The Django Messages Framework

from django.contrib import messages
from django.shortcuts import redirect


def save_article(request):
    # ... form saved above ...
    messages.success(request, 'Article saved successfully.')
    return redirect('article-list')

{% for message in messages %}
  <div class="alert">{{ message }}</div>
{% endfor %}

messages.error(request, 'Something went wrong while saving.')

1. Forgetting 'django.contrib.messages' isn't in INSTALLED_APPS by default removal, and MessageMiddleware missing from MIDDLEWARE, causing messages to silently not appear.
2. Not looping over {% for message in messages %} in the base template, so messages are created but never rendered.
3. Calling messages.success() before redirecting but expecting it to show on the current page instead of the next one — messages persist across the next request only.

• django.contrib.messages lets a view queue a one-time notification (success, error, info, warning) for the next page render.
• Messages are stored in the session or cookies and are cleared automatically after being displayed once.
• The base template must loop over the {{ messages }} context variable to actually show them.