Mastering Image Uploads in Node.js: A Beginner-to-Advanced Guide with Multer and Cloudinary

This guide details building a Node.js, TypeScript backend with image upload functionality using PostgreSQL, Multer, and Cloudinary. Prerequisites include Node.js, TypeScript, Express.js knowledge, a PostgreSQL database, and a Cloudinary account. The project is initialized with npm, installing necessary packages and creating a .env file for environment variables. TypeScript configuration is set up via a tsconfig.json file. An Express.js server is created, handling JSON and URL-encoded data, and serving static files. PostgreSQL database connectivity is established using a connection pool. Multer middleware handles image uploads, storing them temporarily. Cloudinary integration uploads images to the cloud, removing temporary files. Routes and controllers manage user signup, handling image uploads via Multer and Cloudinary. The application is tested using a tool like Postman. The complete code is available on GitHub. The guide concludes by highlighting the benefits of this approach for building robust, scalable backends.