# Astro (Prisma ORM v7) (/docs/guides/v7/frameworks/astro)
Learn how to use Prisma ORM in an Astro app
Location: Guides > v7 > Frameworks > Astro
## Introduction
[Astro](https://astro.build/) is a web framework for content-driven sites. In this guide, an Astro API route is where you call Prisma ORM to read from a [Prisma Postgres](https://www.prisma.io/postgres) database.
In this guide, you'll learn to integrate Prisma ORM with a Prisma Postgres database in an Astro project from scratch. You can find a complete example of this guide on [GitHub](https://github.com/prisma/prisma-examples/tree/latest/orm/astro).
## Quick start
Run one command to scaffold an Astro project with Prisma ORM and Prisma Postgres ready to go:
#### bun
```bash
bunx create-prisma@stable --template astro
```
#### pnpm
```bash
pnpm create prisma@stable --template astro
```
#### yarn
```bash
yarn create prisma@stable --template astro
```
#### npm
```bash
npm create prisma@stable -- --template astro
```
Or follow the steps below to set it up manually.
## Prerequisites
- [Node.js 20+](https://nodejs.org)
- [Astro VSCode extension (recommended)](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=astro-build.astro-vscode)
## 1. Set up your project
Create a new Astro project:
#### bun
```bash
bunx create-astro@latest
```
#### pnpm
```bash
pnpm dlx create-astro@latest
```
#### yarn
```bash
yarn dlx create-astro@latest
```
#### npm
```bash
npx create-astro@latest
```
> \[!NOTE]
>
> - _Where should we create your new project?_ `astro-prisma`
> - _How would you like to start your new project?_ `Use minimal (empty) template `
> - _Install dependencies? (recommended)_ `Yes`
> - _Initialize a new git repository? (optional)_ `Yes`
Navigate into the newly created project directory:
```bash
cd astro-prisma
```
## 2. Install and Configure Prisma
### 2.1. Install dependencies
To get started with Prisma, you'll need to install a few dependencies:
#### bun
```bash
bun add prisma@prev tsx @types/pg --dev
```
#### pnpm
```bash
pnpm add prisma@prev tsx @types/pg --save-dev
```
#### yarn
```bash
yarn add prisma@prev tsx @types/pg --dev
```
#### npm
```bash
npm install prisma@prev tsx @types/pg --save-dev
```
#### bun
```bash
bun add @prisma/client@7 @prisma/adapter-pg dotenv pg
```
#### pnpm
```bash
pnpm add @prisma/client@7 @prisma/adapter-pg dotenv pg
```
#### yarn
```bash
yarn add @prisma/client@7 @prisma/adapter-pg dotenv pg
```
#### npm
```bash
npm install @prisma/client@7 @prisma/adapter-pg dotenv pg
```
> \[!NOTE]
> If you are using a different database provider (MySQL, SQL Server, SQLite), install the corresponding driver adapter package instead of `@prisma/adapter-pg`. For more information, see [Database drivers](/guides/core-concepts-v7-supported-databases-database-drivers).
Once installed, initialize Prisma in your project:
#### bun
```bash
bunx --bun prisma init --output ../prisma/generated
```
#### pnpm
```bash
pnpm prisma init --output ../prisma/generated
```
#### yarn
```bash
yarn prisma init --output ../prisma/generated
```
#### npm
```bash
npx prisma init --output ../prisma/generated
```
> \[!NOTE]
> `prisma init` creates the Prisma scaffolding and a local `DATABASE_URL`. In the next step, you will create a Prisma Postgres database and replace that value with a direct `postgres://...` connection string.
This will create:
- A `prisma/` directory with a `schema.prisma` file
- A `prisma.config.ts` file for configuring Prisma
- A `.env` file with a local `DATABASE_URL` already set
Create a Prisma Postgres database and replace the generated `DATABASE_URL` in your `.env` file with the `postgres://...` connection string from the CLI output:
#### bun
```bash
bunx create-db
```
#### pnpm
```bash
pnpm dlx create-db
```
#### yarn
```bash
yarn dlx create-db
```
#### npm
```bash
npx create-db
```
### 2.2. Define your Prisma Schema
In the `prisma/schema.prisma` file, add the following models and change the generator to use the `prisma-client` provider:
```prisma title="prisma/schema.prisma"
generator client {
provider = "prisma-client"
output = "../prisma/generated"
}
datasource db {
provider = "postgresql"
}
model User { // [!code ++]
id Int @id @default(autoincrement()) // [!code ++]
email String @unique // [!code ++]
name String? // [!code ++]
posts Post[] // [!code ++]
} // [!code ++]
// [!code ++]
model Post { // [!code ++]
id Int @id @default(autoincrement()) // [!code ++]
title String // [!code ++]
content String? // [!code ++]
published Boolean @default(false) // [!code ++]
authorId Int // [!code ++]
author User @relation(fields: [authorId], references: [id]) // [!code ++]
} // [!code ++]
```
This creates two models: `User` and `Post`, with a one-to-many relationship between them.
