Create branch

API Reference / Branches / Create branch

Creates a branch in the specified project. No request body is required, but you can specify one to create a compute endpoint or select a non-default parent branch. By default, the branch is created from the project's default branch with no compute endpoint, and the branch name is auto-generated. To access the branch, add a read_write endpoint. Each branch supports one read-write endpoint and multiple read-only endpoints. For related information, see Manage branches.

• project_id (string, path, required) The Neon project ID

• endpoints (array, optional) Compute endpoints to create together with the branch. If omitted, the branch is created without any compute endpoint. Endpoints can be added to the branch separately after creation.

  • type (string, required) Compute endpoint type. read_write: the primary read-write endpoint (one per branch). read_only: a read replica endpoint (multiple allowed per branch). Possible values: read_only, read_write

  • settings (object, optional) Compute endpoint settings: pg_settings (Postgres parameter overrides such as work_mem, max_connections) and preload_libraries.

    • pg_settings (object, optional) A raw representation of Postgres settings

    • pgbouncer_settings (object, optional, deprecated) Deprecated. PgBouncer settings for the compute endpoint. Removal scheduled for June 20, 2026.

    • preload_libraries (object, optional) The shared libraries to preload into the project's compute instances.

      • use_defaults (boolean, optional) When true, the project's preload libraries include the platform default set in addition to any libraries listed in enabled_libraries.
      • enabled_libraries (array, optional) Names of shared preload libraries to enable for the project.

  • autoscaling_limit_min_cu (number, optional) Minimum number of Compute Units the endpoint can scale down to. Minimum 0.25.

  • autoscaling_limit_max_cu (number, optional) Maximum number of Compute Units the endpoint can scale up to. Minimum 0.25.

  • provisioner (string, optional) Compute provisioner. k8s-neonvm (default) supports Autoscaling; k8s-pod is fixed-size compute. Also docker and serverless-platform.

  • suspend_timeout_seconds (integer, optional, format: int64) Scale-to-zero idle timeout, in seconds, before the compute suspends. 0 uses the plan default; -1 disables scale-to-zero (never suspends). Minimum is plan-dependent (Scale: 60); maximum 604800 (one week). Free cannot change it; Launch can only enable or disable; Scale can set any value.

• branch (object, optional) Optional configuration for the new branch, for example name, parent_id (fork from a branch), parent_lsn or parent_timestamp (point-in-time branching), and protected.

  • parent_id (string, optional) The branch_id of the parent branch. If omitted or empty, the branch will be created from the project's default branch.

  • name (string, optional) The branch name

  • parent_lsn (string, optional) A Log Sequence Number (LSN) on the parent branch. The branch will be created with data from this LSN.

  • parent_timestamp (string, optional, format: date-time) A timestamp identifying a point in time on the parent branch. The branch will be created with data starting from this point in time. RFC 3339 format.

  • protected (boolean, optional) Whether the branch is protected. Protected branches (and their computes) cannot be deleted, archived, or reset, and block deletion of the project. Can be gated by protected_branches_only in the IP allowlist. Paid plans only.

    Default: false

  • archived (boolean, optional) Whether to create the branch in the archived state. When omitted, the branch is created as a normal (non-archived) branch.

  • init_source (string, optional) Source of initialization for the branch. parent-data copies schema and data from the parent branch. parent-schema copies schema only from the parent branch. schema-only creates a new root branch containing schema only, using parent_id as the source; optionally, parent_lsn or parent_timestamp can narrow the source point. import initializes the branch from an external import.

  • expires_at (string, optional, format: date-time) The timestamp when the branch is scheduled to expire and be automatically deleted. Must be set by the client following the RFC 3339, section 5.6 format with precision up to seconds (such as 2025-06-09T18:02:16Z). Deletion is performed by a background job and may not occur exactly at the specified time.

    Access to this feature is currently limited to participants in the Early Access Program.

• annotation_value (object, optional) A free-form map of string key-value pairs for attaching metadata to a resource (for example, a git commit reference). Maximum 50 entries.

