Payload CMS Returning Strings Not Objects? You're Not Alone...

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Are you confused why your Payload CMS relationship or upload fields are returning a simple string or number instead of the full document object in your frontend?

This is one of the most common questions about Payload CMS, and the answer lies in understanding how data is returned from the API based on depth.  

Watch this video to understand why your relationships aren't populating and how to fix your TypeScript errors! I cover how the default behavior ensures your project remains type-safe.  

What you’ll learn:

Why fields return a string for MongoDB or number for Postgres when relationships are not populated.  
How the depth parameter in your Payload query determines how many layers of nested relationships are returned.  
Using type checking (typeof image !== 'string') to correctly access properties like fileName.  
Using the types imported from Payload CMS to bypass type errors for populated data.  

Chapters:
00:00 - Introducing Depth and Relationships
00:34 - Setting up the Sample Project
06:55 - Exploring Payload CMS Types
08:38 - Exploring Depth
09:56 - Fixing Relationship and Upload Field TypeScript Errors
13:01 - Closing Thoughts and Next Steps