netlify-identity

Netlify Identity

Auth and user management for a Netlify site without requiring visitors to be Netlify users. Package: @netlify/identity.

Reach for @netlify/identity. Do NOT use the legacy netlify-identity-widget or gotrue-js for new work — same capabilities, simpler API, built-in server-side support.

Footguns — read first

• Identity does not work under netlify dev. Test auth flows on a deploy — Deploy Previews work. Local netlify dev cannot exercise /.netlify/identity/*.
• Never build a from-scratch third-party OAuth flow beside Identity — no provider app registration in code, no client_id/secret in code, no custom callback token exchange. Use oauthLogin() + handleAuthCallback(). Raw OAuth beside Identity is the single most common source of rework.
• Identity config has no public API — dashboard only. Never curl api.netlify.com to flip/inspect Identity settings, never read tokens from ~/Library/Preferences/netlify/config.json, never probe undocumented endpoints.
• RBAC redirects without a fallback = raw 404. A visitor lacking the role gets a bare 404 with no way to log in. Always add a fallback rule.
• Server-side login()/signup()/logout() need CSRF protection. Call verifyRequestOrigin(req) first, or an attacker can log a victim into the attacker's account.
• Site-gating ("lock this site to my company", employees-only) → route to netlify-access-control first. Identity is the app-level user layer only.
• On failure (callback 404s, /.netlify/identity/* unreachable, OAuth doesn't return): surface the error, the dashboard URL, and the setting to check — then stop. Do not invent recovery commands.

Setup

Identity must be enabled in the dashboard first (no API): Project configuration > Identity (https://app.netlify.com/projects/{site_name}/configuration/identity) → Enable Identity.

npm install @netlify/identity

HTTPS is required. On a custom domain, get HTTPS/SSL working before integrating Identity.

Client / universal auth

import { signup, login, logout, getUser, oauthLogin, handleAuthCallback } from '@netlify/identity'
 
// Sign up — sends a confirmation email by default (skippable via autoconfirm setting)

Callback handling is mandatory. Call handleAuthCallback() on your landing page. It processes ALL token types in the URL hash — OAuth redirect, email confirmation, password recovery, invite. Without it, confirmation links and OAuth redirects never complete.

Other client functions:

• recoverPassword() — complete a password reset (alternative to letting handleAuthCallback() handle the recovery_token).
• acceptInvite() — complete invite acceptance (alternative to handleAuthCallback() handling invite_token).
• refreshSession() — refresh token/session so newly-assigned roles take effect.

Don't hard-code which providers exist. Call getSettings() at startup and render the signup form and OAuth buttons from what it returns.

Server-side (Functions / Edge Functions)

Handlers are modern v2 functions: export default async (req, context) => {}. v1 export { handler } is not supported for getUser()/login()/admin.*.

getUser() works in browser, Netlify Functions, and Edge Functions.

CSRF — always guard exposed login/signup/logout endpoints:

import { login, verifyRequestOrigin } from '@netlify/identity'
import type { Context } from '@netlify/functions'
 
export default async (req: Request, context: Context) => {
  verifyRequestOrigin(req)   // throws 403 on Origin mismatch; supports { allowedOrigins }
  const { email, password } = await req.json()
  await login(email, password)
  return new Response(null, { status: 302, headers: { Location: '/dashboard' } })
}

admin — Netlify Functions ONLY

admin.* uses a short-lived admin token and runs only in Netlify Functions — NOT browser, NOT Edge Functions.

import { admin } from '@netlify/identity'
import type { Context } from '@netlify/functions'
 
export default async (req: Request, context: Context) => {
  const users = await admin.listUsers()   // array of users
  return Response.json({ total: users.length })
}

• admin.listUsers() — array of users.
• admin.updateUser() — update a user (e.g. roles). Full API: https://www.npmjs.com/package/@netlify/identity

Session cookies

JWT stored in cookie nf_jwt, sent automatically. Server-side login/signup/logout read/write nf_jwt and nf_refresh via the runtime, so the browser gets the session in the response.

The User object

id, email, roles (array from app_metadata.roles, included in the JWT).

Identity event functions

Functions the platform invokes automatically on Identity events (you don't call them).

Modern typed-handler syntax — export a default object with a method per event. Typed handlers require @netlify/functions ≥ 5.2.0.

import type { UserSignupEvent } from "@netlify/functions"
 
export default {
  userSignup(event: UserSignupEvent) {
    console.log(`New signup: ${event.user.email}`)
  },
}

Handlers and triggers:

Deny an action: call event.deny() from userValidate/userSignup/userLogin/userModified (NOT userDeleted). User gets a 401; no observability error. With multiple subscribers, the first event.deny() aborts the chain.

import type { UserValidateEvent } from "@netlify/functions"
 
export default {
  userValidate(event: UserValidateEvent) {
    if (!event.user.email?.endsWith("@example.com")) return event.deny()
  },
}

Assign roles at signup — return { user: {...} } to mutate the persisted record. Payload fields are camelCase (appMetadata, userMetadata, confirmedAt).

import type { UserSignupEvent } from "@netlify/functions"
 
export default {
  userSignup(event: UserSignupEvent) {
    return {
      user: { ...event.user, appMetadata: { ...event.user.appMetadata, roles: ["member"] } },
    }
  },
}

Background mode — action completes immediately, handler runs async:

import type { Config, UserLoginEvent } from "@netlify/functions"
 
export default { userLogin(event: UserLoginEvent) { /* async tracking */ } }
export const config: Config = { background: true }

Event types from @netlify/functions: UserValidateEvent, UserSignupEvent, UserLoginEvent, UserModifiedEvent, UserDeletedEvent, Config.

