Deployment Protection Now Available on All Plans

Vercel has introduced new privacy controls across all plans, making it possible to secure preview deployments behind Vercel Authentication with a single click. Previously, this level of protection was restricted to certain plan tiers. The update also brings new collaboration options and an advanced protection tier for teams with stricter security needs.

Vercel Authentication

With Vercel Authentication, any Vercel user can access protected preview deployments by logging in with their existing Vercel account. This removes the need for extra credentials when team members collaborate on previews. Anyone on the platform can use this method to view pre-release work, simplifying access for distributed teams.

This feature replaces the SSO Protection offering that Enterprise customers previously used. SAML SSO—logging in through an external identity provider along with directory sync—remains an Enterprise-only capability.

For collaborators outside your Vercel Team, Shareable Links offer a way to access preview deployments without additional credentials. These links work by appending a query string to the preview URL, so external users don’t need to log in just to view a deployment. However, a Vercel account is still required to participate in Comments on a deployment accessed this way.

Pricing for Shareable Links varies by plan: Pro and Enterprise customers get unlimited links, while Hobby users can maintain one link at a time. All links are managed from the Vercel Dashboard.

Advanced Deployment Protection

Advanced Deployment Protection is a new add-on built for teams that need stronger security or programmatic access to protected previews. It is available to Pro plans for $150 and is included with Enterprise plans. Existing Password Protection users are upgraded to Advanced Deployment Protection automatically.

Bypass for Automation (Beta)

A key component of Advanced Deployment Protection is a header secret that lets automated tools access protected previews programmatically. This is particularly useful for end-to-end (E2E) testing, where tools simulate real customer scenarios. These automated tools often struggle to authenticate with protected services, and the header secret provides a secure bypass mechanism.

Password Protection

Advanced Deployment Protection also includes the ability to enforce a password on preview deployments. Passwords can be configured directly in the Vercel dashboard, adding an extra layer of access control.

Private Production Deployments (Beta)

In certain situations—such as internal tools or new domain launches—protecting a production deployment becomes necessary. A single checkbox now enables the same protection for production deployments that applies to previews.

Getting Started

Deployment Protection is not enabled by default. To use it, navigate to your project settings and toggle on the option to protect preview deployments under deployment settings. Full documentation is available on the Vercel docs site.