NextGlobeGen vs next-intl

Both NextGlobeGen and next-intl are excellent i18n libraries for Next.js App Router applications. This comparison helps you understand their different approaches and choose the right tool for your project.

Philosophy & Architecture

next-intl: Configuration-Based

next-intl follows a traditional configuration-based approach. You manually create route groups with [locale] segments, configure middleware for locale detection, and use wrapper functions for navigation APIs.

Traditional next-intl Setup

// You manually create: app/[locale]/layout.tsx
// You configure: middleware.ts + i18n/routing.ts
// You wrap: createNavigation(routing)

import { createNavigation } from "next-intl/navigation";
import { routing } from "./routing";

export const { Link, redirect, useRouter } = createNavigation(routing);

NextGlobeGen: Generative Programming

NextGlobeGen uses generative programming to automatically create localized routes at build time. You write routes once in src/_app/, and the plugin generates all locale-specific variants.

NextGlobeGen's Generative Approach

// You write: src/_app/page.tsx (once)
// Plugin generates: src/app/(i18n)/en/page.tsx
//                   src/app/(i18n)/fi/page.tsx
//                   + TypeScript types

import { Link } from "next-globe-gen"; // Ready to use, fully typed

Key Difference: next-intl requires you to create the routing structure; NextGlobeGen generates it automatically.

Setup & Developer Experience

Initial Setup

Aspect	next-intl	NextGlobeGen
Manual route creation	✅ Create [locale] folders	❌ Auto-generated
Middleware setup	✅ Required	✅ Required
Navigation wrapper	✅ Call createNavigation()	❌ Auto-generated
File structure	app/[locale]/	src/_app/ → src/app/(i18n)/

Development Experience

next-intl

• Manual route management: Add new pages by creating them in app/[locale]/
• Explicit configuration: All routing behavior defined in config files
• Standard Next.js structure: Familiar [locale] pattern

NextGlobeGen

• Automatic route generation: Create pages in src/_app/, all locales generated
• Hot reloading: Changes to routes regenerate automatically
• Type generation: Routes, locales, and messages get TypeScript types instantly
• Zero boilerplate: No need to wrap or configure navigation APIs

Type Safety

next-intl

Uses TypeScript augmentation via global.ts:

global.ts

import messages from "./messages/en.json";
import { routing } from "@/i18n/routing";

declare module "next-intl" {
  interface AppConfig {
    Locale: (typeof routing.locales)[number];
    Messages: typeof messages;
  }
}

Type safety level:

• ✅ Message keys and arguments
• ✅ Locale strings
• ⚠️ Pathname typing requires additional pathnames configuration
• ❌ No automatic route type generation

NextGlobeGen

TypeScript augmentation files are automatically generated for types:

Type safety level:

• ✅ Message keys and arguments
• ✅ Locale strings
• ✅ Route pathnames (automatically inferred from file structure)
• ✅ Route parameters (automatically inferred from dynamic segments)
• ✅ Complete compile-time validation

// NextGlobeGen catches these at compile time:
useHref("/typo"); // ❌ Type error: Route doesn't exist
useHref("/blog/[slug]"); // ❌ Type error: Missing params
useHref("/blog/[slug]", { params: { slug: "hello" } }); // ✅

Performance note: NextGlobeGen generates specialized argument types for each message, which provides better TypeScript performance with large message files compared to next-intl's approach of inferring arguments from entire message strings.

Navigation APIs

next-intl

Navigation APIs created via wrapper function:

// Setup: i18n/navigation.ts
import { createNavigation } from 'next-intl/navigation';
import { routing } from './routing';

export const { Link, redirect, useRouter, usePathname } =
  createNavigation(routing);

// Usage
import { Link } from '@/i18n/navigation';

<Link href="/about">About</Link>

NextGlobeGen

Navigation APIs available directly from the package:

// No setup needed
import { Link, redirect, useRouter, useHref } from "next-globe-gen";

// Universal - works in both server and client components
<Link href="/about">About</Link>

Routing Strategies

Locale Prefix Routing

Both libraries support prefix-based routing (/en/, /fi/, etc.).

Domain-Based Routing

Both support domain-based routing for locale resolution.

Localized Pathnames

Both libraries can translate URL segments for SEO.

next-intl

Requires explicit pathname mapping in a central configuration file:

i18n/routing.ts

export const routing = {
  locales: ["en", "de"],
  pathnames: {
    "/": "/",
    "/about": {
      en: "/about",
      de: "/ueber-uns",
    },
    "/blog/[slug]": {
      en: "/blog/[slug]",
      de: "/blog/[slug]",
    },
  },
};

NextGlobeGen

Uses route-level i18n.ts files for colocated translations:

src/_app/about/i18n.ts

// Collocated with the route segment
export default {
  en: "about",
  de: "ueber-uns",
};

src/_app/blog/i18n.ts

export default {
  en: "blog",
  de: "blog", // Same in both languages
};

Key Differences:

• next-intl uses centralized configuration for all routes
• NextGlobeGen uses decentralized, colocated i18n.ts files per route segment
• NextGlobeGen only requires i18n.ts for segments that need translation (if omitted, directory name is used)

Messages & Translations

Both libraries use ICU MessageFormat and have similar translation features.

Message Loading

next-intl

i18n/request.ts

import { getRequestConfig } from "next-intl/server";

export default getRequestConfig(async ({ locale }) => {
  return {
    messages: (await import(`../messages/${locale}.json`)).default,
  };
});

NextGlobeGen

NextGlobeGen loads messages automatically from the configured directory (defaults to ./src/messages/):

i18n.config.ts

export default {
  locales: ["en", "fi"],
  messages: {
    originDir: "./src/messages", // Default location
  },
};

By default, loads from <locale>.json and <locale>/<filename>.json files. Supports JSON and YAML.

Alternatively, provide a custom loader function:

i18n.config.ts

export default {
  locales: ["en", "fi"],
  messages: {
    async getMessages(locale) {
      // Fetch from CMS, API, or any source
      return await fetchMessagesFromCMS(locale);
    },
  },
};

Performance Comparison

Aspect	next-intl	NextGlobeGen
Build time overhead	Minimal	Moderate (generation step)
Runtime overhead	Minimal	Near-zero (pre-generated)
Route generation	Manual	Automatic
Type generation	Manual augmentation	Automatic
Hot reload speed	Fast	Fast (with regeneration)

Community & Ecosystem

next-intl

• 🏆 Established library with wide adoption
• 🏢 Used by major companies
• 📚 Extensive documentation + video course
• 👥 Large community and ecosystem
• 🎓 Official learning platform

NextGlobeGen

• 🆕 Newer library with growing adoption
• 📦 Active development and maintenance
• 📚 Comprehensive documentation
• 🔧 Built specifically for App Router
• 💡 Innovative generative approach

Which to choose

Choose next-intl if you:

• ✅ Want a battle-tested solution used by thousands of companies
• ✅ Prefer explicit configuration over code generation
• ✅ Are working on a large enterprise project requiring proven stability
• ✅ Value a traditional, predictable approach
• ✅ Want optional routing (can work without locale-based routing)

Choose NextGlobeGen if you:

• ✅ Want automatic route generation and less boilerplate
• ✅ Value stronger TypeScript integration with auto-generated types
• ✅ Prefer code generation over manual configuration
• ✅ Want zero runtime overhead with build-time generation
• ✅ Are building a new project and want modern tooling

Conclusion

Both libraries support the core features you need for internationalization in Next.js App Router applications. Consider trying both in a small project to see which approach feels more natural for your workflow.

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Have questions? Check out our Getting Started guide or explore the API Reference.