diff --git a/packages/bridge/src/auto-imports.ts b/packages/bridge/src/auto-imports.ts
index 6160362fac..ee7a78b762 100644
--- a/packages/bridge/src/auto-imports.ts
+++ b/packages/bridge/src/auto-imports.ts
@@ -30,6 +30,10 @@ export async function setupAutoImports () {
     // Add auto-imports that are added by ad-hoc modules in nuxt 3
     autoImports.push({ name: 'useRouter', as: 'useRouter', from: '#app' })
     autoImports.push({ name: 'useRoute', as: 'useRoute', from: '#app' })
+    autoImports.push({ name: 'addRouteMiddleware', as: 'addRouteMiddleware', from: '#app' })
+    autoImports.push({ name: 'navigateTo', as: 'navigateTo', from: '#app' })
+    autoImports.push({ name: 'abortNavigation', as: 'abortNavigation', from: '#app' })
+    autoImports.push({ name: 'defineNuxtRouteMiddleware', as: 'defineNuxtRouteMiddleware', from: '#app' })
 
     // Add bridge-only auto-imports
     autoImports.push({ name: 'useNuxt2Meta', as: 'useNuxt2Meta', from: '#app' })
diff --git a/packages/bridge/src/runtime/app.plugin.mjs b/packages/bridge/src/runtime/app.plugin.mjs
index 84e3992ee4..572b53e69e 100644
--- a/packages/bridge/src/runtime/app.plugin.mjs
+++ b/packages/bridge/src/runtime/app.plugin.mjs
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import Vue from 'vue'
 import { createHooks } from 'hookable'
-import { setNuxtAppInstance } from '#app'
+import { callWithNuxt, setNuxtAppInstance } from '#app'
 
 // Reshape payload to match key `useLazyAsyncData` expects
 function proxiedState (state) {
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ function proxiedState (state) {
   })
 }
 
-export default (ctx, inject) => {
+export default async (ctx, inject) => {
   const nuxtApp = {
     vueApp: {
       component: Vue.component.bind(Vue),
@@ -48,6 +48,27 @@ export default (ctx, inject) => {
   nuxtApp.hook = nuxtApp.hooks.hook
   nuxtApp.callHook = nuxtApp.hooks.callHook
 
+  const middleware = await import('#build/middleware').then(r => r.default)
+  nuxtApp._middleware = nuxtApp._middleware || {
+    global: [],
+    named: middleware
+  }
+
+  ctx.app.router.beforeEach(async (to, from, next) => {
+    nuxtApp._processingMiddleware = true
+
+    for (const middleware of nuxtApp._middleware.global) {
+      const result = await callWithNuxt(nuxtApp, middleware, [to, from])
+      if (result || result === false) { return next(result) }
+    }
+
+    next()
+  })
+
+  ctx.app.router.afterEach(() => {
+    delete nuxtApp._processingMiddleware
+  })
+
   if (!Array.isArray(ctx.app.created)) {
     ctx.app.created = [ctx.app.created].filter(Boolean)
   }
diff --git a/packages/bridge/src/runtime/app.ts b/packages/bridge/src/runtime/app.ts
index bbd0948328..61d2fa9f65 100644
--- a/packages/bridge/src/runtime/app.ts
+++ b/packages/bridge/src/runtime/app.ts
@@ -58,12 +58,24 @@ export const setNuxtAppInstance = (nuxt: NuxtAppCompat | null) => {
   currentNuxtAppInstance = nuxt
 }
 
-export function defineNuxtPlugin (plugin: (nuxtApp: NuxtAppCompat) => void): (ctx: Context) => void {
-  return (ctx) => {
-    setNuxtAppInstance(ctx.$_nuxtApp)
-    plugin(ctx.$_nuxtApp)
+/**
+ * Ensures that the setup function passed in has access to the Nuxt instance via `useNuxt`.
+ *
+ * @param nuxt A Nuxt instance
+ * @param setup The function to call
+ */
+export function callWithNuxt<T extends (...args: any[]) => any> (nuxt: NuxtAppCompat, setup: T, args?: Parameters<T>) {
+  setNuxtAppInstance(nuxt)
+  const p: ReturnType<T> = args ? setup(...args as Parameters<T>) : setup()
+  if (process.server) {
+    // Unset nuxt instance to prevent context-sharing in server-side
     setNuxtAppInstance(null)
   }
+  return p
+}
+
+export function defineNuxtPlugin (plugin: (nuxtApp: NuxtAppCompat) => void): (ctx: Context) => void {
+  return ctx => callWithNuxt(ctx.$_nuxtApp, plugin, [ctx.$_nuxtApp])
 }
 
