# Introduction

## What is Nuxt?

If this is the first time your are learning about Nuxt or you want to get familiar with Nuxt 3, then we recommend to first read the [Concepts section](/concepts).

## Prerequisites

Before getting started, please make sure you have installed the recommended setup.

* **Node.js**<sup>*</sup> (latest LTS version) 👉 [[Download](https://nodejs.org/en/download/)]
* **Visual Studio Code** 👉 [[Download](https://code.visualstudio.com/)]
* **Volar Extension** 👉 [[Download](https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=johnsoncodehk.volar)]

<sup>*</sup> If you already have Node.js installed, check with `node --version` to ensure using `v14` or `v16`.

## Nuxt 3 or Bridge

You must decide if you are starting from scratch or upgrading an existing Nuxt 2 project.

### Starting a fresh Nuxt project

::list{type=info}
- Enjoy using Vue 3
- All of new composables are available
- New templating system and conventions are enabled
::

::alert{icon=👉}
Checkout the [Installation section](/getting-started/installation).
::

### Migrating a Nuxt 2 project

If you have an existing Nuxt 2 project, we **strongly recommend** to start migrating your Nuxt 2 project with Bridge module. This way you can try most of new features without opting-in to more breaking changes.

::list{type=info}
- It is risk-free! You can roll back by just commenting out one line in config
- Makes your project almost ready for Nuxt 3 migration
- Enjoy new DX improvements without major rewrites for Vue 3
- Use Nitro engine for platform agnostic and optimized deployments
- Help us stabilize Nuxt 3 and discover flows
- Bridge is more stable than Nuxt 3 at the moment for migration
::

::alert{icon=👉}
Checkout the [Bridge installation section](/getting-started/bridge).
::

### ‍Comparation

In the table below, there is a quick comparison between 3 versions of nuxt:

Feature / Version        | Nuxt 2          | Nuxt Bridge      | Nuxt 3
-------------------------|-----------------|------------------|---------
Stability                | 😊 Stable      | ☺️ Semi-stable   | 😬 Unstable
Performance              | 🐎 Fast      | 🏎 &nbsp;Faster     | 🚀 Fastest
Nitro Engine             | ❌             | ✅               | ✅
ESM support              | 🌙 Partial     | 👍 Better        | ✅
TypeScript               | ☑️ Opt-in      | 🚧 Faster        | ✅
Composition API          | ⚠️ Deprecated  | ✅               | ✅
Components Auto Import   | ✅             | ✅               | ✅
`<script setup>` syntax  | ❌             | 🚧 Partial       | ✅
Auto Imports             | ❌             | ✅               | ✅
Webpack                  | 4              | 4                | 5
Vite                     | ⚠️ Partial     | 🚧 Partial       | 🚧 Experimental
Nuxi CLI                 | ❌ Old         | ✅  nuxi          | ✅ nuxi