Does Django Work With Netlify?
Django and Netlify can work together, but Netlify is optimized for static/JAMstack sites and serverless functions, not traditional Django server deployments.
Quick Facts
How Django Works With Netlify
Django is a full-stack framework designed to run as a persistent server, while Netlify is built for static site generation and serverless functions. You can integrate them in two main ways: (1) Use Django as a headless backend API deployed elsewhere (Heroku, Railway, AWS Lambda via Zappa), with Netlify hosting your frontend and calling the API, or (2) Deploy Django functions to Netlify Functions (AWS Lambda), though this requires restructuring your app into stateless handlers and isn't ideal for Django's request/response model. The headless approach is far more practical—Django excels at this, providing a REST/GraphQL API while Netlify serves your frontend framework (React, Vue, etc.) with excellent performance and built-in CI/CD. The serverless approach creates friction because Django expects a long-running process with middleware, ORM session management, and database connections, none of which translate cleanly to function-as-a-service cold starts and timeouts. Most developers choose the headless split: Django backend on traditional hosting, Netlify for the frontend.
Best Use Cases
Django REST API + Netlify Frontend Pattern
pip install django djangorestframework django-cors-headers# Django settings.py
INSTALLED_APPS = [
'django.contrib.auth',
'django.contrib.contenttypes',
'rest_framework',
'corsheaders',
]
MIDDLEWARE = [
'corsheaders.middleware.CorsMiddleware',
'django.middleware.common.CommonMiddleware',
]
CORS_ALLOWED_ORIGINS = [
'https://your-netlify-site.netlify.app',
'http://localhost:3000',
]
# urls.py
from rest_framework.routers import DefaultRouter
from .views import ItemViewSet
router = DefaultRouter()
router.register(r'items', ItemViewSet)
urlpatterns = [
path('api/', include(router.urls)),
]
# On Netlify frontend (JavaScript fetch)
const response = await fetch('https://your-django-api.com/api/items/')
const data = await response.json()Known Issues & Gotchas
Django is stateful; Netlify Functions are stateless and cold-start frequently, breaking sessions/middleware assumptions
Fix: Don't try to run full Django on Functions. Deploy Django to a traditional server (Heroku, Railway, AWS EC2) and use Netlify for the frontend only.
CORS issues when frontend (Netlify) calls Django API on different domain
Fix: Add django-cors-headers to your Django settings and configure ALLOWED_ORIGINS to include your Netlify domain.
Database connections can't persist across Netlify Function invocations, causing connection pool exhaustion
Fix: Use Django ORM with connection pooling (pgbouncer for PostgreSQL) or switch to serverless-optimized databases (DynamoDB, Firebase).
Environment variables and secrets in Netlify build must be managed separately from Django backend
Fix: Use Netlify environment variables for frontend config and manage Django secrets on your backend hosting platform.
Alternatives
- •Next.js with Django API backend (Django provides API, Next.js handles SSR/static generation)
- •Vercel + Django (similar to Netlify, better for Next.js but also supports serverless Python)
- •Svelte Kit on Netlify + Django API (lightweight frontend framework with strong Netlify integration)
Resources
Related Compatibility Guides
Explore more compatibility guides