Deploy to Vercel

Deploy any project to Vercel. Always deploy as preview (not production) unless the user explicitly asks for production.

The goal is to get the user into the best long-term setup: their project linked to Vercel with git-push deploys. Every method below tries to move the user closer to that state.

Step 1: Gather Project State

Run all four checks before deciding which method to use:

# 1. Check for a git remote
git remote get-url origin 2>/dev/null

# 2. Check if locally linked to a Vercel project (either file means linked)
cat .vercel/project.json 2>/dev/null || cat .vercel/repo.json 2>/dev/null

# 3. Check if the Vercel CLI is installed and authenticated
vercel whoami 2>/dev/null

# 4. List available teams (if authenticated)
vercel teams list --format json 2>/dev/null

Team selection

If the user belongs to multiple teams, present all available team slugs as a bulleted list and ask which one to deploy to. Once the user picks a team, proceed immediately to the next step — do not ask for additional confirmation.

Pass the team slug via --scope on all subsequent CLI commands (vercel deploy, vercel link, vercel inspect, etc.):

vercel deploy [path] -y --no-wait --scope <team-slug>

If the project is already linked (.vercel/project.json or .vercel/repo.json exists), the orgId in those files determines the team — no need to ask again. If there is only one team (or just a personal account), skip the prompt and use it directly.

About the .vercel/ directory: A linked project has either:

• .vercel/project.json — created by vercel link (single project linking). Contains projectId and orgId.
• .vercel/repo.json — created by vercel link --repo (repo-based linking). Contains orgId, remoteName, and a projects array mapping directories to Vercel project IDs.

Either file means the project is linked. Check for both.

Do NOT use vercel project inspect, vercel ls, or vercel link to detect state in an unlinked directory — without a .vercel/ config, they will interactively prompt (or with --yes, silently link as a side-effect). Only vercel whoami is safe to run anywhere.

Step 2: Choose a Deploy Method

Linked (.vercel/ exists) + has git remote → Git Push

This is the ideal state. The project is linked and has git integration.

1. Ask the user before pushing. Never push without explicit approval:

   This project is connected to Vercel via git. I can commit and push to
   trigger a deployment. Want me to proceed?

2. Commit and push:

   git add .
   git commit -m "deploy: <description of changes>"
   git push

   Vercel automatically builds from the push. Non-production branches get preview deployments; the production branch (usually main) gets a production deployment.

3. Retrieve the preview URL. If the CLI is authenticated:

   sleep 5
   vercel ls --format json

   The JSON output has a deployments array. Find the latest entry — its url field is the preview URL.

   If the CLI is not authenticated, tell the user to check the Vercel dashboard or the commit status checks on their git provider for the preview URL.

Linked (.vercel/ exists) + no git remote → vercel deploy

The project is linked but there's no git repo. Deploy directly with the CLI.

vercel deploy [path] -y --no-wait

Use --no-wait so the CLI returns immediately with the deployment URL instead of blocking until the build finishes (builds can take a while). Then check on the deployment status with:

vercel inspect <deployment-url>

For production deploys (only if user explicitly asks):

vercel deploy [path] --prod -y --no-wait

Not linked + CLI is authenticated → Link first, then deploy

The CLI is working but the project isn't linked yet. This is the opportunity to get the user into the best state.

1. Ask the user which team to deploy to. Present the team slugs from Step 1 as a bulleted list. If there's only one team (or just a personal account), skip this step.
2. Once a team is selected, proceed directly to linking. Tell the user what will happen but do not ask for separate confirmation:

   Linking this project to <team name> on Vercel. This will create a Vercel
   project to deploy to and enable automatic deployments on future git pushes.

3. If a git remote exists, use repo-based linking with the selected team scope:

   vercel link --repo --scope <team-slug>

   This reads the git remote URL and matches it to existing Vercel projects that deploy from that repo. It creates .vercel/repo.json. This is much more reliable than vercel link (without --repo), which tries to match by directory name and often fails when the local folder and Vercel project are named differently.

