People often ask: "What's your tech stack?" As a solo developer, my stack needs to be simple, reliable, and cost-effective. Here's what I use and why.

The Core: Next.js

What: React framework for building web applications Why I chose it: Server-side rendering, great developer experience, excellent documentation

Next.js is the foundation of kudutek.com. It handles:

As a solo developer, I don't have time to wire together a dozen tools. Next.js gives me everything in one package.

Why Not Just React?

Plain React requires you to make a lot of decisions:

Next.js makes all these decisions for you, and they're usually the right ones.

Database: Supabase

What: Open-source Firebase alternative (Postgres database + auth + storage) Why I chose it: Free tier, easy to use, scales well

Supabase handles:

Why Not Firebase?

Firebase is great, but:

Supabase gives me:

Email: Mailgun

What: Transactional email service Why I chose it: Reliable, affordable, good API

Mailgun handles:

I send a few hundred emails per month. Mailgun's free tier covers that easily.

Why Not SendGrid or AWS SES?

SendGrid is great but overkill for my needs. AWS SES is cheaper but requires more configuration. Mailgun hits the sweet spot of simple and affordable.

Hosting: Vercel

What: Hosting platform for Next.js apps Why I chose it: Made by Next.js creators, automatic deployments, free for side projects

Vercel handles:

I push to GitHub, and 30 seconds later, my changes are live. No servers to manage, no DevOps headaches.

Why Not AWS or DigitalOcean?

AWS is powerful but overwhelming. DigitalOcean is great but requires more hands-on management. Vercel is specifically designed for Next.js—the integration is seamless.

Styling: Tailwind CSS

What: Utility-first CSS framework Why I chose it: Fast to write, easy to maintain, great defaults

Tailwind lets me style components directly in JSX:

<button className="bg-blue-500 hover:bg-blue-700 text-white font-bold py-2 px-4 rounded">
  Click me
</button>

No switching between files, no naming classes, no CSS sprawl.

Why Not Plain CSS?

Plain CSS grows into an unmaintainable mess. Tailwind keeps styling localized and predictable.

Analytics: Plausible

What: Privacy-friendly analytics Why I chose it: No cookies, fast, respects privacy

Plausible tells me:

All without tracking individual users or setting cookies. GDPR-compliant by default.

Why Not Google Analytics?

Google Analytics is powerful but:

Plausible is simple, fast, and ethical.

Development Tools

TypeScript

Why: Catches bugs before runtime, better autocomplete, easier refactoring

TypeScript adds ~10% more typing but prevents 80% of runtime errors. Worth it.

Git + GitHub

Why: Version control, collaboration (with myself, ha), automatic deployments

Even as a solo dev, Git is essential. Time-travel for code is powerful.

VS Code

Why: Fast, great extensions, works everywhere

Extensions I can't live without:

The Excel Add-In Stack (XLNavigator)

XLNavigator is different—it's not a web app. Here's what I use:

C# + WPF

Why: Native Windows performance, full access to Excel's API

Building Excel add-ins requires working with Microsoft's Office APIs. C# is the natural choice.

Visual Studio

Why: Best IDE for C# development, excellent debugger

ClickOnce Deployment

Why: Simple deployment for Windows apps, automatic updates

Users install once, updates happen automatically.

Cost Breakdown

Monthly costs for running kudutek.com:

For a company website + blog + email list management, that's remarkably cheap.

What I'd Change

If I were starting over:

Keep:

Maybe Change:

Definitely Add:

Lessons for Choosing Your Stack

1. Optimize for Development Speed

As a solo dev, your time is the bottleneck. Choose tools that let you ship fast.

2. Embrace Managed Services

Don't self-host unless you have to. Managed services free you to build features instead of managing infrastructure.

3. Start Simple

Don't over-engineer. Start with the simplest stack that works, then add complexity only when needed.

4. Use What You Know

Chasing the hot new framework is tempting, but sticking with what you know lets you ship faster.

5. Free Tiers Are Your Friend

Most tools have generous free tiers. Use them while you're small.

The Stack for Solo Developers

Here's my recommendation for solo developers building a SaaS or content site:

Frontend: Next.js + Tailwind Backend: Next.js API routes (start) → Separate backend (if needed) Database: Supabase (or Planetscale for MySQL fans) Hosting: Vercel (for Next.js) or Netlify (for anything) Email: Mailgun or SendGrid Analytics: Plausible or Fathom Payments: Stripe (when you need it)

This stack:

The Best Stack Is the One You Ship With

Here's the truth: the best stack is the one you actually use to ship products.

Rails, Django, Laravel, Vue, Svelte—they're all great. What matters is:

  1. Can you build with it quickly?
  2. Does it solve your needs?
  3. Will it scale when you need it to?

The stack I use works for me. Yours might be different. That's okay.

Want to Learn More?

I write about building products and the technical decisions behind them. Subscribe to get new posts in your inbox, or follow me on Twitter for daily updates.

Got questions about my stack? Email me—I love talking shop with other developers.

Building your own product? I'd love to hear about your tech stack. What's working? What's not? Let's chat.