 export const useNuxtApp = (): NuxtAppCompat => {
diff --git a/packages/bridge/src/runtime/composables.ts b/packages/bridge/src/runtime/composables.ts
index 4356b64cb8..1773bfe343 100644
--- a/packages/bridge/src/runtime/composables.ts
+++ b/packages/bridge/src/runtime/composables.ts
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ import { getCurrentInstance, onBeforeUnmount, isRef, watch, reactive, toRef, isR
 import type { CombinedVueInstance } from 'vue/types/vue'
 import type { MetaInfo } from 'vue-meta'
 import type VueRouter from 'vue-router'
-import type { Route } from 'vue-router'
+import type { Location, Route } from 'vue-router'
 import type { RuntimeConfig } from '@nuxt/schema'
 import defu from 'defu'
 import { useNuxtApp } from './app'
@@ -141,3 +141,69 @@ export const useNuxt2Meta = (metaOptions: Reffed<MetaInfo> | (() => Reffed<MetaI
     }
   }
 }
+
+export interface AddRouteMiddlewareOptions {
+  global?: boolean
+}
+
+/** internal */
+function convertToLegacyMiddleware (middleware) {
+  return async (ctx: any) => {
+    const result = await middleware(ctx.route, ctx.from)
+    if (result instanceof Error) {
+      return ctx.error(result)
+    }
+    if (result) {
+      return ctx.redirect(result)
+    }
+    return result
+  }
+}
+
+export const addRouteMiddleware = (name: string, middleware: any, options: AddRouteMiddlewareOptions = {}) => {
+  const nuxtApp = useNuxtApp()
+  if (options.global) {
+    nuxtApp._middleware.global.push(middleware)
+  } else {
+    nuxtApp._middleware.named[name] = convertToLegacyMiddleware(middleware)
+  }
+}
+
+const isProcessingMiddleware = () => {
+  try {
+    if (useNuxtApp()._processingMiddleware) {
+      return true
+    }
+  } catch {
+    // Within an async middleware
+    return true
+  }
+  return false
+}
+
+export const navigateTo = (to: Route) => {
+  if (isProcessingMiddleware()) {
+    return to
+  }
+  const router: VueRouter = process.server ? useRouter() : (window as any).$nuxt.router
+  return router.push(to)
+}
+
+/** This will abort navigation within a Nuxt route middleware handler. */
+export const abortNavigation = (err?: Error | string) => {
+  if (process.dev && !isProcessingMiddleware()) {
+    throw new Error('abortNavigation() is only usable inside a route middleware handler.')
+  }
+  if (err) {
+    throw err instanceof Error ? err : new Error(err)
+  }
+  return false
+}
+
+type RouteMiddlewareReturn = void | Error | string | Location | boolean
+
+export interface RouteMiddleware {
+  (to: Route, from: Route): RouteMiddlewareReturn | Promise<RouteMiddlewareReturn>
+}
+
+export const defineNuxtRouteMiddleware = (middleware: RouteMiddleware) => middleware
diff --git a/packages/nuxt3/src/pages/runtime/composables.ts b/packages/nuxt3/src/pages/runtime/composables.ts
index 8d9a204a86..c09b9f2079 100644
--- a/packages/nuxt3/src/pages/runtime/composables.ts
+++ b/packages/nuxt3/src/pages/runtime/composables.ts
@@ -60,7 +60,10 @@ const isProcessingMiddleware = () => {
     if (useNuxtApp()._processingMiddleware) {
       return true
     }
-  } catch {}
+  } catch {
+    // Within an async middleware
+    return true
+  }
   return false
 }