Next.js 16 shipped Cache Components - the feature that finally lets a single route mix static HTML, cached data, and per-request dynamic content without splitting it into separate pages. It is Partial Prerendering (PPR) made stable, plus a new use cache directive that replaces the old unstable_cache and the awkward route-segment config flags. This guide covers what changed, the three content types you now think in, and the runtime-data rule that trips up almost everyone on day one.
What actually changed
If you were using the experimental PPR flag, it is gone. Cache Components is a single config switch, and it turns on the whole model - static shell, cached segments, and streamed dynamic content in one route.
// next.config.ts
import type { NextConfig } from 'next'
