# How I Structured My Next.js 14 App Router Project — And Why It Scales

> Source: <https://dev.to/ifehdelight/how-i-structured-my-nextjs-14-app-router-project-and-why-it-scales-4e09>
> Published: 2026-06-30 20:58:51+00:00

Most Next.js tutorials show you how to start a project.

None of them show you how to *organize* one that won't fall apart at scale.

Here's the exact structure I'm using for Softchic — a template

marketplace I'm currently building — and the reasoning behind every folder.

```
src/
├── app/
│   ├── (auth)/
│   │   ├── login/
│   │   │   └── page.tsx
│   │   └── register/
│   │       └── page.tsx
│   ├── (main)/
│   │   ├── browse/
│   │   │   └── page.tsx
│   │   └── templates/
│   │       └── [slug]/
│   │           └── page.tsx
│   ├── layout.tsx
│   ├── page.tsx
│   └── globals.css
├── components/
│   ├── ui/
│   ├── shared/
│   │   ├── Navbar.tsx
│   │   └── Footer.tsx
│   └── sections/
│       ├── Hero.tsx
│       └── BrowseSection.tsx
├── lib/
│   └── utils.ts
├── hooks/
├── types/
└── config/
    └── site.ts
```

`app/`

with Route Groups

Route groups (folders wrapped in parentheses like `(auth)`

and `(main)`

)

let you organize pages without affecting the URL.

`/app/(auth)/login/page.tsx`

still resolves to `/login`

in the browser —

the `(auth)`

folder is invisible to the router.

This keeps related pages grouped without polluting your URLs.

`components/ui/`

This is where shadcn/ui drops its components when you run:

```
npx shadcn@latest add button
```

Never manually edit these — treat them as a local library.

`components/shared/`

Global components used across multiple pages — Navbar, Footer,

modals that appear everywhere. If it's reused on more than two pages,

it lives here.

`components/sections/`

Page-specific sections like `Hero.tsx`

or `BrowseSection.tsx`

.

These are too large to live inside a page file but too specific

to be "shared." This folder keeps your `page.tsx`

files clean.

`lib/utils.ts`

Utility functions — shadcn auto-generates a `cn()`

helper here for

merging Tailwind classes. Add your own helpers here too.

`hooks/`

Custom React hooks. As your app grows, logic like `useCart()`

,

`useCurrency()`

, or `useAuth()`

belongs here — not inside components.

`types/`

All your TypeScript interfaces and types in one place.

When your `Template`

type is used in 6 different files,

you define it once here and import it everywhere.

`config/site.ts`

Site-wide constants — your app name, description, social links,

base URL. One file to update when things change.

``` js
export const siteConfig = {
  name: "Softchic",
  description: "Premium website templates for developers and businesses.",
  url: "#",
  links: {
    twitter: "https://x.com/ifehdelight",
  },
}
```

If a file is used in more than two places — it gets its own home.

If a component is longer than 150 lines — it gets broken up.

That's it. Simple rules prevent messy codebases.

This is the foundation Softchic is being built on.

Next post I'm breaking down how Tailwind CSS v4 changes

the way you write styles — and what actually surprised me.

**The Softchic waitlist drops soon — follow me here on Dev.to
so you don't miss it.**

— Delight | Founder, Softchic

[@ifehdelight](https://x.com/ifehdelight) on X