Official templates

Every official template uses ESM, React Router for UI and SSR, and NestJS controllers under app/server for public APIs. Each one also ships error, loading, and not-found boundaries in app/routes, and its pages declare their own metadata with Meta and Title from @nessframework/components — plus Description where there is one to give — instead of a meta route export.

typescript is what ness new scaffolds when --template is left out.

Alias	Package	Best for
typescript (ts)	@nessframework/typescript	Strict TypeScript full-stack applications
default (javascript, js)	@nessframework/default	The same application; the older aliases still resolve here
minimal	@nessframework/minimal	Small prototypes with the fewest source files
api	@nessframework/api	NestJS-first services with a small React UI
dashboard	@nessframework/dashboard	Internal tools, consoles, and admin interfaces

ness new my-app
ness new my-prototype --template default
ness new my-api --template api
ness new my-dashboard --template dashboard

default is accepted as a third name for the JavaScript starter. It is what --template fell back to before TypeScript became the default, so a script that spells it out keeps scaffolding the same thing.

Minimal

The minimal template contains one page, the three route boundaries, one stylesheet, and a NestJS health controller. It keeps TypeScript strict mode and the production server bridge without example features that need removal later.

API-first

The API template includes health endpoints and a users Nest module with controller, service, module, collection routes, and parameter routes. A request file documents the ready-to-run endpoints.

Dashboard

The dashboard template includes a responsive navigation shell, KPI cards, an activity table, typed loader data, and a NestJS metrics controller. It uses plain CSS, so a design system can be introduced without first removing a UI dependency.

To publish a company starter or use a directory directly, continue with Custom and local templates.