{
  "branch": {
    "name": "my-feature-branch"
  }
}

{
  "branch": {
    "id": "br-young-forest-a5b6c7d8",
    "project_id": "aged-wildflower-123456",
    "parent_id": "br-young-forest-12345678",
    "parent_lsn": "0/1964D68",
    "name": "my-branch-2",
    "slug": "br-young-forest-a5b6c7d8",
    "project_slug": "aged-wildflower-123456",
    "current_state": "init",
    "pending_state": "ready",
    "state_changed_at": "2025-01-15T10:30:00Z",
    "creation_source": "console",
    "primary": false,
    "default": false,
    "protected": false,
    "cpu_used_sec": 0,
    "compute_time_seconds": 0,
    "active_time_seconds": 0,
    "written_data_bytes": 0,
    "data_transfer_bytes": 0,
    "created_at": "2025-01-15T10:30:00Z",
    "updated_at": "2025-01-15T10:30:00Z",
    "init_source": "parent-data"
  },
  "endpoints": [],
  "operations": [
    {
      "id": "00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000",
      "project_id": "aged-wildflower-123456",
      "branch_id": "br-young-forest-a5b6c7d8",
      "action": "create_branch",
      "status": "running",
      "failures_count": 0,
      "created_at": "2025-01-15T10:30:00Z",
      "updated_at": "2025-01-15T10:30:00Z",
      "total_duration_ms": 0
    },
    {
      "id": "00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000",
      "project_id": "aged-wildflower-123456",
      "branch_id": "br-young-forest-a5b6c7d8",
      "action": "timeline_update_protected_config",
      "status": "scheduling",
      "failures_count": 0,
      "created_at": "2025-01-15T10:30:00Z",
      "updated_at": "2025-01-15T10:30:00Z",
      "total_duration_ms": 0
    }
  ],
  "roles": [
    {
      "branch_id": "br-young-forest-a5b6c7d8",
      "name": "authenticator",
      "protected": false,
      "authentication_method": "password",
      "created_at": "2025-01-15T11:00:00Z",
      "updated_at": "2025-01-15T11:00:00Z"
    },
    {
      "branch_id": "br-young-forest-a5b6c7d8",
      "name": "anonymous",
      "protected": false,
      "authentication_method": "no_login",
      "created_at": "2025-01-15T11:00:00Z",
      "updated_at": "2025-01-15T11:00:00Z"
    },
    {
      "branch_id": "br-young-forest-a5b6c7d8",
      "name": "authenticated",
      "protected": false,
      "authentication_method": "no_login",
      "created_at": "2025-01-15T11:00:00Z",
      "updated_at": "2025-01-15T11:00:00Z"
    },
    {
      "branch_id": "br-young-forest-a5b6c7d8",
      "name": "neondb_owner",
      "protected": false,
      "authentication_method": "password",
      "created_at": "2025-01-15T11:30:00Z",
      "updated_at": "2025-01-15T11:00:00Z"
    }
  ],
  "databases": [
    {
      "id": 1000000,
      "branch_id": "br-young-forest-a5b6c7d8",
      "name": "neondb",
      "owner_name": "neondb_owner",
      "created_at": "2025-01-15T11:30:00Z",
      "updated_at": "2025-01-15T11:30:00Z"
    }
  ]
}

curl "https://console.neon.tech/api/v2/projects/$PROJECT_ID/branches" \
  -X POST \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $NEON_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"branch":{"name":"my-feature-branch"}}'

import { createNeonClient, raw } from '@neon/sdk';

const neon = createNeonClient({ apiKey: process.env.NEON_API_KEY });
const { data } = await raw.createProjectBranch({
  client: neon.client,
  path: {
    project_id: process.env.PROJECT_ID
  },
  body: {
    branch: {
      name: "my-feature-branch"
    }
  }
});

# neonctl
neon branches create

Tool: create_branch

Create a branch in a Neon project for isolated development or testing. By default the branch is created from the project's default branch; pass parentId to fork an existing non-default branch instead (e.g. to make a disposable copy of a dev/staging branch).

• projectId (string, required) The ID of the project to create the branch in
• branchName (string, optional) An optional name for the branch
• parentId (string, optional) An optional branch ID (e.g. 'br-...') to branch from. If omitted, the branch is created from the project's default branch. Use this to fork an existing non-default branch — for example, to make an isolated copy of a dev/staging branch for experimentation.
• expiresAt (string, optional) An optional ISO 8601 timestamp after which Neon automatically deletes the branch.

Console path: Projects → Branches → New branch

default General Error.

The request may or may not be safe to retry, depending on the HTTP method, response status code, and whether a response was received.

• If no response is returned from the API, a network error or timeout likely occurred.
• In some cases, the request may have reached the server and been successfully processed, but the response failed to reach the client. As a result, retrying non-idempotent requests can lead to unintended results.

The following HTTP methods are considered non-idempotent: POST, PATCH, DELETE, and PUT. Retrying these methods is generally not safe. The following methods are considered idempotent: GET, HEAD, and OPTIONS. Retrying these methods is safe in the event of a network error or timeout.

Any request that returns a 503 Service Unavailable response is always safe to retry.

Any request that returns a 423 Locked response is safe to retry. 423 Locked indicates that the resource is temporarily locked, for example, due to another operation in progress.

• request_id (string, optional) Unique identifier for the request, useful for debugging. You can set this value manually by including an X-Request-ID header in the request. If not provided, the value will be generated automatically.

• code (string, required) Machine-readable code classifying the error type. See message for a human-readable explanation. Default: ``

• message (string, required) Error message