ngXpress: Full-Stack Angular 20+ Starter Kit with Server-Side Rendering (SSR), Express 5, Prisma ORM, Tailwind CSS 4, and Better Auth Integration

Created and maintained by @immohammadjaved

Think of ngXpress as bringing the best of the Next.js experience to Angular—without the bloat or learning curve. ngXpress is a modern, full-stack Angular 20 + Express 5 starter kit featuring out-of-the-box server-side rendering (SSR), zoneless execution, Prisma ORM, secure authentication with better-auth, and Tailwind CSS for responsive UIs. Build scalable, production-ready web applications with zero boilerplate and a feature-first, modular backend structure—perfect for both prototypes and production apps.

🚀 Live Demo

Check out a live example of ngXpress in action:

View Live Demo

✨ Features & Tech Stack

• Angular 20+: Leverage the latest Angular with signals, standalone components, and new control flow for modern, reactive UIs
• Server-Side Rendering (SSR): Out-of-the-box SSR for SEO, performance, and fast initial loads
• Express 5 Backend: Modular, feature-first REST API architecture for rapid backend development
• Prisma ORM: Type-safe database access (SQLite by default, easily switchable to PostgreSQL, MySQL, etc.)
• Zoneless Execution: No zone.js overhead—enjoy maximum speed and simplicity
• Better Auth Integration: Secure, production-ready authentication out of the box
• Tailwind CSS 4: Build beautiful, responsive UIs with utility-first CSS
• TypeScript Everywhere: Strict typing for both frontend and backend
• NgOptimizedImage: Performant image handling for Angular apps
• Global Error Handling: Robust error management for APIs and UI
• Ready for Deployment: Optimized for Vercel, Netlify, and traditional servers
• Easy to Extend & Maintain: Clean, scalable codebase and feature-first folder structure
• Dev & Tooling: Angular CLI, ESLint & Prettier, Vite (optional), VS Code recommended settings, Node.js 20+

⚡ Quick Start Guide

Get started with your own ngXpress project in minutes:

1. Create Your Project from the Template

   • Click the “Use this template” button on the ngXpress GitHub repository to generate a new repository under your GitHub account.

2. Clone Your New Repository

   git clone https://github.com/<your-username>/<your-repo-name>.git
   cd <your-repo-name>

3. Install Dependencies

4. Set Up the Database (Prisma + SQLite by default)

   npx prisma generate
   npx prisma db push

5. Start the Development Server (Angular + Express SSR)

6. Open Your Browser

   • Visit http://localhost:4200

Additional Tips:

• To open Prisma Studio (DB GUI):
  npx prisma studio
• To build for production:
  npm run build
• To start the production server:
  npm run start
• Configure environment variables in the .env file as needed.

📦 What’s Included

• Beautiful SaaS Landing Page: Modern, responsive, and ready to customize
• Authentication Screens: Sign In, Sign Up, Forgot/Reset Password (secure, production-ready)
• Admin Dashboard: Modular, extendable admin interface
• Todos CRUD Example: End-to-end CRUD with Angular, Express, and Prisma

📂 File Structure

A clear, modular structure for both frontend (Angular) and backend (Express):

src/
├── app/
│   ├── components/      # Standalone, reusable UI components
│   ├── core/            # Core services, guards, and utilities
│   ├── layouts/         # Application layouts (admin, auth, main)
│   ├── models/          # TypeScript interfaces and models
│   ├── pages/           # Route-based pages (admin, home, auth, not-found)
│   ├── services/        # Feature and domain services
│   ├── app.component.ts
│   ├── app.routes.ts
│   └── ...
├── api/
│   ├── features/
│   │   └── todos/
│   │       ├── todos.controller.ts
│   │       └── todos.routes.ts
│   ├── lib/
│   │   ├── prisma.ts
│   │   └── auth.ts
│   ├── middlewares/     # Express middlewares
│   ├── utils/           # Utility functions
│   └── api.ts           # Main API router
├── generated/           # Prisma generated client
├── main.ts              # Angular entry point
├── main.server.ts       # Angular SSR entry point
├── server.ts            # Express server entry point
└── styles.css           # Global styles

• Separation of concerns: Frontend and backend code are clearly separated for maintainability.
• Feature-first: Both Angular and Express codebases are organized by feature for scalability.
• Ready for extension: Add new features by creating new folders in src/app/pages or src/api/features.

