deploy-to-vercel – DevOps & Infrastructure skill for AI agents

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.

When to Use

• Use this skill when the task matches this description: Deploy applications and websites to Vercel. Use when the user requests deployment actions like "deploy my app", "deploy and give me the link", "push this live", or "create a preview deployment".

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

A local link plus a Git remote does not prove Vercel Git integration. Verify the linked project, target directory, connected repository and production branch in the dashboard. Use a preview branch or a direct preview deployment; never push a production branch for a preview request.

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 -- <reviewed-project-paths>
   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. Match the project, commit SHA, branch and deployment target; the latest entry could belong to another build. A queued URL is not a successful build.

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 write local link metadata. Git auto-deployment requires a separately configured Git integration.
   

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 — claude.ai sandbox

When to use: Last resort when the CLI can't be installed or authenticated in the claude.ai sandbox. This requires no authentication — it returns a Preview URL (live site) and a Claim URL (transfer to your Vercel account).

bash /mnt/skills/user/deploy-to-vercel/resources/deploy.sh [path]

Arguments:

• path - Directory to deploy, or a .tgz file (defaults to current directory)

Examples:

# Deploy current directory
bash /mnt/skills/user/deploy-to-vercel/resources/deploy.sh

# Deploy specific project
bash /mnt/skills/user/deploy-to-vercel/resources/deploy.sh /path/to/project

# Deploy existing tarball
bash /mnt/skills/user/deploy-to-vercel/resources/deploy.sh /path/to/project.tgz

The helper guesses the framework and uploads an archive to the hosted endpoint shown in the script. Obtain authorization for that recipient and inspect the complete archive first: its small exclusion list is not a secret scanner and does not implement .gitignore/.vercelignore. A supplied archive is uploaded byte-for-byte. Returned URLs do not establish build success.

Tell the user: "Deployment submitted at [previewUrl]; build status is unverified. The private claim link is [claimUrl]."

---

No-Auth Fallback — Codex sandbox

When to use: In the Codex sandbox where the CLI may not be authenticated. Codex runs in a sandboxed environment by default — try the CLI first, and fall back to the deploy script if auth fails.

1. Check whether the Vercel CLI is installed (no escalation needed for this check):

   command -v vercel
   

2. If vercel is installed, try deploying with the CLI:

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

3. If vercel is not installed, or the CLI fails with "No existing credentials found", use the fallback script:

   skill_dir="<path-to-skill>"

   # 

… (full content is in the download package)