Staging and PR previews

Two kinds of Amplify environments

Kind	Git	Amplify URL shape	Lifetime
StagingStaging Long-lived Git branch (and Amplify branch) used as a pre-production environment before promoting to main.	Branch staging	https://staging.<app-id>.amplifyapp.com	Long-lived
Production	Branch main	https://main.<app-id>.amplifyapp.com	Long-lived
PR previewPR preview Temporary Amplify hosting URL created for a pull request so you can review the built site before merge.	Open pull request	https://pr-<n>.<app-id>.amplifyapp.com	Until PR closes / branch deleted

Exact hostnames use your Amplify app id. This lab does not add custom domains.

How to use them

1. Feature work lands on a short-lived branch
2. Open a PR into staging - CI must pass; Amplify builds a PR preview
3. Merge to staging - validate on the staging Amplify URL
4. Open a PR from staging into main - same CI gate
5. Merge to main - production Amplify URL updates

Caution

Do not open feature PRs directly against main. Staging is the rehearsal environment.

Branch auto-delete

Enable branch auto-deletebranch auto-delete
Amplify setting that removes a preview branch and its URL when the Git branch is deleted. on the Amplify app so preview branches disappear when the Git branch is deleted. That cleans up preview URLs; it does not delete the Amplify app itself.