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Nestjs Best Practices by ejirocodes

Name: Nestjs Best Practices
Rating: 4.2 (5 reviews)
Author: ejirocodes

Nestjs Best Practices

NestJS 11+ best practices for enterprise Node.js applications with TypeScript. Use when writing, reviewing, or refactoring NestJS controllers, services, modules, or APIs. Triggers on: NestJS modules, controllers, providers, dependency injection, @Injectable, @Controller, @Module, middleware, guards, interceptors, pipes, exception filters, ValidationPipe, class-validator, class-transformer, DTOs, JWT authentication, Passport strategies, @nestjs/passport, TypeORM entities, Prisma client, Drizzle ORM, repository pattern, circular dependencies, forwardRef, @nestjs/swagger, OpenAPI decorators, GraphQL resolvers, @nestjs/graphql, microservices, TCP transport, Redis transport, NATS, Kafka, NestJS 11 breaking changes, Express v5 migration, custom decorators, ConfigService, @nestjs/config, health checks, or NestJS testing patterns.

ejirocodes Updated Sep 10, 2026

File contents

NestJS 11 Best Practices

Quick Reference

Topic	When to Use	Reference
Core Architecture	Modules, Providers, DI, forwardRef, custom decorators	core-architecture.md
Request Lifecycle	Middleware, Guards, Interceptors, Pipes, Filters	request-lifecycle.md
Validation & Pipes	DTOs, class-validator, ValidationPipe, transforms	validation-pipes.md
Authentication	JWT, Passport, Guards, Local/OAuth strategies, RBAC	authentication.md
Database	TypeORM, Prisma, Drizzle ORM, repository patterns	database-integration.md
Testing	Unit tests, E2E tests, mocking providers	testing.md
OpenAPI & GraphQL	Swagger decorators, resolvers, subscriptions	openapi-graphql.md
Microservices	TCP, Redis, NATS, Kafka patterns	microservices.md

Essential Patterns

Module with Providers

@Module({
  imports: [DatabaseModule],
  controllers: [UsersController],
  providers: [UsersService],
  exports: [UsersService], // Export for other modules
})
export class UsersModule {}

Controller with Validation

@Controller('users')
export class UsersController {
  constructor(private readonly usersService: UsersService) {}

  @Post()
  create(@Body() createUserDto: CreateUserDto) {
    return this.usersService.create(createUserDto);
  }

  @Get(':id')
  findOne(@Param('id', ParseIntPipe) id: number) {
    return this.usersService.findOne(id);
  }
}

DTO with Validation

import { IsEmail, IsString, MinLength, IsOptional } from 'class-validator';

export class CreateUserDto {
  @IsEmail()
  email: string;

  @IsString()
  @MinLength(8)
  password: string;

  @IsOptional()
  @IsString()
  name?: string;
}

Exception Filter

@Catch(HttpException)
export class HttpExceptionFilter implements ExceptionFilter {
  catch(exception: HttpException, host: ArgumentsHost) {
    const ctx = host.switchToHttp();
    const response = ctx.getResponse<Response>();
    const status = exception.getStatus();

    response.status(status).json({
      statusCode: status,
      message: exception.message,
      timestamp: new Date().toISOString(),
    });
  }
}

Guard with JWT

@Injectable()
export class JwtAuthGuard extends AuthGuard('jwt') {
  canActivate(context: ExecutionContext) {
    return super.canActivate(context);
  }
}

NestJS 11 Breaking Changes

Express v5: Wildcards must be named (e.g., *splat), optional params use braces /:file{.:ext}
Node.js 20+: Minimum required version
Fastify v5: Updated adapter for Fastify users
Dynamic Modules: Same module with identical config imported multiple times = separate instances

Common Mistakes

Not using forwardRef() for circular deps - Causes "cannot resolve dependency" errors; wrap in forwardRef(() => ModuleName)
Throwing plain errors instead of HttpException - Loses status codes, breaks exception filters; use throw new BadRequestException('message')
Missing @Injectable() decorator - Provider won't be injectable; always decorate services
Global ValidationPipe without whitelist: true - Allows unexpected properties; set whitelist: true, forbidNonWhitelisted: true
Importing modules instead of exporting providers - Use exports array to share providers across modules
Async config without ConfigModule.forRoot() - ConfigService undefined; import ConfigModule in AppModule
Testing without overrideProvider() - Uses real services in unit tests; mock dependencies with overrideProvider(Service).useValue(mock)
E2E tests sharing database state - No isolation between tests; use transactions or truncate tables in beforeEach

