diff --git a/packages/app/src/App.tsx b/packages/app/src/App.tsx
index b4d01e067b..669838ddd6 100644
--- a/packages/app/src/App.tsx
+++ b/packages/app/src/App.tsx
@@ -16,7 +16,6 @@
 
 import { createApp, AlertDisplay, OAuthRequestDialog } from '@backstage/core';
 import React, { FC } from 'react';
-import { BrowserRouter as Router } from 'react-router-dom';
 import Root from './components/Root';
 import * as plugins from './plugins';
 import apis from './apis';
@@ -33,11 +32,9 @@ const App: FC<{}> = () => (
   <AppProvider>
     <AlertDisplay />
     <OAuthRequestDialog />
-    <Router>
-      <Root>
-        <AppComponent />
-      </Root>
-    </Router>
+    <Root>
+      <AppComponent />
+    </Root>
   </AppProvider>
 );
 
diff --git a/packages/cli/templates/default-app/packages/app/src/App.tsx b/packages/cli/templates/default-app/packages/app/src/App.tsx
index 84bc1b2e7d..140d1c1660 100644
--- a/packages/cli/templates/default-app/packages/app/src/App.tsx
+++ b/packages/cli/templates/default-app/packages/app/src/App.tsx
@@ -1,7 +1,6 @@
 import { makeStyles } from '@material-ui/core';
 import { createApp } from '@backstage/core';
 import React, { FC } from 'react';
-import { BrowserRouter as Router } from 'react-router-dom';
 import * as plugins from './plugins';
 
 const useStyles = makeStyles(theme => ({
@@ -33,9 +32,7 @@ const App: FC<{}> = () => {
   useStyles();
   return (
     <AppProvider>
-      <Router>
-        <AppComponent />
-      </Router>
+      <AppComponent />
     </AppProvider>
   );
 };
diff --git a/packages/core-api/src/app/App.tsx b/packages/core-api/src/app/App.tsx
index 575dcfc59d..7cc37c2544 100644
--- a/packages/core-api/src/app/App.tsx
+++ b/packages/core-api/src/app/App.tsx
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@
  * limitations under the License.
  */
 
-import React, { ComponentType, FC } from 'react';
+import React, { ComponentType, FC, useMemo } from 'react';
 import { Route, Switch, Redirect } from 'react-router-dom';
 import { AppContextProvider } from './AppContext';
 import { BackstageApp, AppComponents, AppConfigLoader } from './types';
@@ -161,30 +161,58 @@ export class PrivateAppImpl implements BackstageApp {
 
   getProvider(): ComponentType<{}> {
     const Provider: FC<{}> = ({ children }) => {
+      const appThemeApi = useMemo(
+        () => AppThemeSelector.createWithStorage(this.themes),
+        [],
+      );
+
       // Keeping this synchronous when a config loader isn't set simplifies tests a lot
       const hasConfig = Boolean(this.configLoader);
       const config = useAsync(this.configLoader || (() => Promise.resolve([])));
 
-      let childNode = children;
+      let noConfigNode = undefined;
 
       if (hasConfig && config.loading) {
         const { Progress } = this.components;
-        childNode = <Progress />;
+        noConfigNode = <Progress />;
       } else if (config.error) {
         const { BootErrorPage } = this.components;
-        childNode = <BootErrorPage step="load-config" error={config.error} />;
+        noConfigNode = (
+          <BootErrorPage step="load-config" error={config.error} />
+        );
       }
 
+      // Before the config is loaded we can't use a router, so exit early
+      if (noConfigNode) {
+        return (
+          <ApiProvider apis={ApiRegistry.from([[appThemeApiRef, appThemeApi]])}>
+            <AppThemeProvider>{noConfigNode}</AppThemeProvider>
+          </ApiProvider>
+        );
+      }
+
+      const configReader = ConfigReader.fromConfigs(config.value ?? []);
       const appApis = ApiRegistry.from([
         [appThemeApiRef, AppThemeSelector.createWithStorage(this.themes)],
-        [configApiRef, ConfigReader.fromConfigs(config.value ?? [])],
+        [configApiRef, configReader],
       ]);
       const apis = new ApiAggregator(this.apis, appApis);
 