Registration & providers (dashboard)

• Registration preferences — Open (default: any visitor signs up via signup()) or Invite only (all new users, including external-provider logins, must be invited first).
• Confirmation: open registration sends a confirmation email; skip via Emails > Confirmation template > Configure (allow signup without verifying email / autoconfirm).
• External providers — enable Google/GitHub/GitLab/Bitbucket under Registration > External providers. Set your own client ID/secret for branded OAuth (your app name shows on the provider screen). No email confirmation for external-provider signup, but Invite-only still requires an invite.
• Invitations — Project configuration > Identity > Users; Netlify team users with any role can invite. Invite link carries an invite_token → process with handleAuthCallback() or acceptInvite().

Roles & metadata

Stored on the User object; edit in Identity > Users > Edit settings:

• Name — user-editable: user_metadata.full_name.
• Email — user-editable; triggers email-change confirmation; changes login credentials: user_metadata.email.
• Roles — NOT user-editable: app_metadata.roles. Read via getUser().

Set roles: at signup via userSignup handler returning { user: {...} }; for existing users via admin.updateUser() in a Function. Role changes take effect on next login or token refresh, not immediately (they don't invalidate the current JWT — client can refreshSession()).

Role-based access control (redirect rules)

Enforced at the CDN edge (no origin round trip). Add a Role parameter to redirect rules.

# _redirects — ALWAYS include a fallback or non-admins get a raw 404
/admin/*  /admin/:splat  200!  Role=admin
/admin/*  /login         401!
 
# multiple roles, comma-chained
/private/* /private/:splat  200!  Role=editor,admin

# netlify.toml
[[redirects]]
  from = "/admin/*"
  to = "/admin/:splat"
  force = true
  status = 200
  conditions = {Role = ["editor", "admin"]}

Netlify Identity roles resolve at app_metadata.roles.

External JWT provider (Enterprise; alternative to Identity)

You may use Identity OR an external JWT provider, not both — you cannot authenticate third-party JWT tokens while Identity is enabled. Set the secret at Project configuration > Access & security > Visitor access > JWT secret (project-level overrides team-level default).

• Tokens must be HS256; header requires "alg": "HS256", "typ": "JWT".
• Payload requires exp (future Unix Epoch); other fields optional.
• External-provider roles resolve at app_metadata.authorization.roles. Different path → contact support for a custom role path (support-configured, not self-service).

Emails (Pro+ for customization)

Default sender no-reply@netlify.com. Custom sender (Pro+): set SMTP hostname/port/username/password under Emails > Outgoing email address (use SendGrid/Mailjet/etc. for volume).

Custom templates (Pro+): publish HTML to a path on your deployed project, set the path (relative to domain, starting /) under Emails. Rules: inline CSS only, absolute image links, NO <html>/<head>/<body> tags. Keep template variables intact — don't let your build rewrite them.

Go template variables: {{ .Email }}, {{ .NewEmail }} (email-change only), {{ .SiteURL }}, {{ .ConfirmationURL }}, {{ .Token }}. Custom link form: {{ .SiteURL }}/path/#confirmation_token={{ .Token }} (also invite_token, recovery_token, email_change_token).

Audit log (Pro+)

Project configuration > Identity > Identity audit log. Search with a required scope prefix: author:[string] or action:[string]. Action names: login, logout, user_signedup, user_deleted, user_modified, token_revoked, token_refreshed, user_recovery_requested, user_invited.

Plan gating

• Identity itself: all credit-based plans, no extra cost. Unlimited active + invite-only users, custom OAuth credentials, Functions integration — all plans.
• Pro+ only: custom outgoing email, custom email templates, Identity audit log.
• Enterprise only: external JWT providers.

Deep guides

• references/advanced-patterns.md — SSR / session hydration.
• references/authorization-and-sessions.md.

Legacy (avoid for new work)

• netlify-identity-widget / gotrue-js — superseded by @netlify/identity.
• Legacy event-function filenames (identity-validate.ts, identity-signup.ts, identity-login.ts, -background suffix) still work but prefer typed handlers. Legacy denial = return non-2xx status; new code uses event.deny().

Netlify house rules (identity)

These are org conventions, not docs facts — merged into the rendered skill by ctx-gen and never generated. Owned by the skills maintainer.

1. Deep guides live in this skill: references/advanced-patterns.md (SSR/session hydration) and references/authorization-and-sessions.md.
2. Identity does not work under netlify dev — test auth flows on deploys (Deploy Previews work).
3. Identity configuration has no public API — it is dashboard-only. Never curl api.netlify.com to flip or inspect Identity settings, never read auth tokens from ~/Library/Preferences/netlify/config.json, never probe for undocumented endpoints.
4. On failure (callback 404s, /.netlify/identity/* unreachable, OAuth flow doesn't return), surface the error, the dashboard URL, and the setting to check — then stop. Do not invent recovery commands.
5. Never build a from-scratch third-party OAuth flow when Identity is in play — no provider app registration, no client_id/secret in code, no custom callback token exchange. Use oauthLogin() + handleAuthCallback(); raw OAuth beside Identity is the single most common source of rework.
6. Server-side getUser()/login()/admin.* require modern v2 functions (export default) — v1 export { handler } is not supported. Typed Identity event handlers (UserSignupEvent, event.deny()) require @netlify/functions ≥ 5.2.0; older installs use the legacy filenames.
7. Don't hard-code which auth providers exist — call getSettings() at startup and render the signup form and OAuth buttons from what it returns.
8. Site-gating requests ("lock this site to my company", employees-only) route to the netlify-access-control skill first — Identity is the app-level user layer only.