---name: nestjs-best-practicesdescription: NestJS 11+ best practices for enterprise Node.js applications with TypeScript. Use when writing, reviewing, or refactoring NestJS controllers, services, modules, or APIs. Triggers on: NestJS modules, controllers, providers, dependency injection, @Injectable, @Controller, @Module, middleware, guards, interceptors, pipes, exception filters, ValidationPipe, class-validator, class-transformer, DTOs, JWT authentication, Passport strategies, @nestjs/passport, TypeORM entities, Prisma client, Drizzle ORM, repository pattern, circular dependencies, forwardRef, @nestjs/swagger, OpenAPI decorators, GraphQL resolvers, @nestjs/graphql, microservices, TCP transport, Redis transport, NATS, Kafka, NestJS 11 breaking changes, Express v5 migration, custom decorators, ConfigService, @nestjs/config, health checks, or NestJS testing patterns.license: MIT---# NestJS 11 Best Practices## Quick Reference| Topic | When to Use | Reference ||-------|-------------|-----------|| **Core Architecture** | Modules, Providers, DI, forwardRef, custom decorators | [core-architecture.md](references/core-architecture.md) || **Request Lifecycle** | Middleware, Guards, Interceptors, Pipes, Filters | [request-lifecycle.md](references/request-lifecycle.md) || **Validation & Pipes** | DTOs, class-validator, ValidationPipe, transforms | [validation-pipes.md](references/validation-pipes.md) || **Authentication** | JWT, Passport, Guards, Local/OAuth strategies, RBAC | [authentication.md](references/authentication.md) || **Database** | TypeORM, Prisma, Drizzle ORM, repository patterns | [database-integration.md](references/database-integration.md) || **Testing** | Unit tests, E2E tests, mocking providers | [testing.md](references/testing.md) || **OpenAPI & GraphQL** | Swagger decorators, resolvers, subscriptions | [openapi-graphql.md](references/openapi-graphql.md) || **Microservices** | TCP, Redis, NATS, Kafka patterns | [microservices.md](references/microservices.md) |## Essential Patterns### Module with Providers```typescript@Module({ imports: [DatabaseModule], controllers: [UsersController], providers: [UsersService], exports: [UsersService], // Export for other modules})export class UsersModule {}```### Controller with Validation```typescript@Controller('users')export class UsersController { constructor(private readonly usersService: UsersService) {} @Post() create(@Body() createUserDto: CreateUserDto) { return this.usersService.create(createUserDto); } @Get(':id') findOne(@Param('id', ParseIntPipe) id: number) { return this.usersService.findOne(id); }}```### DTO with Validation```typescriptimport { IsEmail, IsString, MinLength, IsOptional } from 'class-validator';export class CreateUserDto { @IsEmail() email: string; @IsString() @MinLength(8) password: string; @IsOptional() @IsString() name?: string;}```### Exception Filter```typescript@Catch(HttpException)export class HttpExceptionFilter implements ExceptionFilter { catch(exception: HttpException, host: ArgumentsHost) { const ctx = host.switchToHttp(); const response = ctx.getResponse<Response>(); const status = exception.getStatus(); response.status(status).json({ statusCode: status, message: exception.message, timestamp: new Date().toISOString(), }); }}```### Guard with JWT```typescript@Injectable()export class JwtAuthGuard extends AuthGuard('jwt') { canActivate(context: ExecutionContext) { return super.canActivate(context); }}```## NestJS 11 Breaking Changes- **Express v5**: Wildcards must be named (e.g., `*splat`), optional params use braces `/:file{.:ext}`- **Node.js 20+**: Minimum required version- **Fastify v5**: Updated adapter for Fastify users- **Dynamic Modules**: Same module with identical config imported multiple times = separate instances## Common Mistakes1. **Not using `forwardRef()` for circular deps** - Causes "cannot resolve dependency" errors; wrap in `forwardRef(() => ModuleName)`2. **Throwing plain errors instead of HttpException** - Loses status codes, breaks exception filters; use `throw new BadRequestException('message')`3. **Missing `@Injectable()` decorator** - Provider won't be injectable; always decorate services4. **Global ValidationPipe without `whitelist: true`** - Allows unexpected properties; set `whitelist: true, forbidNonWhitelisted: true`5. **Importing modules instead of exporting providers** - Use `exports` array to share providers across modules6. **Async config without `ConfigModule.forRoot()`** - ConfigService undefined; import ConfigModule in AppModule7. **Testing without `overrideProvider()`** - Uses real services in unit tests; mock dependencies with `overrideProvider(Service).useValue(mock)`8. **E2E tests sharing database state** - No isolation between tests; use transactions or truncate tables in beforeEach

Frequently asked questions