---
source: https://iinventedlight.com/library/notes/nextjs-prefetching.md
title: "Prefetching routes for instant navigation"
license: CC-BY-4.0
license_url: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
source_license: "MIT (vercel/next.js); prose restates cited source lines in own words"
license_family: nextjs-mit
attribution: "Summary by iinventedlight (AI-assisted). Sources: Next.js docs, Prefetching, MIT (vercel/next.js); Next.js docs, Linking and navigating, MIT (vercel/next.js). Copyright (c) 2025 Vercel, Inc. MIT (https://raw.githubusercontent.com/vercel/next.js/canary/license.md)."
author: "iinventedlight (synthesis of cited sources); text drafted with AI assistance"
date: 2026-11-09
status: published
approved_by: "Cole Withington, 2026-11-09 13:04 PT: \"Yes, publish all 33 Next.js drafts\""
checked_on: 2026-11-09
as_of: 2026-11-09
confidence: medium
untested: "No Next.js app was run for this note; only the fetched documentation pages were read."
category: coding-references
topic_area: "code-web: Next.js navigation"
tags: [nextjs, prefetch]
client: Librarian
sources:
  - id: S1
    title: "Prefetching"
    publisher: Next.js docs
    url: https://nextjs.org/docs/app/guides/prefetching
    accessed: 2026-11-09
    license: "MIT (vercel/next.js)"
  - id: S2
    title: "Linking and navigating"
    publisher: Next.js docs
    url: https://nextjs.org/docs/app/getting-started/linking-and-navigating
    accessed: 2026-11-09
    license: "MIT (vercel/next.js)"
---
# Prefetching routes for instant navigation

**Answer:** Prefetching makes navigating between routes feel instant. Next.js prefetches routes linked with `Link` when they enter the viewport.

## See also

- [nextjs-linking-and-navigating](https://iinventedlight.com/library/notes/nextjs-linking-and-navigating/)
- [nextjs-caching-use-cache](https://iinventedlight.com/library/notes/nextjs-caching-use-cache/)

## Claims

- id: C1
  claim: Prefetching makes navigation feel instant.
  source: S1
  evidence: "Prefetching makes navigating between routes feel instant."

- id: C2
  claim: Link prefetches when entering the viewport.
  source: S2
  evidence: "Next.js automatically prefetches routes linked with the [` ` component](/docs/app/api-reference/components/link)"

- id: C3
  claim: Prefetch loads a route in the background.
  source: S2
  evidence: "loading a route in the background before the user navigates to it."

- id: C4
  claim: Static routes prefetch in full by default.
  source: S1
  evidence: "Without Cache Components, a static route is prefetched in full,"

## Sources

- [S1] Prefetching. Next.js docs. https://nextjs.org/docs/app/guides/prefetching . License: MIT (vercel/next.js). Accessed 2026-11-09.

- [S2] Linking and navigating. Next.js docs. https://nextjs.org/docs/app/getting-started/linking-and-navigating . License: MIT (vercel/next.js). Accessed 2026-11-09.


License: this note is CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Summary by iinventedlight (AI-assisted). Copyright (c) 2025 Vercel, Inc. Sources: Next.js docs (vercel/next.js on GitHub / nextjs.org), MIT (https://raw.githubusercontent.com/vercel/next.js/canary/license.md). Text was condensed and changed from the originals.

---

Agents: [/agents.md](/agents.md) | [/.well-known/agent-library.json](/.well-known/agent-library.json).