---
title: "<NuxtLink>"
description: "Nuxt provides <NuxtLink> component to handle any kind of links within your application."
links:
  - label: Source
    icon: i-simple-icons-github
    to: https://github.com/nuxt/nuxt/blob/main/packages/nuxt/src/app/components/nuxt-link.ts
    size: xs
---

::note
`<NuxtLink>` is a drop-in replacement for both Vue Router's `<RouterLink>` component and HTML's `<a>` tag. It intelligently determines whether the link is _internal_ or _external_ and renders it accordingly with available optimizations (prefetching, default attributes, etc.)
::

## Internal Routing

In this example, we use `<NuxtLink>` component to link to another page of the application.

```vue [pages/index.vue]
<template>
  <NuxtLink to="/about">
    About page
  </NuxtLink>
  <!-- <a href="/about">...</a> (+Vue Router & prefetching) -->
</template>
```

### Handling 404s

When using `<NuxtLink>` for `/public` directory files or when pointing to a different app on the same domain, you should use the `external` prop.

Using `external` forces the link to be rendered as an `a` tag instead of a Vue Router `RouterLink`.

```vue [pages/index.vue]
<template>
  <NuxtLink to="/the-important-report.pdf" external>
    Download Report
  </NuxtLink>
  <!-- <a href="/the-important-report.pdf"></a> -->
</template>
```

The external logic is applied by default when using absolute URLs and when providing a `target` prop.

## External Routing

In this example, we use `<NuxtLink>` component to link to a website.

```vue [app.vue]
<template>
  <NuxtLink to="https://nuxtjs.org">
    Nuxt website
  </NuxtLink>
  <!-- <a href="https://nuxtjs.org" rel="noopener noreferrer">...</a> -->
</template>
```

## `target` and `rel` Attributes

A `rel` attribute of `noopener noreferrer` is applied by default to absolute links and links that open in new tabs.
- `noopener` solves a [security bug](https://mathiasbynens.github.io/rel-noopener/) in older browsers.
- `noreferrer` improves privacy for your users by not sending the `Referer` header to the linked site.

These defaults have no negative impact on SEO and are considered [best practice](https://developer.chrome.com/docs/lighthouse/best-practices/external-anchors-use-rel-noopener).

When you need to overwrite this behavior you can use the `rel` and `noRel` props.

```vue [app.vue]
<template>
  <NuxtLink to="https://twitter.com/nuxt_js" target="_blank">
    Nuxt Twitter
  </NuxtLink>
  <!-- <a href="https://twitter.com/nuxt_js" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">...</a> -->

  <NuxtLink to="https://discord.nuxtjs.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener">
    Nuxt Discord
  </NuxtLink>
  <!-- <a href="https://discord.nuxtjs.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener">...</a> -->

  <NuxtLink to="https://github.com/nuxt" no-rel>
    Nuxt GitHub
  </NuxtLink>
  <!-- <a href="https://github.com/nuxt">...</a> -->

  <NuxtLink to="/contact" target="_blank">
    Contact page opens in another tab
  </NuxtLink>
  <!-- <a href="/contact" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">...</a> -->
</template>
```

## Props

### RouterLink

When not using `external`, `<NuxtLink>` supports all Vue Router's [`RouterLink` props](https://router.vuejs.org/api/interfaces/RouterLinkProps.html)

- `to`: Any URL or a [route location object](https://router.vuejs.org/api/interfaces/RouteLocation.html) from Vue Router
- `custom`: Whether `<NuxtLink>` should wrap its content in an `<a>` element. It allows taking full control of how a link is rendered and how navigation works when it is clicked. Works the same as [Vue Router's `custom` prop](https://router.vuejs.org/api/interfaces/RouterLinkProps.html#Properties-custom)
- `exactActiveClass`: A class to apply on exact active links. Works the same as [Vue Router's `exact-active-class` prop](https://router.vuejs.org/api/interfaces/RouterLinkProps.html#Properties-exactActiveClass) on internal links. Defaults to Vue Router's default `"router-link-exact-active"`)
- `replace`: Works the same as [Vue Router's `replace` prop](https://router.vuejs.org/api/interfaces/RouteLocationOptions.html#Properties-replace) on internal links
- `ariaCurrentValue`: An `aria-current` attribute value to apply on exact active links. Works the same as [Vue Router's `aria-current-value` prop](https://router.vuejs.org/api/interfaces/RouterLinkProps.html#Properties-ariaCurrentValue) on internal links
- `activeClass`: A class to apply on active links. Works the same as [Vue Router's `active-class` prop](https://router.vuejs.org/api/interfaces/RouterLinkProps.html#Properties-activeClass) on internal links. Defaults to Vue Router's default (`"router-link-active"`)