   If there is no git remote, fall back to standard linking:

   vercel link --scope <team-slug>

   This prompts the user to select or create a project. It creates .vercel/project.json.

4. Then deploy using the best available method:
   • If a git remote exists → commit and push (see git push method above)
   • If no git remote → vercel deploy [path] -y --no-wait --scope <team-slug>, then vercel inspect <url> to check status

Not linked + CLI not authenticated → Install, auth, link, deploy

The Vercel CLI isn't set up at all.

1. Install the CLI (if not already installed):

   npm install -g vercel

2. Authenticate:

   vercel login

   The user completes auth in their browser. If running in a non-interactive environment where login is not possible, skip to the no-auth fallback below.
3. Ask which team to deploy to — present team slugs from vercel teams list --format json as a bulleted list. If only one team / personal account, skip. Once selected, proceed immediately.
4. Link the project with the selected team scope (use --repo if a git remote exists, plain vercel link otherwise):

   vercel link --repo --scope <team-slug>   # if git remote exists
   vercel link --scope <team-slug>          # if no git remote

5. Deploy using the best available method (git push if remote exists, otherwise vercel deploy -y --no-wait --scope <team-slug>, then vercel inspect <url> to check status).

No-Auth Fallback — vercel deploy --temporary

When to use: The CLI has no credentials and vercel login isn't possible (sandboxes, agents, non-interactive environments). Do not ask the user to approve a CLI login or device code first — try this.

npx vercel@latest deploy [path] --temporary -y

No account is needed. The CLI builds locally, deploys to a temporary production URL, and prints a claim URL plus how long until the deployment expires. Rerunning the command in the same directory redeploys the same temporary project until it expires.

Temporary deployments don't work in CI or in a directory already linked to a Vercel project. See https://vercel.com/docs/deployments/deploy-without-logging-in.

Tell the user: "Your deployment is ready at [url]. It expires in [time] unless you claim it at [claimUrl]. Don't share the claim link."

Escalated network access (Codex): Only escalate the deploy command if sandboxing blocks the network call (sandbox_permissions=require_escalated).

Agent-Specific Notes

Claude Code / terminal-based agents

You have full shell access. Follow the decision flow above using the CLI directly.

Sandboxed environments (claude.ai, Codex)

Check whether the CLI is logged in with vercel whoami. If it is, follow Step 2, including team selection. If it isn't, use the no-auth fallback.

Output

Always show the user the deployment URL.

• Git push: Use vercel ls --format json to find the preview URL. If the CLI isn't authenticated, tell the user to check the Vercel dashboard or commit status checks.
• CLI deploy: Show the URL returned by vercel deploy --no-wait. Use vercel inspect <url> to check build status and report it to the user.
• No-auth fallback: Show the deployment URL, the claim URL, and the expiry the CLI printed.

Do not curl or fetch the deployed URL to verify it works. Just return the link.

Troubleshooting

Network Egress Error (claude.ai)

If deployment fails due to network restrictions on claude.ai, tell the user:

Deployment failed due to network restrictions. To fix this:

1. Go to https://claude.ai/settings/capabilities
2. Add *.vercel.com and registry.npmjs.org to the allowed domains
3. Try deploying again

Escalated Network Access (Codex / sandboxed environments)

If deployment fails due to network issues (timeouts, DNS errors, connection resets) in a sandboxed environment, rerun with escalated permissions (sandbox_permissions=require_escalated). Do not escalate the initial CLI availability check — only escalate the actual deploy command.

Example guidance to the user:

The deploy needs escalated network access to deploy to Vercel. I can rerun
the command with escalated permissions — want me to proceed?

CLI Auth Failure

If vercel login or vercel deploy fails with authentication errors, use the no-auth fallback: vercel deploy --temporary -y.