🔗 Import Aliases

ngXpress uses TypeScript path aliases for clean, maintainable imports throughout your Angular app. This eliminates long relative paths and makes refactoring easier.

Why Use Import Aliases?

• Readability: Cleaner, more descriptive import statements
• Maintainability: Refactor and move files without breaking imports
• Scalability: Add new features and modules with less hassle

Usage Example

// ❌ Without aliases (hard to maintain)
import { TodoService } from '../../../services/todo.service';
import { AuthGuard } from '../../core/guards/auth.guard';

// ✅ With aliases (recommended)
import { TodoService } from '@services/todo.service';
import { AuthGuard } from '@core/guards/auth.guard';

Available Aliases

Aliases are configured in tsconfig.json and work seamlessly with Angular CLI and most editors (VS Code recommended).

Adding New Aliases

1. Open tsconfig.json in the project root.
2. Add your new alias under the compilerOptions.paths section. For example:

   "@utils/*": ["src/app/utils/*"]

3. Restart your IDE for the changes to take effect.

For more details, see the TypeScript documentation on path mapping.

🚀 Deployment

ngXpress is designed to be deployment-ready out of the box and can be deployed to any server that supports Angular 20+ SSR applications. You can deploy this app like a regular Node.js application - no need to run frontend and backend separately as it's a single, unified application.

Note: Work is in progress to add support for Vercel, Netlify, and Docker deployment. For now, traditional server deployment is recommended.

Traditional Server Deployment (Recommended)

For VPS, dedicated servers, or any Node.js hosting provider:

1. Build the Application

2. Start Production Server

3. Environment Setup

   • Ensure Node.js 20+ is installed on your server
   • Set production environment variables
   • Use a process manager like PM2 for production

Environment Variables

Ensure these environment variables are set in production:

# Database
DATABASE_URL="your_database_connection_string"

# Authentication
BETTER_AUTH_SECRET="your_secret_key"
BETTER_AUTH_URL="https://yourdomain.com"

# Optional: Customize ports
PORT=4000

Database Considerations

• SQLite: Good for development and small applications
• PostgreSQL/MySQL: Recommended for production applications
• Database Migrations: Run npx prisma migrate deploy in production
• Connection Pooling: Configure in your Prisma schema for production databases

Supported Hosting Providers

ngXpress works with any server that supports Angular 20+ SSR applications:

• VPS Providers: DigitalOcean, Linode, Vultr, AWS EC2, Google Cloud Compute
• Shared Hosting: Any provider with Node.js 20+ and Angular SSR support
• Traditional Hosting: Any server with Node.js 20+ support
• Cloud Platforms: AWS, Google Cloud, Azure (with proper Node.js setup)

Coming Soon: Vercel, Netlify, and Docker deployment support

📚 Documentation & Resources

• Angular Documentation: angular.dev
• Express.js Documentation: expressjs.com
• Prisma Documentation: prisma.io
• Tailwind CSS Documentation: tailwindcss.com
• Better Auth Documentation: better-auth.com

🤝 Contributing

We welcome contributions to ngXpress! Please read our Contributing Guide for details on how to contribute.

📝 License

ngXpress is open-source software licensed under the MIT License. Feel free to use, modify, and distribute it as per the license terms.

🏷️ Keywords

angular, angular-starter, angular-template, angular-fullstack, angular-universal, angular-ssr, angular-express, angular-prisma, angular-tailwind, angular-auth, fullstack, fullstack-starter, ssr, express, expressjs, prisma, tailwindcss, authentication, better-auth, typescript, nodejs, monorepo, modern-web, scalable, production-ready, nextjs-alternative, nextjs-for-angular, zoneless, angular-zoneless

👤 Creator

Made with ❤️ by @immohammadjaved

Follow for updates, tips, and more Angular/NodeJs content!