NestJS

Introduction

This guide shows you how to use Prisma Next in a NestJS API. You scaffold a project with a users controller backed by Prisma Next, initialize the schema, and query it over HTTP.

Every command below was run end to end against a live Prisma Postgres database.

Quick start

One command scaffolds the project with Prisma Next wired in:

bunx create-prisma@next --template nest --provider postgres

Pick Prisma Postgres at the database prompt to have a database created for you, or paste your own DATABASE_URL.

Prerequisites

• Node.js v20.19 or later
• A PostgreSQL connection string, or nothing at all: the scaffold can create the database for you

1. Scaffold and enter the project

bunx create-prisma@next --template nest --provider postgres
cd my-app

The scaffold writes your connection string to .env, generates the NestJS app with Prisma Next wired in, installs dependencies, and emits the contract your queries are type-checked against.

2. Initialize and seed the database

bun run db:init
bun run db:seed

"summary": "Applied 5 operation(s) across 1 space(s), database signed"
Seeded 3 users.

db:init applies your schema (src/prisma/contract.prisma) to the database and signs it; the seed gives the first page something to show.

3. Run and verify

bun run dev

Query the API:

curl http://localhost:3000/users

[
  { "id": "1", "email": "alice@prisma.io", "username": "alice", "name": "Alice", "createdAt": "2026-07-07T09:44:19.201Z" }
]

Where things live

• src/users.controller.ts: the GET /users route
• src/users.service.ts: the service that runs the Prisma Next query
• src/prisma/db.ts: the Prisma Next client the service imports

Model access is namespace-qualified on PostgreSQL: db.orm.public.User. The Prisma Next overview covers the contract-first model behind it.

Next steps

• Change the schema in src/prisma/contract.prisma, then run npm run contract:emit and npm run db:update.
• Learn the fundamentals: filtering, sorting, pagination, and writes.
• Read the Prisma Next overview for the concepts behind contracts and typed queries.