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---
title: cacheLife
description: Learn how to use the cacheLife function to set the cache expiration time for a cached function or component.
version: canary
related:
  title: Related
  description: View related API references.
  links:
    - app/api-reference/config/next-config-js/cacheComponents
    - app/api-reference/directives/use-cache
    - app/api-reference/functions/revalidateTag
    - app/api-reference/functions/cacheTag
---

The `cacheLife` function is used to set the cache lifetime of a function or component. It should be used alongside the [`use cache`](/docs/app/api-reference/directives/use-cache) directive, and within the scope of the function or component.

## Usage

To use `cacheLife`, enable the [`cacheComponents` flag](/docs/app/api-reference/config/next-config-js/cacheComponents) in your `next.config.js` file:

```ts filename="next.config.ts" switcher
import type { NextConfig } from 'next'

const nextConfig: NextConfig = {
  experimental: {
    cacheComponents: true,
  },
}

export default nextConfig
```

```js filename="next.config.js" switcher
const nextConfig = {
  experimental: {
    cacheComponents: true,
  },
}

export default nextConfig
```

Then, import and invoke the `cacheLife` function within the scope of the function or component:

```tsx filename="app/page.tsx" highlight={5} switcher
'use cache'
import { unstable_cacheLife as cacheLife } from 'next/cache'

export default async function Page() {
  cacheLife('hours')
  return <div>Page</div>
}
```

```jsx filename="app/page.js" highlight={5} switcher
'use cache'
import { unstable_cacheLife as cacheLife } from 'next/cache'

export default async function Page() {
  cacheLife('hours')
  return <div>Page</div>
}
```

## Reference

### Default cache profiles

Next.js provides a set of named cache profiles modeled on various timescales. If you don't specify a cache profile in the `cacheLife` function alongside the `use cache` directive, Next.js will automatically apply the `default` cache profile.

However, we recommend always adding a cache profile when using the `use cache` directive to explicitly define caching behavior.

| **Profile** | `stale`   | `revalidate` | `expire` | **Description**                                                          |
| ----------- | --------- | ------------ | -------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| `default`   | 5 minutes | 15 minutes   | 1 year   | Default profile, suitable for content that doesn't need frequent updates |
| `seconds`   | 0         | 1 second     | 1 second | For rapidly changing content requiring near real-time updates            |
| `minutes`   | 5 minutes | 1 minute     | 1 hour   | For content that updates frequently within an hour                       |
| `hours`     | 5 minutes | 1 hour       | 1 day    | For content that updates daily but can be slightly stale                 |
| `days`      | 5 minutes | 1 day        | 1 week   | For content that updates weekly but can be a day old                     |
| `weeks`     | 5 minutes | 1 week       | 30 days  | For content that updates monthly but can be a week old                   |
| `max`       | 5 minutes | 30 days      | 1 year   | For very stable content that rarely needs updating                       |

The string values used to reference cache profiles don't carry inherent meaning; instead they serve as semantic labels. This allows you to better understand and manage your cached content within your codebase.

> **Good to know:** Updating the [`staleTimes`](/docs/app/api-reference/config/next-config-js/staleTimes) and [`expireTime`](/docs/app/api-reference/config/next-config-js/expireTime) config options also updates the `stale` and `expire` properties of the `default` cache profile.

### Custom cache profiles

You can configure custom cache profiles by adding them to the [`cacheLife`](/docs/app/api-reference/config/next-config-js/cacheLife) option in your `next.config.ts` file.

Cache profiles are objects that contain the following properties:

| **Property** | **Value** | **Description**                                                                                                             | **Requirement**                             |
| ------------ | --------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------- |
| `stale`      | `number`  | Duration the client should cache a value without checking the server.                                                       | Optional                                    |
| `revalidate` | `number`  | Frequency at which the cache should refresh on the server; stale values may be served while revalidating.                   | Optional                                    |
| `expire`     | `number`  | Maximum duration for which a value can remain stale before switching to dynamic fetching; must be longer than `revalidate`. | Optional - Must be longer than `revalidate` |

The "stale" property differs from the [`staleTimes`](/docs/app/api-reference/config/next-config-js/staleTimes) setting in that it specifically controls client-side router caching. While `staleTimes` is a global setting that affects all instances of both dynamic and static data, the `cacheLife` configuration allows you to define "stale" times on a per-function or per-route basis.

> **Good to know**: The “stale” property does not set the `Cache-control: max-age` header. It instead controls the client-side router cache.

