How to add cron jobs to a Next.js app on Vercel (without upgrading to Pro)

📰 Dev.to · Mike Tickstem

Learn to add cron jobs to a Next.js app on Vercel without upgrading to Pro, enabling automated tasks like digest emails and daily cleanups

intermediate Published 23 Apr 2026

Action Steps

Create a new API route in your Next.js app to handle the scheduled task
Use a library like node-cron to schedule the task
Configure the scheduled task to run at the desired interval
Deploy the updated app to Vercel and verify the cron job is working
Use Vercel's built-in logging to monitor and debug the scheduled task

Who Needs to Know This

Developers and DevOps engineers working with Next.js on Vercel can benefit from this to automate tasks, improving efficiency and reducing manual labor

Key Insight

💡 You can use node-cron and a new API route to add scheduled jobs to your Next.js app on Vercel, no Pro plan required