### NuxtLink

- `href`: An alias for `to`. If used with `to`, `href` will be ignored
- `noRel`: If set to `true`, no `rel` attribute will be added to the link
- `external`: Forces the link to be rendered as an `a` tag instead of a Vue Router `RouterLink`.
- `prefetch`: When enabled will prefetch middleware, layouts and payloads (when using [payloadExtraction](/docs/api/nuxt-config#crossoriginprefetch)) of links in the viewport. Used by the experimental [crossOriginPrefetch](/docs/api/nuxt-config#crossoriginprefetch) config.
- `noPrefetch`: Disables prefetching.
- `prefetchedClass`: A class to apply to links that have been prefetched.

### Anchor

- `target`: A `target` attribute value to apply on the link
- `rel`: A `rel` attribute value to apply on the link. Defaults to `"noopener noreferrer"` for external links.

::tip
Defaults can be overwritten, see [overwriting defaults](#overwriting-defaults) if you want to change them.
::

## Overwriting Defaults

### In Nuxt Config

You can overwrite some `<NuxtLink>` defaults in your [`nuxt.config`](https://nuxt.com/docs/api/nuxt-config#defaults)

::important
These options will likely be moved elsewhere in the future, such as into `app.config` or into the `app/` directory.
::

```ts [nuxt.config.ts]
export default defineNuxtConfig({
  experimental: {
    defaults: {
      nuxtLink: {
        // default values
        componentName: 'NuxtLink',
        externalRelAttribute: 'noopener noreferrer',
        activeClass: 'router-link-active',
        exactActiveClass: 'router-link-exact-active',
        prefetchedClass: undefined, // can be any valid string class name
        trailingSlash: undefined // can be 'append' or 'remove'
      }
    }
  }
})
```

### Custom Link Component

You can overwrite `<NuxtLink>` defaults by creating your own link component using `defineNuxtLink`.

```js [components/MyNuxtLink.ts]
export default defineNuxtLink({
  componentName: 'MyNuxtLink',
  /* see signature below for more */
})
```

You can then use `<MyNuxtLink />` component as usual with your new defaults.

### `defineNuxtLink` Signature

```ts
interface NuxtLinkOptions {
  componentName?: string;
  externalRelAttribute?: string;
  activeClass?: string;
  exactActiveClass?: string;
  prefetchedClass?: string;
  trailingSlash?: 'append' | 'remove'
}
function defineNuxtLink(options: NuxtLinkOptions): Component {}
```

- `componentName`: A name for the component. Default is `NuxtLink`.
- `externalRelAttribute`: A default `rel` attribute value applied on external links. Defaults to `"noopener noreferrer"`. Set it to `""` to disable
- `activeClass`: A default class to apply on active links. Works the same as [Vue Router's `linkActiveClass` option](https://router.vuejs.org/api/interfaces/RouterOptions.html#Properties-linkActiveClass). Defaults to Vue Router's default (`"router-link-active"`)
- `exactActiveClass`: A default class to apply on exact active links. Works the same as [Vue Router's `linkExactActiveClass` option](https://router.vuejs.org/api/interfaces/RouterOptions.html#Properties-linkExactActiveClass). Defaults to Vue Router's default (`"router-link-exact-active"`)
- `prefetchedClass`: A default class to apply to links that have been prefetched.
- `trailingSlash`: An option to either add or remove trailing slashes in the `href`. If unset or not matching the valid values `append` or `remove`, it will be ignored.

:link-example{to="/docs/examples/routing/pages"}