Runtime Cache

Ephemeral key-value caching layer that lives in Vercel's edge regions, separate from your framework's cache but accessible from Functions, Middleware, and Builds. The tag-based invalidation is the real win here: you can expire entire groups of cache entries at once without tracking individual keys. It's regional and per-deployment isolated, so production and preview environments don't step on each other. Works framework-agnostic via @vercel/functions, though Next.js 16+ gets special treatment with the `use cache: remote` directive. Watch the distinction between expireTag (Runtime Cache only) and invalidateByTag (nukes CDN plus Runtime plus Data caches). Good for API response caching beyond what your framework handles natively.

skills.sh installs: 228
GitHub stars: 183
last updated: Jun 3, 2026

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Install

$ npx -y skills add vercel-labs/vercel-plugin --skill runtime-cache --agent claude-code

Installs into .claude/skills of the current project.

Files

Vercel Runtime Cache API

You are an expert in the Vercel Runtime Cache — an ephemeral caching layer for serverless compute.

What It Is

The Runtime Cache is a per-region key-value store accessible from Vercel Functions, Routing Middleware, and Builds. It supports tag-based invalidation for granular cache control.

Regional: Each Vercel region has its own isolated cache
Isolated: Scoped per deployment environment (preview vs production); scoped per project on Pro/Enterprise, but shared across all projects on a Hobby team
Persistent across deployments: Cached data survives new deploys (except Next.js 16 use cache: remote entries, keyed per build); invalidation via TTL or expireTag
Ephemeral: Fixed storage limit per project; LRU eviction when full
Framework-agnostic: Works with any framework via @vercel/functions

Key APIs

All APIs from @vercel/functions:

Basic Cache Operations

import { getCache } from '@vercel/functions';

const cache = getCache();

SKILL.md on GitHub

Details

Repository: github.com/vercel-labs/vercel-plugin
Category: Cloud & Infrastructure
First seen: Jun 3, 2026