### 2.3 Add `dotenv` to `prisma.config.ts`
To get access to the variables in the `.env` file, they can either be loaded by your runtime, or by using `dotenv`.
Include an import for `dotenv` at the top of the `prisma.config.ts`
```ts
import "dotenv/config"; // [!code ++]
import { defineConfig, env } from "prisma/config";
export default defineConfig({
schema: "prisma/schema.prisma",
migrations: {
path: "prisma/migrations",
},
datasource: {
url: env("DATABASE_URL"),
},
});
```
### 2.4. Run migrations and generate Prisma Client
Now, run the following command to create the database tables:
#### bun
```bash
bunx prisma migrate dev --name init
```
#### pnpm
```bash
pnpm prisma migrate dev --name init
```
#### yarn
```bash
yarn prisma migrate dev --name init
```
#### npm
```bash
npx prisma migrate dev --name init
```
Then generate Prisma Client:
#### bun
```bash
bunx prisma generate
```
#### pnpm
```bash
pnpm prisma generate
```
#### yarn
```bash
yarn prisma generate
```
#### npm
```bash
npx prisma generate
```
### 2.5. Seed the database
Add some seed data to populate the database with sample users and posts.
Create a new file called `seed.ts` in the `prisma/` directory:
```typescript title="prisma/seed.ts"
import { PrismaClient, Prisma } from "../prisma/generated/client";
import { PrismaPg } from "@prisma/adapter-pg";
const adapter = new PrismaPg({
connectionString: process.env.DATABASE_URL!,
});
const prisma = new PrismaClient({
adapter,
});
const userData: Prisma.UserCreateInput[] = [
{
name: "Alice",
email: "alice@prisma.io",
posts: {
create: [
{
title: "Join the Prisma Discord",
content: "https://pris.ly/discord",
published: true,
},
{
title: "Prisma on YouTube",
content: "https://pris.ly/youtube",
},
],
},
},
{
name: "Bob",
email: "bob@prisma.io",
posts: {
create: [
{
title: "Follow Prisma on Twitter",
content: "https://www.twitter.com/prisma",
published: true,
},
],
},
},
];
export async function main() {
console.log("Starting to seed...");
for (const u of userData) {
await prisma.user.upsert({
where: { email: u.email },
update: {},
create: u,
});
}
console.log("Seeding finished.");
}
main()
.catch((e) => {
console.error(e);
process.exit(1);
})
.finally(async () => {
await prisma.$disconnect();
});
```
Now, tell Prisma how to run this script by updating your `prisma.config.ts`:
```ts title="prisma.config.ts"
import "dotenv/config";
import { defineConfig, env } from "prisma/config";
export default defineConfig({
schema: "prisma/schema.prisma",
migrations: {
path: "prisma/migrations",
seed: `tsx prisma/seed.ts`,
},
datasource: {
url: env("DATABASE_URL"),
},
});
```
Run the seed script:
#### bun
```bash
bunx prisma db seed
```
#### pnpm
```bash
pnpm prisma db seed
```
#### yarn
```bash
yarn prisma db seed
```
#### npm
```bash
npx prisma db seed
```
And open Prisma Studio to inspect your data:
#### bun
```bash
bunx prisma studio
```
#### pnpm
```bash
pnpm prisma studio
```
#### yarn
```bash
yarn prisma studio
```
#### npm
```bash
npx prisma studio
```
## 3. Integrate Prisma into Astro
### 3.1. Create TypeScript environment definitions
First, create an `env.d.ts` file in your `src` directory to provide TypeScript definitions for environment variables:
```typescript title="src/env.d.ts"
interface ImportMetaEnv {
readonly DATABASE_URL: string;
}
interface ImportMeta {
readonly env: ImportMetaEnv;
}
```
### 3.2. Create a Prisma Client
Inside of `/src`, create a `lib` directory and a `prisma.ts` file inside it. This file will be used to create and export your Prisma Client instance.
