name: payload description: Use when working with Payload CMS projects (payload.config.ts, collections, fields, hooks, access control, Payload API). Use when debugging validation errors, security issues, relationship queries, transactions, or hook behavior.

Payload CMS Application Development

Payload is a Next.js native CMS with TypeScript-first architecture, providing admin panel, database management, REST/GraphQL APIs, authentication, and file storage.

Quick Reference

Task	Solution	Details
Auto-generate slugs	`slugField()`	FIELDS.md#slug-field-helper
Restrict content by user	Access control with query	ACCESS-CONTROL.md#row-level-security-with-complex-queries
Local API user ops	`user` + `overrideAccess: false`	QUERIES.md#access-control-in-local-api
Draft/publish workflow	`versions: { drafts: true }`	COLLECTIONS.md#versioning--drafts
Computed fields	`virtual: true` with afterRead	FIELDS.md#virtual-fields
Conditional fields	`admin.condition`	FIELDS.md#conditional-fields
Custom field validation	`validate` function	FIELDS.md#validation
Filter relationship list	`filterOptions` on field	FIELDS.md#relationship
Select specific fields	`select` parameter	QUERIES.md#field-selection
Auto-set author/dates	beforeChange hook	HOOKS.md#collection-hooks
Prevent hook loops	`req.context` check	HOOKS.md#context
Cascading deletes	beforeDelete hook	HOOKS.md#collection-hooks
Geospatial queries	`point` field with `near`/`within`	FIELDS.md#point-geolocation
Reverse relationships	`join` field type	FIELDS.md#join-fields
Next.js revalidation	Context control in afterChange	HOOKS.md#nextjs-revalidation-with-context-control
Query by relationship	Nested property syntax	QUERIES.md#nested-properties
Complex queries	AND/OR logic	QUERIES.md#andor-logic
Transactions	Pass `req` to operations	ADAPTERS.md#threading-req-through-operations
Background jobs	Jobs queue with tasks	ADVANCED.md#jobs-queue
Custom API routes	Collection custom endpoints	ADVANCED.md#custom-endpoints
Cloud storage	Storage adapter plugins	ADAPTERS.md#storage-adapters
Multi-language	`localization` config + `localized: true`	ADVANCED.md#localization
Create plugin	`(options) => (config) => Config`	PLUGIN-DEVELOPMENT.md#plugin-architecture
Plugin package setup	Package structure with SWC	PLUGIN-DEVELOPMENT.md#plugin-package-structure
Add fields to collection	Map collections, spread fields	PLUGIN-DEVELOPMENT.md#adding-fields-to-collections
Plugin hooks	Preserve existing hooks in array	PLUGIN-DEVELOPMENT.md#adding-hooks
Check field type	Type guard functions	FIELD-TYPE-GUARDS.md

Quick Start

npx create-payload-app@latest my-app
cd my-app
pnpm dev

Minimal Config

import { buildConfig } from 'payload'
import { mongooseAdapter } from '@payloadcms/db-mongodb'
import { lexicalEditor } from '@payloadcms/richtext-lexical'
import path from 'path'
import { fileURLToPath } from 'url'

const filename = fileURLToPath(import.meta.url)
const dirname = path.dirname(filename)

export default buildConfig({
  admin: {
    user: 'users',
    importMap: {
      baseDir: path.resolve(dirname),
    },
  },
  collections: [Users, Media],
  editor: lexicalEditor(),
  secret: process.env.PAYLOAD_SECRET,
  typescript: {
    outputFile: path.resolve(dirname, 'payload-types.ts'),
  },
  db: mongooseAdapter({
    url: process.env.DATABASE_URL,
  }),
})

Essential Patterns

Basic Collection

import type { CollectionConfig } from 'payload'

export const Posts: CollectionConfig = {
  slug: 'posts',
  admin: {
    useAsTitle: 'title',
    defaultColumns: ['title', 'author', 'status', 'createdAt'],
  },
  fields: [
    { name: 'title', type: 'text', required: true },
    { name: 'slug', type: 'text', unique: true, index: true },
    { name: 'content', type: 'richText' },
    { name: 'author', type: 'relationship', relationTo: 'users' },
  ],
  timestamps: true,
}

For more collection patterns (auth, upload, drafts, live preview), see COLLECTIONS.md.

Common Fields

// Text field
{ name: 'title', type: 'text', required: true }

// Relationship
{ name: 'author', type: 'relationship', relationTo: 'users', required: true }

// Rich text
{ name: 'content', type: 'richText', required: true }

// Select
{ name: 'status', type: 'select', options: ['draft', 'published'], defaultValue: 'draft' }

// Upload
{ name: 'image', type: 'upload', relationTo: 'media' }

For all field types (array, blocks, point, join, virtual, conditional, etc.), see FIELDS.md.

Hook Example

export const Posts: CollectionConfig = {
  slug: 'posts',
  hooks: {
    beforeChange: [
      async ({ data, operation }) => {
        if (operation === 'create') {
          data.slug = slugify(data.title)
        }
        return data
      },
    ],
  },
  fields: [{ name: 'title', type: 'text' }],
}

For all hook patterns, see HOOKS.md. For access control, see ACCESS-CONTROL.md.

