---
title: "Supabase setup"
description: "Create the database, apply migrations, grab the keys."
section: "Setup"
canonical: https://wacrm.tech/docs/supabase-setup
dateModified: 2026-05-19
---
# Supabase setup

This template uses Supabase for Postgres, authentication, row-level security (RLS),
and (optionally) storage. You need one Supabase project per deployment.

## 1. Create the project

1. Sign in at <https://supabase.com> and create a **new project**.
2. Pick the region closest to your users. Save the database password shown
   at creation time — you will not see it again.
3. Wait for the project to provision (about a minute).

## 2. Grab your keys

Open **Project Settings → API** in the Supabase dashboard. Copy:

- **Project URL** → `NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_URL`
- **anon / public** key → `NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY`
- **service_role** key → `SUPABASE_SERVICE_ROLE_KEY`

Paste them into `.env.local`.

> **Do not commit the service-role key.** It bypasses RLS entirely. The
> repo's `.gitignore` already excludes `.env.local` — keep it that way.

## 3. Run the migrations

All schema changes live in `supabase/migrations/` as plain SQL and are
idempotent (safe to re-run). The simplest way to apply them:

### Option A — SQL Editor (quickest)

1. Open **SQL Editor** in the Supabase dashboard.
2. For each file in `supabase/migrations/`, in numeric order:
   - `001_initial_schema.sql`
   - `002_pipelines_enhancements.sql`
   - `003_broadcast_recipient_wamid.sql`
   - `004_contact_delete_set_null.sql`
   - `005_broadcast_counts_incremental.sql`
   - `006_automations.sql`
   - `007_automations_increment_counter.sql`
   - `008_profile_avatars_storage.sql`
   - `009_message_actions.sql`
3. Paste into the editor and run. Each file prints its own status.

> **Updating an existing install:** when you pull a new release, check
> `supabase/migrations/` for any files numbered higher than what you've
> already run, and apply them in order before restarting the app. Skipping
> this step is the most common cause of 500 errors right after an update.

### Option B — Supabase CLI

```bash
npm install --global supabase
supabase login
supabase link --project-ref <your-project-ref>
supabase db push
```

The CLI applies every file in `supabase/migrations/` on top of the linked
project.

## 4. Verify

Open **Table Editor** in the Supabase dashboard. You should see tables
including `profiles`, `contacts`, `conversations`, `messages`, `pipelines`,
`broadcasts`, `automations`, and `whatsapp_config`. If any are missing, a
migration failed — re-run it and check the SQL output.

## 5. Auth settings

Under **Authentication → Providers**, confirm:

- **Email** is enabled (default).
- **Confirm email** is on for production, off for local if you want
  frictionless testing.

Under **Authentication → URL Configuration**, add your production URL
(e.g., `https://crm.example.com`) to the allow-list so password-reset
emails link back correctly.

## 6. (Optional) Storage

The app downloads WhatsApp® media through Meta's `/download` endpoint and
currently relays it on demand rather than caching it in Supabase Storage.
No bucket setup is required for a default install.

## Next step

[WhatsApp setup →](https://wacrm.tech/docs/whatsapp-setup)