Payload CMS Development

Payload is a Next.js native CMS with TypeScript-first architecture. This skill transfers expert knowledge for building collections, hooks, access control, and queries the right way.

Mental Model

Think of Payload as three interconnected layers:

1. Config Layer → Collections, globals, fields define your schema
2. Hook Layer → Lifecycle events transform and validate data
3. Access Layer → Functions control who can do what

Every operation flows through: Config → Access Check → Hook Chain → Database → Response Hooks

Quick Reference

Task	Solution	Details
Auto-generate slugs	slugField() or beforeChange hook	[references/fields.md#slug-field]
Restrict by user	Access control with query constraint	[references/access-control.md]
Local API with auth	user + overrideAccess: false	[references/queries.md#local-api]
Draft/publish	versions: { drafts: true }	[references/collections.md#drafts]
Computed fields	virtual: true with afterRead hook	[references/fields.md#virtual]
Conditional fields	admin.condition	[references/fields.md#conditional]
Filter relationships	filterOptions on field	[references/fields.md#relationship]
Prevent hook loops	req.context flag	[references/hooks.md#context]
Transactions	Pass req to all operations	[references/hooks.md#transactions]
Background jobs	Jobs queue with tasks	[references/advanced.md#jobs]

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'

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

Core Patterns

Collection Definition

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' },
    { name: 'status', type: 'select', options: ['draft', 'published'], defaultValue: 'draft' },
  ],
  timestamps: true,
}

Hook Pattern (Auto-slug)

export const Posts: CollectionConfig = {
  slug: 'posts',
  hooks: {
    beforeChange: [
      async ({ data, operation }) => {
        if (operation === 'create' && data.title) {
          data.slug = data.title.toLowerCase().replace(/\s+/g, '-')
        }
        return data
      },
    ],
  },
  fields: [{ name: 'title', type: 'text', required: true }],
}

Access Control Pattern

import type { Access } from 'payload'

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

// Row-level: users see only their own posts
export const ownPostsOnly: Access = ({ req }) => {
  if (!req.user) return false
  if (req.user.roles?.includes('admin')) return true
  return { author: { equals: req.user.id } }
}

Query Pattern

// Local API with access control
const posts = await payload.find({
  collection: 'posts',
  where: {
    status: { equals: 'published' },
    'author.name': { contains: 'john' },
  },
  depth: 2,
  limit: 10,
  sort: '-createdAt',
  user: req.user,
  overrideAccess: false, // CRITICAL: enforce permissions
})

Critical Security Rules

1. Local API Access Control

Default behavior bypasses ALL access control. This is the #1 security mistake.

// ❌ SECURITY BUG: Access control bypassed even with user
await payload.find({ collection: 'posts', user: someUser })

// ✅ SECURE: Explicitly enforce permissions
await payload.find({
  collection: 'posts',
  user: someUser,
  overrideAccess: false, // REQUIRED
})

Rule: Use overrideAccess: false for any operation acting on behalf of a user.

2. Transaction Integrity

Operations without req run in separate transactions.

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

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

Rule: Always pass req to nested operations in hooks.

3. Infinite Hook Loops

Hooks triggering themselves 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: Context flag breaks the loop
hooks: {
  afterChange: [async ({ doc, req, context }) => {
    if (context.skipViewUpdate) return
    await req.payload.update({
      collection: 'posts',
      id: doc.id,
      data: { views: doc.views + 1 },
      req,
      context: { skipViewUpdate: true },
    })
  }]
}

Project Structure

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

Type Generation

Generate types after schema changes:

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

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

Getting Payload Instance

// In API routes
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
export default async function Page() {
  const payload = await getPayload({ config })
  const { docs } = await payload.find({ collection: 'posts' })
  return <div>{docs.map(p => <h1 key={p.id}>{p.title}</h1>)}</div>
}

Common Field Types

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

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

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

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

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

// Array
{
  name: 'tags',
  type: 'array',
  fields: [{ name: 'tag', type: 'text' }],
}

// Blocks (polymorphic content)
{
  name: 'layout',
  type: 'blocks',
  blocks: [HeroBlock, ContentBlock, CTABlock],
}

Decision Framework

When choosing between approaches:

Scenario	Approach
Data transformation before save	beforeChange hook
Data transformation after read	afterRead hook
Enforce business rules	Access control function
Complex validation	validate function on field
Computed display value	Virtual field with afterRead
Related docs list	join field type
Side effects (email, webhook)	afterChange hook with context guard
Database-level constraint	Field with unique: true or index: true

Quality Checks

Good Payload code:

• [ ] All Local API calls with user context use overrideAccess: false
• [ ] All hook operations pass req for transaction integrity
• [ ] Recursive hooks use context flags
• [ ] Types generated and imported from payload-types.ts
• [ ] Access control functions are typed with Access type
• [ ] Collections have meaningful admin.useAsTitle set

Reference Documentation

For detailed patterns, see:

• references/fields.md - All field types, validation, conditional logic
• references/collections.md - Auth, uploads, drafts, live preview
• references/hooks.md - Hook lifecycle, context, patterns
• references/access-control.md - RBAC, row-level, field-level
• references/queries.md - Operators, Local/REST/GraphQL APIs
• references/advanced.md - Jobs, plugins, localization

Resources

• Docs: https://payloadcms.com/docs
• LLM Context: https://payloadcms.com/llms-full.txt
• GitHub: https://github.com/payloadcms/payload
• Templates: https://github.com/payloadcms/payload/tree/main/templates