User Management

Easy to use authentication APIs designed to provide a flexible, secure, and fast integration.

Introduction

Integrating User Management features into your app is quick and easy. In this guide, we’ll walk you through adding a hosted authentication flow to your application using AuthKit.

In addition to this guide, there are a variety of example apps available to help with your integration.

Before getting started

To get the most out of this guide, you’ll need:

A WorkOS account

Your WorkOS API Key and Client ID

1. Configure your project

Let’s add the necessary dependencies and configuration in your WorkOS Dashboard.

Architecture

Server and clientClient-side only

Frontend

Next.js Remix Vanilla React

Install dependencies

For a Next.js integration, use the authkit-nextjs library. Start by installing it in your Next.js project via npm.

Install Next.js SDK

 npm install @workos-inc/authkit-nextjs

Configure a redirect URI

A redirect URI is a callback endpoint that WorkOS will redirect to after a user has authenticated. This endpoint will exchange the authorization code returned by WorkOS for an authenticated User object. We’ll create this endpoint in the next step.

You can set a redirect URI in the Redirects section of the WorkOS Dashboard. While wildcards in your URIs can be used in the staging environment, they and query parameters cannot be used in production.

When users sign out of their application, they will be redirected to your app’s homepage which is configured in the same dashboard area.

Set secrets

To make calls to WorkOS, provide the API key and the client ID. Store these values as managed secrets and pass them to the SDKs either as environment variables or directly in your app’s configuration depending on your preferences.

Environment variables

 WORKOS_API_KEY='sk_example_123456789'
WORKOS_CLIENT_ID='client_123456789'
WORKOS_COOKIE_PASSWORD="<your password>" # generate a secure password here

# configured in the WorkOS dashboard
NEXT_PUBLIC_WORKOS_REDIRECT_URI="http://localhost:3000/callback"

The NEXT_PUBLIC_WORKOS_REDIRECT_URI uses the NEXT_PUBLIC prefix so the variable is accessible in edge functions and middleware configurations. This is useful for configuring operations like Vercel preview deployments.

The SDK requires you to set a strong password to encrypt cookies. This password must be at least 32 characters long. You can generate a secure password by using the 1Password generator or the openssl library via the command line:

Generate a strong password

 openssl rand -base64 24

The code examples use your staging API keys when signed in

2. Add AuthKit to your app

Let’s integrate the hosted authentication flow into your app.

Provider

The AuthKitProvider component adds protections for auth edge cases and is required to wrap your app layout.

/app/layout.tsx

JavaScript

 import { AuthKitProvider } from '@workos-inc/authkit-nextjs';

export default function RootLayout({ children }) {
  return (
    <html lang="en">
      <body>
        <AuthKitProvider>{children}</AuthKitProvider>
      </body>
    </html>
  );
}

Middleware

Next.js middleware is required to determine which routes require authentication.

middleware.ts

JavaScript

 import { authkitMiddleware } from '@workos-inc/authkit-nextjs';

export default authkitMiddleware();

// Match against pages that require authentication
// Leave this out if you want authentication on every page in your application
export const config = { matcher: ['/'] };

Callback route

When a user has authenticated via AuthKit, they will be redirected to your app’s callback route. Make sure this route matches the WORKOS_REDIRECT_URI environment variable and the configured redirect URI in your WorkOS dashboard.

/app/callback/route.ts

JavaScript

 import { handleAuth } from '@workos-inc/authkit-nextjs';

// Redirect the user to `/` after successful sign in
// The redirect can be customized: `handleAuth({ returnPathname: '/foo' })`
export const GET = handleAuth();

Access authentication data in your Next.js application

We’ll need to direct users to sign in (or sign up) using AuthKit before redirecting them back to your application. We’ll do this by generating an AuthKit authorization URL server side and redirecting the user to it.

The withAuth method is used to retrieve the current logged in user and their details.

/app/home-page/page.jsx

JavaScript

 import Link from 'next/link';
import {
  getSignInUrl,
  getSignUpUrl,
  withAuth,
} from '@workos-inc/authkit-nextjs';

export default async function HomePage() {
  // Retrieves the user from the session or returns `null` if no user is signed in
  const { user } = await withAuth();

  // Get the URL to redirect the user to AuthKit to sign in
  const signInUrl = await getSignInUrl();

  // Get the URL to redirect the user to AuthKit to sign up
  const signUpUrl = await getSignUpUrl();

  /**
   * If a signed-in user is mandatory, you can use the `ensureSignedIn`
   * configuration option. If logged out, the below will immediately redirect
   * the user to AuthKit. After signing in, the user will automatically
   * be redirected back to this page.
   * */
  // const { user } = await withAuth({ ensureSignedIn: true });

  if (!user) {
    return (
      <>
        <Link href={signInUrl}>Sign in</Link>;
        <Link href={signUpUrl}>Sign up</Link>;
      </>
    );
  }

  return (
    <>
      <p>Welcome back{user.firstName && `, ${user.firstName}`}</p>
    </>
  );
}

Protected routes

For routes where a signed in user is mandatory, you can use the ensureSignedIn option when using withAuth.

/app/protected/page.tsx

JavaScript

 import { withAuth } from '@workos-inc/authkit-nextjs';

export default async function ProtectedPage() {
  // If the user isn't signed in, they will be automatically redirected to AuthKit
  const { user } = await withAuth({ ensureSignedIn: true });

  return (
    <>
      <p>Welcome back{user.firstName && `, ${user.firstName}`}</p>
    </>
  );
}

If you prefer a “secure by default” approach where every route is automatically protected, look into implementing middleware auth mode in the authkit-nextjs library.

Ending the session

Finally, ensure the user can end their session by redirecting them to the logout URL. After successfully signing out, the user will be redirected to your app’s homepage, which is configured in the WorkOS dashboard.

/app/home-page/page.jsx

JavaScript

 import Link from 'next/link';
import {
  getSignInUrl,
  getSignUpUrl,
  withAuth,
  signOut,
} from '@workos-inc/authkit-nextjs';

export default async function HomePage() {
  // Retrieves the user from the session or returns `null` if no user is signed in
  const { user } = await withAuth();

  // Get the URL to redirect the user to AuthKit to sign in
  const signInUrl = await getSignInUrl();

  // Get the URL to redirect the user to AuthKit to sign up
  const signUpUrl = await getSignUpUrl();

  if (!user) {
    return (
      <>
        <Link href={signInUrl}>Sign in</Link>;
        <Link href={signUpUrl}>Sign up</Link>;
      </>
    );
  }

  return (
    <form
      action={async () => {
        'use server';
        await signOut();
      }}
    >
      <p>Welcome back{user.firstName && `, ${user.firstName}`}</p>
      <button type="submit">Sign out</button>
    </form>
  );
}

If you haven’t configured your app’s homepage in the WorkOS dashboard, users will see an error when logging out.

Validate the authentication flow

Navigate to the authentication endpoint we created and sign up for an account. You can then sign in with the newly created credentials and see the user listed in the Users section of the WorkOS Dashboard.

Example appsView sample User Management apps

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