Scale & Ship Faster with a Composable Web Architecture | Netlify

What it is

Netlify is a platform for building, deploying, and scaling modern web projects. It provides a composable web architecture that enables developers and teams to ship applications faster. The platform is designed for developers and businesses building a wide range of web properties, from marketing sites and company websites to complex e-commerce stores, AI applications, and large-scale web apps.

Main Features

Core Platform

• Global Edge Network: Deploys apps to a global content delivery network for sub-second performance.
• Git-based Deployments: Automatically builds and deploys applications from Git repositories.
• Deploy Previews: Generates shareable preview URLs for every Git pull request to review changes.
• Rollbacks: Allows instant reversion to any previous deployment.
• Custom Domains & HTTPS: Provides automatic SSL certificate provisioning for custom domains.

Development & Infrastructure

• Edge Functions: Enables running serverless functions at the edge for dynamic logic.
• Background Functions: Supports serverless functions for longer-running background jobs.
• Storage: Offers solutions for managing data and assets.
• Netlify CLI: A command-line interface for local development and interaction with the platform.
• Netlify SDK: A software development kit for building integrations.

Collaboration & Management

• Visual Editor: Provides a visual editing interface for content changes.
• Connect: A feature set for integrating with other services and APIs.
• Environment Management: Handles configuration and environment variables without manual staging server setup.

How it works

Typical Development Workflow

Developers connect a Git repository to Netlify. Every time code is pushed to the linked branch, Netlify automatically triggers a build process. The built application is then deployed to its global edge network. For pull requests, the platform generates a unique Deploy Preview URL, allowing teams to collaborate and review changes before merging to production.

Building an AI Application

Developers can build AI apps, such as chatbots, using Edge Functions. Code can process requests, interact with AI APIs (e.g., OpenAI), and return streamed responses directly from the edge network.

Creating a Marketing Site

Teams can use popular static site generators or frameworks like Astro, Next.js, or Gatsby. Content can be managed through a headless CMS. Code is committed to Git, and Netlify handles the build and deployment process, resulting in a globally distributed, high-performance site.

Implementing E-commerce

Developers can build storefronts using frameworks like Hydrogen (for Shopify). Netlify handles the deployment, scaling, and security of the frontend, which connects to e-commerce backend services via APIs.

Key Points

• The platform is designed to abstract away infrastructure management, allowing developers to focus on writing code.
• It supports a composable architecture, enabling teams to choose their preferred frontend frameworks and backend services.
• It emphasizes a developer-centric workflow deeply integrated with Git and modern development practices.
• The global edge network is engineered for high reliability, with a 99.99% uptime SLA.

Additional Details

• Pricing: Offers a free plan for getting started, with paid plans (Pro, Business, Enterprise) that provide more build minutes, advanced features, and support. Enterprise plans include custom pricing and SLAs.
• Availability: The platform is publicly available; users can sign up and start deploying projects immediately.
• Requirements: Works with any project that can be built into static files and/or uses serverless functions. Requires a Git repository (e.g., GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket).
• Scale: The platform hosts over 35 million projects and is used by more than 8 million developers, including large enterprises like Nike, Unilever, and Riot Games.