## Examples

### Defining reusable cache profiles

You can create a reusable cache profile by defining them in your `next.config.ts` file. Choose a name that suits your use case and set values for the `stale`, `revalidate`, and `expire` properties. You can create as many custom cache profiles as needed. Each profile can be referenced by its name as a string value passed to the `cacheLife` function.

```ts filename="next.config.ts" switcher
import type { NextConfig } from 'next'

const nextConfig: NextConfig = {
  experimental: {
    cacheComponents: true,
    cacheLife: {
      biweekly: {
        stale: 60 * 60 * 24 * 14, // 14 days
        revalidate: 60 * 60 * 24, // 1 day
        expire: 60 * 60 * 24 * 14, // 14 days
      },
    },
  },
}

module.exports = nextConfig
```

```js filename="next.config.js" switcher
const nextConfig = {
  experimental: {
    cacheComponents: true,
    cacheLife: {
      biweekly: {
        stale: 60 * 60 * 24 * 14, // 14 days
        revalidate: 60 * 60 * 24, // 1 day
        expire: 60 * 60 * 24 * 14, // 14 days
      },
    },
  },
}

module.exports = nextConfig
```

The example above caches for 14 days, checks for updates daily, and expires the cache after 14 days. You can then reference this profile throughout your application by its name:

```tsx filename="app/page.tsx" highlight={5}
'use cache'
import { unstable_cacheLife as cacheLife } from 'next/cache'

export default async function Page() {
  cacheLife('biweekly')
  return <div>Page</div>
}
```

### Overriding the default cache profiles

While the default cache profiles provide a useful way to think about how fresh or stale any given part of cacheable output can be, you may prefer different named profiles to better align with your applications caching strategies.

You can override the default named cache profiles by creating a new configuration with the same name as the defaults.

The example below shows how to override the default “days” cache profile:

```ts filename="next.config.ts"
const nextConfig = {
  experimental: {
    cacheComponents: true,
    cacheLife: {
      days: {
        stale: 3600, // 1 hour
        revalidate: 900, // 15 minutes
        expire: 86400, // 1 day
      },
    },
  },
}

module.exports = nextConfig
```

### Defining cache profiles inline

For specific use cases, you can set a custom cache profile by passing an object to the `cacheLife` function:

```tsx filename="app/page.tsx" highlight={5-9} switcher
'use cache'
import { unstable_cacheLife as cacheLife } from 'next/cache'

export default async function Page() {
  cacheLife({
    stale: 3600, // 1 hour
    revalidate: 900, // 15 minutes
    expire: 86400, // 1 day
  })

  return <div>Page</div>
}
```

```jsx filename="app/page.js" highlight={5-9} switcher
'use cache'
import { unstable_cacheLife as cacheLife } from 'next/cache'

export default async function Page() {
  cacheLife({
    stale: 3600, // 1 hour
    revalidate: 900, // 15 minutes
    expire: 86400, // 1 day
  })

  return <div>Page</div>
}
```

This inline cache profile will only be applied to the function or file it was created in. If you want to reuse the same profile throughout your application, you can [add the configuration](#defining-reusable-cache-profiles) to the `cacheLife` property of your `next.config.ts` file.

### Nested usage of `use cache` and `cacheLife`

When defining multiple caching behaviors in the same route or component tree, if the inner caches specify their own `cacheLife` profile, the outer cache will respect the shortest cache duration among them. **This applies only if the outer cache does not have its own explicit `cacheLife` profile defined.**

For example, if you add the `use cache` directive to your page, without specifying a cache profile, the default cache profile will be applied implicitly (`cacheLife(”default”)`). If a component imported into the page also uses the `use cache` directive with its own cache profile, the outer and inner cache profiles are compared, and shortest duration set in the profiles will be applied.

```tsx filename="app/components/parent.tsx" highlight={5,6}
// Parent component
import { unstable_cacheLife as cacheLife } from 'next/cache'
import { ChildComponent } from './child'

export async function ParentComponent() {
  'use cache'
  cacheLife('days')

  return (
    <div>
      <ChildComponent />
    </div>
  )
}
```

And in a separate file, we defined the Child component that was imported:

```tsx filename="app/components/child.tsx" highlight={4,5}
// Child component
import { unstable_cacheLife as cacheLife } from 'next/cache'

export async function ChildComponent() {
  'use cache'
  cacheLife('hours')
  return <div>Child Content</div>

  // This component's cache will respect the shorter 'hours' profile
}
```