Access Control with Type Safety

import type { Access } from 'payload'
import type { User } from '@/payload-types'

// Type-safe access control
export const adminOnly: Access = ({ req }) => {
  const user = req.user as User
  return user?.roles?.includes('admin') || false
}

// Row-level access control
export const ownPostsOnly: Access = ({ req }) => {
  const user = req.user as User
  if (!user) return false
  if (user.roles?.includes('admin')) return true

  return {
    author: { equals: user.id },
  }
}

Query Example

// Local API
const posts = await payload.find({
  collection: 'posts',
  where: {
    status: { equals: 'published' },
    'author.name': { contains: 'john' },
  },
  depth: 2,
  limit: 10,
  sort: '-createdAt',
})

// Query with populated relationships
const post = await payload.findByID({
  collection: 'posts',
  id: '123',
  depth: 2, // Populates relationships (default is 2)
})
// Returns: { author: { id: "user123", name: "John" } }

// Without depth, relationships return IDs only
const post = await payload.findByID({
  collection: 'posts',
  id: '123',
  depth: 0,
})
// Returns: { author: "user123" }

For all query operators and REST/GraphQL examples, see QUERIES.md.

Getting Payload Instance

// In API routes (Next.js)
import { getPayload } from 'payload'
import config from '@payload-config'

export async function GET() {
  const payload = await getPayload({ config })

  const posts = await payload.find({
    collection: 'posts',
  })

  return Response.json(posts)
}

// In Server Components
import { getPayload } from 'payload'
import config from '@payload-config'

export default async function Page() {
  const payload = await getPayload({ config })
  const { docs } = await payload.find({ collection: 'posts' })

  return <div>{docs.map(post => <h1 key={post.id}>{post.title}</h1>)}</div>
}

Security Pitfalls

1. Local API Access Control (CRITICAL)

By default, Local API operations bypass ALL access control, even when passing a user.

// ❌ SECURITY BUG: Passes user but ignores their permissions
await payload.find({
  collection: 'posts',
  user: someUser, // Access control is BYPASSED!
})

// ✅ SECURE: Actually enforces the user's permissions
await payload.find({
  collection: 'posts',
  user: someUser,
  overrideAccess: false, // REQUIRED for access control
})

When to use each:

overrideAccess: true (default) - Server-side operations you trust (cron jobs, system tasks)
overrideAccess: false - When operating on behalf of a user (API routes, webhooks)

See QUERIES.md#access-control-in-local-api.

2. Transaction Failures in Hooks

Nested operations in hooks without req break transaction atomicity.

// ❌ DATA CORRUPTION RISK: Separate transaction
hooks: {
  afterChange: [
    async ({ doc, req }) => {
      await req.payload.create({
        collection: 'audit-log',
        data: { docId: doc.id },
        // Missing req - runs in separate transaction!
      })
    },
  ]
}

// ✅ ATOMIC: Same transaction
hooks: {
  afterChange: [
    async ({ doc, req }) => {
      await req.payload.create({
        collection: 'audit-log',
        data: { docId: doc.id },
        req, // Maintains atomicity
      })
    },
  ]
}

See ADAPTERS.md#threading-req-through-operations.

3. Infinite Hook Loops

Hooks triggering operations that trigger the same hooks create infinite loops.

// ❌ INFINITE LOOP
hooks: {
  afterChange: [
    async ({ doc, req }) => {
      await req.payload.update({
        collection: 'posts',
        id: doc.id,
        data: { views: doc.views + 1 },
        req,
      }) // Triggers afterChange again!
    },
  ]
}

// ✅ SAFE: Use context flag
hooks: {
  afterChange: [
    async ({ doc, req, context }) => {
      if (context.skipHooks) return

      await req.payload.update({
        collection: 'posts',
        id: doc.id,
        data: { views: doc.views + 1 },
        context: { skipHooks: true },
        req,
      })
    },
  ]
}

See HOOKS.md#context.

Project Structure

src/
├── app/
│   ├── (frontend)/
│   │   └── page.tsx
│   └── (payload)/
│       └── admin/[[...segments]]/page.tsx
├── collections/
│   ├── Posts.ts
│   ├── Media.ts
│   └── Users.ts
├── globals/
│   └── Header.ts
├── components/
│   └── CustomField.tsx
├── hooks/
│   └── slugify.ts
└── payload.config.ts

Type Generation

// payload.config.ts
export default buildConfig({
  typescript: {
    outputFile: path.resolve(dirname, 'payload-types.ts'),
  },
  // ...
})

// Usage
import type { Post, User } from '@/payload-types'

Reference Documentation

FIELDS.md - All field types, validation, admin options
FIELD-TYPE-GUARDS.md - Type guards for runtime field type checking and narrowing
COLLECTIONS.md - Collection configs, auth, upload, drafts, live preview
HOOKS.md - Collection hooks, field hooks, context patterns
ACCESS-CONTROL.md - Collection, field, global access control, RBAC, multi-tenant
ACCESS-CONTROL-ADVANCED.md - Context-aware, time-based, subscription-based access, factory functions, templates
QUERIES.md - Query operators, Local/REST/GraphQL APIs
ENDPOINTS.md - Custom API endpoints: authentication, helpers, request/response patterns
ADAPTERS.md - Database, storage, email adapters, transactions
ADVANCED.md - Authentication, jobs, endpoints, components, plugins, localization
PLUGIN-DEVELOPMENT.md - Plugin architecture, monorepo structure, patterns, best practices

Resources

llms-full.txt: https://payloadcms.com/llms-full.txt
Docs: https://payloadcms.com/docs
GitHub: https://github.com/payloadcms/payload
Examples: https://github.com/payloadcms/payload/tree/main/examples
Templates: https://github.com/payloadcms/payload/tree/main/templates

payload

Installation

Details

Usage

Skill Instructions