```bash
mkdir src/lib
touch src/lib/prisma.ts
```
Set up the Prisma client like this:
```typescript title="src/lib/prisma.ts"
import { PrismaClient } from "../../prisma/generated/client";
import { PrismaPg } from "@prisma/adapter-pg";
const adapter = new PrismaPg({
connectionString: import.meta.env.DATABASE_URL,
});
const prisma = new PrismaClient({
adapter,
});
export default prisma;
```
> \[!WARNING]
> We recommend using a connection pooler (like [Prisma Accelerate](https://www.prisma.io/accelerate)) to manage database connections efficiently.
>
> If you choose not to use one, **avoid** instantiating `PrismaClient` globally in long-lived environments. Instead, create and dispose of the client per request to prevent exhausting your database connections.
### 3.3. Create an API route
An API route lets you query the database on the server and reuse the result from your pages.
Create a new file called `api/users.ts` in the `src/pages` directory:
```bash
mkdir src/pages/api
touch src/pages/api/users.ts
```
Now, create a GET route that fetches the `Users` data from your database, making sure to include each user's `Posts` by adding them to the `include` field:
```typescript title="src/pages/api/users.ts"
import type { APIRoute } from "astro";
import prisma from "../../lib/prisma";
export const GET: APIRoute = async () => {
const users = await prisma.user.findMany({
include: { posts: true },
});
return new Response(JSON.stringify(users), {
headers: { "Content-Type": "application/json" },
});
};
```
### 3.4. Fetch the data from the API route (Recommended Method)
Instead of using `fetch()` with HTTP requests, Astro recommends importing endpoint functions directly. This approach is more efficient and avoids URL parsing issues.
Start by creating a new type that combines the `User` and `Post` models called `UserWithPosts`:
```tsx title="src/pages/index.astro"
---
import type { User, Post } from "../../prisma/generated/client"; // [!code ++]
import { GET } from "./api/users.ts"; // [!code ++]
// [!code ++]
type UserWithPosts = User & { posts: Post[] }; // [!code ++]
// [!code ++]
const response = await GET(Astro); // [!code ++]
const users: UserWithPosts[] = await response.json(); // [!code ++]
---
Astro + Prisma
// [!code ++]
```
### 3.5. Run your app
Now start your development server to see your Astro app in action:
#### bun
```bash
bun run dev
```
#### pnpm
```bash
pnpm run dev
```
#### yarn
```bash
yarn dev
```
#### npm
```bash
npm run dev
```
Open your browser at [`http://localhost:4321`](http://localhost:4321) to see the users and their posts displayed on the page.
## Summary
Your Astro app now reads users and their posts from a Prisma Postgres database through the API route.
## Next Steps
Now that you have a working Astro app connected to a Prisma Postgres database, you can:
- Extend your Prisma schema with more models and relationships
- Add create/update/delete routes and forms
- Explore authentication and validation
### More Info
- [Prisma Documentation](/guides/introduction-7-v7)
- [Astro Documentation](https://astro.build/docs)
## Related pages
- [`Elysia`](/guides/guides-v7-frameworks-elysia): Learn how to use Prisma ORM in an Elysia app
- [`Hono`](/guides/guides-v7-frameworks-hono): Learn how to use Prisma ORM in a Hono app
- [`NestJS`](/guides/guides-v7-frameworks-nestjs): Learn how to use Prisma ORM in a NestJS app
- [`Next.js`](/guides/guides-v7-frameworks-nextjs): Learn how to use Prisma ORM in a Next.js app and deploy it to Vercel
- [`Nuxt`](/guides/guides-v7-frameworks-nuxt): A step-by-step guide to setting up and using Prisma ORM and Prisma Postgres in a Nuxt app
## Related pages
- [Authentication & Tools](./authentication-tools-index.md)
- [Build](./build-index.md)
- [Changelog](../changelog.md)
- [Concepts](./concepts-index.md)
- [Console commands](./console-commands-index.md)
- [Contract Authoring](./contract-authoring-index.md)
- [Core Concepts](./core-concepts-index.md)
- [Data Modeling](./data-modeling-index.md)
- [Database](./database-index.md)
- [DB commands](./db-commands-index.md)
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