Clerk Nuxt Patterns

Nuxt Patterns

What Do You Need?

| Task | Reference |

|------|-----------|

| Protect routes with middleware | references/nuxt-middleware.md |

| Auth in server API routes (Nitro) | references/server-api-routes.md |

| useAuth / useUser in components | references/composables.md |

| SSR-safe auth patterns | references/ssr-auth.md |

References

| Reference | Description |

|-----------|-------------|

| references/nuxt-middleware.md | Route protection, clerkMiddleware() |

| references/server-api-routes.md | Nitro server route auth |

| references/composables.md | useAuth, useUser, useClerk |

| references/ssr-auth.md | SSR hydration, server vs client |

Setup

npm install @clerk/nuxt

.env:

NUXT_PUBLIC_CLERK_PUBLISHABLE_KEY=pk_...
NUXT_CLERK_SECRET_KEY=sk_...

nuxt.config.ts:

export default defineNuxtConfig({
  modules: ['@clerk/nuxt'],
})

This single line auto-configures middleware, plugins, and component auto-imports.

Mental Model

@clerk/nuxt auto-imports all Clerk components and composables — no explicit imports needed in <script setup>.

• Composables (useAuth, useUser) — client-side reactive, inside <script setup>
• Server routes (clerkClient) — Nitro server routes, event.context.auth
• Middleware (clerkMiddleware) — auto-registered, use auth().protect() to lock routes

Minimal Pattern

<!-- pages/dashboard.vue -->
<script setup lang="ts">
definePageMeta({ middleware: 'auth' })
const { userId } = useAuth()
</script>

<template>
  <Show when="signed-in">
    <p>Hello {{ userId }}</p>
  </Show>
</template>

> definePageMeta({ middleware: 'auth' }) uses the built-in auth middleware from @clerk/nuxt.

Common Pitfalls

| Symptom | Cause | Fix |

|---------|-------|-----|

| Composables return undefined on server | useAuth is client-only | Use event.context.auth in server routes |

| Route not protected | Missing middleware: 'auth' meta | Add definePageMeta({ middleware: 'auth' }) |

| clerkClient not available | Wrong import path | Import from @clerk/nuxt/server |

| Hydration mismatch | Rendering auth state before mounted | Wrap in <ClientOnly> or check isLoaded |

| Env vars not picked up | Wrong prefix | Nuxt requires NUXT_PUBLIC_ for public, NUXT_ for server |

Org-Aware Pattern

<script setup lang="ts">
const { orgId, orgRole } = useAuth()
</script>

<template>
  <div v-if="orgId">
    <p>Org: {{ orgId }}</p>
    <p v-if="orgRole === 'org:admin'">Admin panel</p>
  </div>
  <div v-else>
    <OrganizationSwitcher />
  </div>
</template>

See Also

• clerk-setup - Initial Clerk install
• clerk-custom-ui - Custom flows & appearance
• clerk-orgs - B2B organizations

Docs

Nuxt SDK