Careeroza

Edge vs Node.js Runtime

Two Runtimes

	Node.js runtime (default)	Edge runtime
APIs	All Node.js APIs and npm packages	Web APIs only (fetch, Request, crypto.subtle)
Where it runs	Your server / serverless function in one region	Many locations close to users
Cold start	Slower	Very fast
Database drivers / Prisma	Yes	Only HTTP-based drivers
Typical use	Pages, actions, most route handlers	Simple redirects, geolocation, A/B, small APIs

Choosing

// app/api/geo/route.ts
export const runtime = 'edge';

export function GET(req: Request) {
  const country = req.headers.get('x-vercel-ip-country') ?? 'IN';
  return Response.json({ country, currency: country === 'IN' ? 'INR' : 'USD' });
}

Note: Edge is not automatically faster: if your database is in Mumbai, an edge function in Frankfurt still waits for Mumbai. Put compute close to your data. In Next.js 16 middleware (proxy.ts) runs on Node.js by default.