--- title: Fastify with Prisma and React description: Create a Fastify API on Node.js with Prisma, PostgreSQL, Better Auth, tRPC, and a React frontend on TanStack Router using Better Fullstack. translationStatus: pending updated: 2026-10-09 category: TypeScript tags: - fastify - prisma - react - trpc keywords: - fastify prisma starter - fastify react starter - fastify trpc - fastify better auth - create fastify app --- Use this stack when the API should be a Fastify service on Node.js, with Prisma for PostgreSQL and a React single-page app that calls it through tRPC. ```npm npm create better-fullstack@latest my-fastify-api -- \ --ecosystem typescript \ --frontend tanstack-router \ --backend fastify \ --runtime node \ --database postgres \ --orm prisma \ --auth better-auth \ --api trpc \ --css-framework tailwind \ --ui-library shadcn-ui ``` ## What this creates - A Fastify server in `apps/server` with `@fastify/cors`, a Better Auth route at `/api/auth/*`, and the tRPC Fastify plugin at `/trpc`. - A React app in `apps/web` on TanStack Router, with sign-in and sign-up forms, a user menu, a protected dashboard, and a tRPC client on TanStack Query. - Prisma 7 on PostgreSQL through the `@prisma/adapter-pg` driver adapter, with the Better Auth models in their own schema file. - Better Auth with email and password sign-in, using the Prisma adapter. - Tailwind CSS and shadcn/ui components in the web app. - A Turborepo workspace and a reproducible `bts.jsonc` stack configuration. ## Generated shape ```txt my-fastify-api/ bts.jsonc turbo.json apps/ server/ .env src/index.ts web/ .env src/ lib/auth-client.ts utils/trpc.ts routes/ index.tsx login.tsx dashboard.tsx packages/ api/src/ context.ts index.ts routers/index.ts auth/src/index.ts db/ prisma.config.ts prisma/schema/ schema.prisma auth.prisma src/index.ts env/src/ server.ts web.ts ``` The Fastify auth route converts each Fastify request into a Fetch `Request`, passes it to `auth.handler`, and copies the status, headers, and body back to the reply. The tRPC context converts the Fastify request headers the same way and resolves the Better Auth session from them. ## Routes | Route | Purpose | | --- | --- | | `GET /` | Returns `OK`. | | `/api/auth/*` | Better Auth endpoints for email sign-up, sign-in, session, and sign-out. | | `/trpc/healthCheck` | Public query that returns `"OK"`. The web home page shows its status. | | `/trpc/privateData` | Protected query. It throws `UNAUTHORIZED` without a session. | Fastify listens on port 3000 with its built-in logger enabled. The web app runs on Vite's port 5173. ## Environment | File | Variable | Purpose | | --- | --- | --- | | `apps/server/.env` | `DATABASE_URL` | PostgreSQL connection string used by Prisma and the server. | | `apps/server/.env` | `BETTER_AUTH_SECRET` | Generated random secret, at least 32 characters. | | `apps/server/.env` | `BETTER_AUTH_URL` | Public URL of the server, `http://localhost:3000` locally. | | `apps/server/.env` | `CORS_ORIGIN` | Web origin the server and Better Auth trust, `http://localhost:5173` locally. | | `apps/web/.env` | `VITE_SERVER_URL` | Server URL used by the auth client and the tRPC client. | `packages/db/prisma.config.ts` loads `apps/server/.env`, so Prisma commands and the server read the same `DATABASE_URL`. ## Run it locally Point `DATABASE_URL` at a PostgreSQL database. Installing dependencies runs `prisma generate` through the database package's `postinstall` script. Then push the schema and start both apps: ```npm npm install npm run db:push npm run dev ``` The server's `dev` script runs `tsx watch src/index.ts`. Open `http://localhost:5173/login` to create an account, then visit `/dashboard`, which calls `privateData`. ## Add a model and a procedure Add product models to `packages/db/prisma/schema/schema.prisma` and leave `auth.prisma` to Better Auth: ```prisma model Project { id String @id @default(cuid()) name String ownerId String createdAt DateTime @default(now()) @@index([ownerId]) } ``` Apply it and regenerate Prisma Client, which the database package writes to `packages/db/prisma/generated`: ```npm npm run db:push npm run db:generate ``` Then add a procedure to `appRouter` in `packages/api/src/routers/index.ts`. `protectedProcedure` guarantees `ctx.session`: ```ts createProject: protectedProcedure .input(z.object({ name: z.string().min(2) })) .mutation(({ ctx, input }) => prisma.project.create({ data: { name: input.name, ownerId: ctx.session.user.id } }), ), ``` Import `prisma` as the default export of `@my-fastify-api/db` and `z` from `zod`. The web app calls it with `trpc.createProject.mutationOptions()`. ## Compatibility notes - `--runtime node` matches the generated scripts: `tsx watch` in development and `node dist/index.mjs` in production. - The CLI accepts both `--api trpc` and `--api orpc` with Fastify and a React frontend. This guide uses tRPC, which the generated server mounts through the official tRPC Fastify adapter. - Prisma uses the `prisma-client` generator with an ESM output folder, so import the client from the database package rather than from `@prisma/client`. ## Deployment notes Build with `npm run build` (tsdown writes `apps/server/dist`) and start the server with `npm run start` from `apps/server`. The server binds to `0.0.0.0:3000`. Set `DATABASE_URL`, `BETTER_AUTH_SECRET`, `BETTER_AUTH_URL`, and `CORS_ORIGIN` in its environment, and build the web app with `VITE_SERVER_URL` set to the deployed API. For tracked schema changes, create migrations with `npm run db:migrate` and apply them with `prisma migrate deploy` before starting new code. ## Troubleshooting | Symptom | Check | | --- | --- | | Imports from `prisma/generated` fail | Run `npm run db:generate`; the client is generated, not committed. | | Sign-up fails with a missing table error | Run `npm run db:push` against the database in `DATABASE_URL`. | | Auth requests return `AUTH_FAILURE` | Read the Fastify log; the auth route logs the underlying error before replying with 500. | | Browser requests fail CORS checks | `CORS_ORIGIN` must match the web origin exactly, including the port. | ## Comparison notes Choose Fastify when the team wants Fastify's plugin system and logging on Node.js. Compare [Elysia with Drizzle and Better Auth](/guides/typescript/elysia-drizzle-better-auth/) for a Bun server, or [Hono with tRPC and Drizzle](/guides/typescript/hono-trpc-drizzle/) for a smaller server that runs on several runtimes. ## Next steps - Open the [Stack Builder with Fastify selected](/new?eco=typescript&fe-w=tanstack-router&be=fastify&rt=node&db=postgres&orm=prisma&au=better-auth&api=trpc). - Read the [Drizzle versus Prisma comparison](/blog/drizzle-vs-prisma/). - Review the [CLI create reference](/docs/cli/create/).