+      const { Router } = this.components;
+      let { pathname } = new URL(
+        configReader.getString('app.baseUrl') ?? '/',
+        'http://dummy.dev', // baseUrl can be specified as just a path
+      );
+      if (pathname.endsWith('/')) {
+        pathname = pathname.replace(/\/$/, '');
+      }
+
       return (
         <ApiProvider apis={apis}>
           <AppContextProvider app={this}>
-            <AppThemeProvider>{childNode}</AppThemeProvider>
+            <AppThemeProvider>
+              <Router basename={pathname}>{children}</Router>
+            </AppThemeProvider>
           </AppContextProvider>
         </ApiProvider>
       );
diff --git a/packages/core-api/src/app/types.ts b/packages/core-api/src/app/types.ts
index 4d685a6312..664c5238bc 100644
--- a/packages/core-api/src/app/types.ts
+++ b/packages/core-api/src/app/types.ts
@@ -30,6 +30,7 @@ export type AppComponents = {
   NotFoundErrorPage: ComponentType<{}>;
   BootErrorPage: ComponentType<BootErrorPageProps>;
   Progress: ComponentType<{}>;
+  Router: ComponentType<{ basename?: string }>;
 };
 
 /**
diff --git a/packages/core/src/api-wrappers/createApp.tsx b/packages/core/src/api-wrappers/createApp.tsx
index 8ed5cddad7..f69451249b 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/api-wrappers/createApp.tsx
+++ b/packages/core/src/api-wrappers/createApp.tsx
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ import privateExports, {
   BootErrorPageProps,
   AppConfigLoader,
 } from '@backstage/core-api';
-import { BrowserRouter as Router } from 'react-router-dom';
+import { BrowserRouter, MemoryRouter } from 'react-router-dom';
 
 import { ErrorPage } from '../layout/ErrorPage';
 import Progress from '../components/Progress';
@@ -87,9 +87,9 @@ export function createApp(options?: AppOptions) {
     }
     // TODO: figure out a nicer way to handle routing on the error page, when it can be done.
     return (
-      <Router>
+      <MemoryRouter>
         <ErrorPage status="501" statusMessage={message} />
-      </Router>
+      </MemoryRouter>
     );
   };
 
@@ -100,6 +100,7 @@ export function createApp(options?: AppOptions) {
     NotFoundErrorPage: DefaultNotFoundPage,
     BootErrorPage: DefaultBootErrorPage,
     Progress: Progress,
+    Router: BrowserRouter,
     ...options?.components,
   };
   const themes = options?.themes ?? [
diff --git a/packages/dev-utils/src/devApp/render.tsx b/packages/dev-utils/src/devApp/render.tsx
index aa952f1ca5..8900ecd54b 100644
--- a/packages/dev-utils/src/devApp/render.tsx
+++ b/packages/dev-utils/src/devApp/render.tsx
@@ -17,7 +17,6 @@
 import { hot } from 'react-hot-loader/root';
 import React, { FC, ComponentType, ReactNode } from 'react';
 import ReactDOM from 'react-dom';
-import { BrowserRouter } from 'react-router-dom';
 import BookmarkIcon from '@material-ui/icons/Bookmark';
 import {
   createApp,
@@ -94,12 +93,10 @@ class DevAppBuilder {
           <AlertDisplay />
           <OAuthRequestDialog />
           {this.rootChildren}
-          <BrowserRouter>
-            <SidebarPage>
-              {sidebar}
-              <AppComponent />
-            </SidebarPage>
-          </BrowserRouter>
+          <SidebarPage>
+            {sidebar}
+            <AppComponent />
+          </SidebarPage>
         </AppProvider>
       );
     };
diff --git a/packages/test-utils/src/testUtils/appWrappers.tsx b/packages/test-utils/src/testUtils/appWrappers.tsx
index 2450604976..6fa6f62d8c 100644
--- a/packages/test-utils/src/testUtils/appWrappers.tsx
+++ b/packages/test-utils/src/testUtils/appWrappers.tsx
@@ -55,6 +55,9 @@ export function wrapInTestApp(
       NotFoundErrorPage,
       BootErrorPage,
       Progress,
+      Router: ({ children }) => (
+        <MemoryRouter initialEntries={routeEntries} children={children} />
+      ),
     },
     icons: defaultSystemIcons,
     plugins: [],
@@ -79,9 +82,7 @@ export function wrapInTestApp(
 
   return (
     <AppProvider>
-      <MemoryRouter initialEntries={routeEntries}>
-        <Route component={Wrapper} />
-      </MemoryRouter>
+      <Route component={Wrapper} />
     </AppProvider>
   );
 }