 by number of reviews
  • Length40.3 hourslonger than 84% of them
  • Last updatedJanuary 2026more recently than 80% of them

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Course Description

This course teaches you the latest version of Next.js and covers both the "App Router" and "Pages Router" (and explains what these two approaches are).


Join this bestselling NextJS course and learn how to build highly dynamic, super fast and SEO-ready React apps with React & NextJS!

This course covers both the NextJS "App Router" & the "Pages Router" - two different approaches for building fullstack apps with React! And, of course, you'll learn what these two approaches are, why two different approaches exist and how each approach works!


I created the bestselling Udemy course on React, now I'm super excited to share this NextJS with you - an in-depth course about an amazing React framework that allows you to take the next step as a React developer and build real, production-ready projects with React and Next.js!

Next.js is the production-ready, fullstack-capable framework for ReactJS - the most popular JavaScript library you can learn these days!

Too many buzzwords for your taste?

Fair enough - but indeed, NextJS is a great choice for growing as a React developer and for taking your React apps to the next level!

Because NextJS is growing fast and therefore in high demand. And there are good reasons for that: NextJS allows you to build React apps with built-in server-side rendering and page pre-rendering. Building great user experiences and search engine friendly (SEO!) React apps has never been easier!

In addition, NextJS makes building fullstack React apps (frontend + backend code combined in one project) extremely easy as well! Blend client-side and server-side code and build a NodeJS-based API side-by-side with your frontend React apps. It's a breeze with NextJS!

Want to add authentication? NextJS simplifies that as well and makes user signup, sign in and session management very convenient.

This course will take you from NextJS beginner to advanced level in no time!

We'll start at the very basics, no NextJS knowledge is required at all, and we'll then dive into all the core features that make up NextJS. Both in theory as well as with multiple real projects where all concepts will be applied step-by-step.

For this course, you'll need basic React knowledge, though the course does come with a "React refresher" module in case it's been some time since you last worked with React.

This course also includes a "NextJS Summary" module for the Pages router and a "NextJS Essentials" module for the App router - which allow you to always come back to the course in the future and refresh your knowledge without going through the full course again. Or you just take those summary modules (and skip the rest for now) to learn about all the core features in as little time as possible.

After finishing this course, you'll be well prepared to build your own NextJS projects from the ground up and apply for NextJS positions!

In detail, this course will cover:

  • What is NextJS? And why would you use it?

  • Why is just React (in many cases) not enough?

  • Creating NextJS projects from the ground up & understanding these projects

  • Working with file-based routing

  • Adding dynamic routes and catch-all routes

  • Implementing different forms of page pre-rendering and server-side rendering

  • Working with data and adding data fetching + pre-fetching to your apps

  • Handling form submissions with Server Actions

  • Handling File upload

  • Pre-generating dynamic and static pages

  • Adding optimizations like metadata to pages

  • Optimizing images with the NextJS Image component

  • Building fullstack apps with API routes or Server Actions

  • Managing app-wide state with React context (in NextJS apps)

  • Adding authentication to NextJS apps

  • Multiple complete apps where we'll apply all these core concepts!

  • A complete React.js refresher module (so that we're all on the same page)

  • A NextJS summary module so that you can refresh what you learned or just explore the core features quickly

  • And much more!

I can't wait to start this journey together with you! :)

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Instructor Details

Maximilian Schwarzmüller

Experience as (Web) Developer

Starting out at the age of 12 I never stopped learning new programming skills and languages. Early I started creating websites for friends and just for fun as well. Besides web development I also explored Python and other non-web-only languages. This passion has since lasted and lead to my decision of working as a freelance web developer and consultant. The success and fun I have in this job is immense and really keeps that passion burningly alive.

Starting web development on the backend (PHP with Laravel, NodeJS, Python) I also became more and more of a frontend developer using modern frameworks like React, Angular or VueJS in a lot of projects. I love both worlds nowadays!

I also build full-stack applications and acquired expert DevOps and cloud computing knowledge - proven by the many AWS certifications I hold (incl. the top-level Solutions Architect Professional certification).

As a self-taught developer I had the chance to broaden my horizon by studying Business Administration where I hold a Master's degree. That enabled me to work in a major strategy consultancy as well as a bank. While learning, that I enjoy development more than these fields, the time in this sector greatly improved my overall experience and skills.

Experience as Instructor

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Reviews

4.6

25,807 ratings on Udemy

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By Miguel on 8/17/2026

I really enjoyed the course and feel it helped me improve my Next.js and React skills. Although I encountered a few issues along the way, especially with outdated sections, the overall experience was extremely rewarding.

By Muhammad Arslan on 7/23/2026

Clear and easy to follow course with all the necessary material attached. Each topic is explained clearly and also one small practice to implement and recall the material is also attached in each section. One of the best courses on next js and one of the best instructors as well. I'm quite satisfied with the course so far.

By Victor Augusto Pacelli Fonseca Abreu on 4/17/2026

já tinha lido o livro dele em português, e gostei muito. assisti às primeiras aulas gratuitas apenas pra ver se o inglês do Max era fácil de entender, e é incrivelmente claro, não tenho dúvidas que vou aprender bastante com esse curso, recomendo demais

By Phillip Schlicht on 3/31/2026

The course was solid and easy to get through. The instructor seemed friendly, which made it even better. What I missed a bit were more theoretical and visual explanations to really grasp the concepts. The course leaned more toward hands-on stuff, which is cool, but I’d have liked a bit more theory and visuals too.

By Kevin on 2/19/2026

Overall, this is a pretty decent course. However, the biggest downside with Maximilian’s teaching style is the lack of challenges. I recently completed a course by Angela Yu, and there was literally one challenge per video. In comparison, much of this course felt like copy-pasting unless you deliberately paused the video to try solving things on your own. Even if you do pause and attempt to figure it out independently, you often don’t have a clear idea of where the lesson is heading next. You can solve the task in your own way, but then in 99% of cases, you end up rewriting your code to match his approach so that you can continue smoothly with the next video.

By Oren Sampson on 1/20/2026

Fantastic course with clear explanations, excellent structure, and practical examples. It helped me thoroughly understand Next.js and feel confident in building real projects. Highly recommended!

By Pablo Insua on 1/19/2026

This course allowed me to gain the knowledge I needed for a special project where I was unfamiliar with the technology. Coming in with no experience in React, it enabled me to successfully achieve my objectives.

By Vaibhav Sareen on 1/3/2026

I wanted to learn a full stack framework and next js is the one i was inclined towards. This course has helped me understand how to build production level applications using NextJs in plain english.

By Marko Blazhevski on 12/16/2025

It's good explanation, covers the topic really well. I just expect Maximilian to update the documentation for Next.js 15 and also the authentication should be BetterAuth.js not Lucia that is depreciated, but it's good and even with the old libraries you learn a lot and the basics, so for the new libraries you can learn them youself alone pretty much.

By Constantin Marin on 12/16/2025

Am repetat de cateva ori anumite lectii, a trbuit sa adaptez proiectele la next.js 16, react 19 si node.js 24 dar au mers pana la urma. Cursul este captivant si complex, imi place pana acum.

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Overall Score : 92 / 100