As a developer, you may need to send emails from your application for a variety of reasons, such as sending notifications or user verification emails. In this article, we will explore how to send emails from a Next.js API using SendGrid.

Table of Contents:

1. Prerequisites
2. Setting up SendGrid
3. Setting Up a Next.js App
4. Installing Dependencies
5. Sending Emails from Next.js API
6. Conclusion

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Prerequisites

Before we get started, make sure you have the following:

• A SendGrid account
• A Next.js project set up and running

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Setting up SendGrid

First, we need to set up SendGrid. If you don't have a SendGrid account, you can sign up for free on their website.

Once you have an account, create a new API key by going to Settings > API Keys and clicking on the Create API Key button. Give the key a name, select the Full Access permission, and click the Create & View button.

Copy the API key and store it in a safe place. We'll use it later in our Next.js API.

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Setting Up a Next.js App

Before we dive into the implementation details, let's make sure we have a Next.js app set up and ready to go. If you already have an existing Next.js app, feel free to skip this section.

To create a new Next.js app, you'll need to have Node.js installed on your machine. Once you have Node.js installed, you can use the following steps to create a new Next.js app:

Open your terminal or command prompt and navigate to the directory where you want to create your new app.

Run the following command to create a new Next.js app:

npx create-next-app my-app

Replace my-app with the name of your app.

Once the command finishes running, navigate into the new app directory by running:

cd my-app

Now, you can start the development server by running:

npm run dev

This will start the development server at http://localhost:3000. You should see a welcome message in your browser.

That's it! You now have a basic Next.js app set up and ready to be customized. In the next section, we'll add SendGrid to our app so that we can send emails.

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Installing Dependencies

Next, we need to install the @sendgrid/mail package, which we'll use to send emails from our Next.js API. To install it, run the following command in your project's root directory:

npm install @sendgrid/mail

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Configuring SendGrid in Next.js

Now that we have the @sendgrid/mail package installed, let's configure it in our Next.js API.

Create a new file called .env.local and copy the API key as value in this file.

SENDGRID_API_KEY=

Create a new file called sendgrid.js in your project's lib folder. This file will contain the code to configure and send emails using SendGrid.

import sgMail from '@sendgrid/mail';

export const sendEmail = async (to, subject, text) => {
  sgMail.setApiKey(process.env.SENDGRID_API_KEY);

  const msg = {
    to,
    from: 'your-email@example.com',
    subject,
    text,
  };

  try {
    await sgMail.send(msg);
    console.log(`Email sent to ${to}`);
  } catch (error) {
    console.error(error);
  }
};

In the above code, we import the @sendgrid/mail package and define a function called sendEmail. This function takes three arguments: to (the recipient's email address), subject (the email subject), and text (the email body).

We then use sgMail.setApiKey to set our SendGrid API key, which we saved earlier. Finally, we create an email message object and use sgMail.send to send the email.

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Sending Emails from Next.js API

With SendGrid configured in our Next.js API, let's see how we can use it to send emails.

First, create a new API endpoint in your Next.js API. For example, if you're using Next.js API Routes, create a new file called send-email.js in the pages/api directory.

In this file, import the sendEmail function from the sendgrid.js file we created earlier.

import { sendEmail } from '../../lib/sendgrid';

export default async (req, res) => {
  const { email } = req.body;

  try {
    await sendEmail(email, 'Test Email', 'This is a test email from Next.js!');
    res.status(200).json({ message: 'Email sent successfully' });
  } catch (error) {
    console.error(error);
    res.status(500).json({ message: 'Internal Server Error' });
  }
}

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Conclusion

In conclusion, sending emails from a Next.js API using SendGrid is a straightforward process that can greatly enhance the functionality and usability of your web application. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can quickly and easily integrate SendGrid into your Next.js API and start sending customized, professional-looking emails to your users. Remember to take advantage of SendGrid's advanced features, such as email templates and personalization, to create truly personalized email campaigns that engage and delight your users. With the power of Next.js and SendGrid at your fingertips, the possibilities are endless!