I’ve been thinking a lot about how to build web applications that load instantly, rank well in search results, and provide a smooth user experience. The combination of SvelteKit’s server-side rendering with a robust PostgreSQL database offers exactly that—a foundation for creating high-performance applications that feel responsive and reliable.

When you load a page in a typical SvelteKit application, the server prepares the HTML content before sending it to the browser. This means users see content faster, and search engines can properly index your pages. Have you ever wondered how this actually works behind the scenes?

Let’s start with setting up our project. We’ll use Prisma as our database toolkit, which provides type safety and intuitive data modeling. Here’s how we initialize our database connection:

// lib/server/db.ts
import { PrismaClient } from '@prisma/client'

const prisma = new PrismaClient()
export default prisma

Creating our data models is straightforward with Prisma’s schema language. We define our blog posts, users, and relationships in a clear, declarative way:

// schema.prisma
model Post {
  id        String   @id @default(cuid())
  title     String
  content   String
  published Boolean  @default(false)
  author    User     @relation(fields: [authorId], references: [id])
  authorId  String
}

model User {
  id    String @id @default(cuid())
  email String @unique
  name  String?
  posts Post[]
}

What happens when we need to load data for a specific page? SvelteKit makes this incredibly simple with its load functions. Here’s how we might fetch a blog post on the server:

// routes/blog/[slug]/+page.server.ts
export async function load({ params }) {
  const post = await prisma.post.findUnique({
    where: { slug: params.slug },
    include: { author: true }
  })
  
  return { post }
}

The real power comes when we combine this with form actions for creating and updating content. Notice how we can handle data validation and database operations in a single, cohesive flow:

// routes/blog/create/+page.server.ts
export const actions = {
  default: async ({ request }) => {
    const data = await request.formData()
    const title = data.get('title')
    const content = data.get('content')
    
    // Validate input
    if (!title || !content) {
      return { error: 'Missing required fields' }
    }
    
    // Create post
    const post = await prisma.post.create({
      data: { title, content, published: true }
    })
    
    return { success: true, post }
  }
}

But how do we ensure our application remains fast as it grows? Caching strategies become essential. We can implement simple yet effective caching for frequently accessed data:

// lib/server/cache.ts
const cache = new Map()

export async function getCachedPost(slug: string) {
  if (cache.has(slug)) {
    return cache.get(slug)
  }
  
  const post = await prisma.post.findUnique({ where: { slug } })
  cache.set(slug, post)
  return post
}

Security is always a concern when dealing with user data and server operations. We must validate all inputs and handle errors gracefully:

// lib/utils/validation.ts
import { z } from 'zod'

export const postSchema = z.object({
  title: z.string().min(1).max(100),
  content: z.string().min(10),
  published: z.boolean().optional()
})

Building with SvelteKit and PostgreSQL has transformed how I think about web development. The combination provides both immediate performance benefits and long-term maintainability. The developer experience feels natural, and the results speak for themselves in terms of speed and reliability.

What aspects of your application could benefit from this approach? Have you considered how server-side rendering might improve your users’ experience?

I’d love to hear your thoughts and experiences with these technologies. If you found this useful, please share it with others who might benefit, and feel free to leave comments with your questions or insights.