With ideas like lean and fail quickly being at the forefront of startups and SaaS development, it makes sense not to spend a significant amount of time uhm-ing and ah-ing about which technologies to choose for MVPs. Unfortunately, this is often a trap many new founders fall into. Common advice is to simply pick a stack you're most comfortable with and just start, and this is excellent advice. If you need to migrate later, so be it, but it is pointless to prematurely optimise your stack and learn technologies for a product that no one wants. With this in mind, I will introduce a highly efficient and cost-effective stack that can be tailored to your needs. Depending on the scope of your project, you can deploy different components of this stack. For instance, if you're aiming for just a landing page with a waiting list, you can choose to deploy only the frontend component.

The Stack at a Glance

• NextJS - Initial Cost $00.00
• Netlify - Initial Cost $00.00
• Fast API - Initial Cost $00.00
• Cloud Run - Initial Cost $00.00
• Stripe Billing - Initial Cost $00.00
• Clerk.Dev - Initial Cost $00.00
• Firestore - Initial Cost $00.00
• Gandi.net - Initial Cost (Cost of Domain)

Let's look at each component in this stack.

NextJS

NextJS is an open source modern react framework. It has sane routing and multiple rendering modes including build time rendering, making SEO for landing pages much easier. I personally recommend sticking to the pages router until the app router feels more friendly.

Netlify

The free tier on Netlify is well-suited for micro SaaS validation due to a variety of features at no cost. It includes 100GB of bandwidth, 300 build minutes, and allows for 500 sites, aiding in testing multiple ideas. Moreover, it provides 125k serverless function invocations and 100 form submissions per month, facilitating backend operations and user engagement respectively, essential for a micro SaaS setup. There are also benefits such as deploy previews, and building simply by linking a nextjs github repository.

Why Not Vercel?

Simply put, the vercel free tier prohibits commercial deployments. This can be seen in the fair use policy.

FastAPI

FastAPI, a potent Python web framework, is lauded for its rapid deployment of APIs and superb performance, often outpacing traditional Python frameworks with its automatic API documentation and simplified validation through Pydantic.

Benefits & Considerations

Despite its praise, container cold starts may deter some, especially in serverless setups where latency is critical. (More on this later.)

Why a Backend Despite Netlify’s NextJS Server Route Support?

Though Netlify does support NextJS API routes, a separate backend, like one utilizing FastAPI, is often prudent for enhanced scalability, reinforced security, and managing complex business logic—ensuring your application is not just nimble but also robust and secure as it scales. Remember: choose, build, iterate, and scale using the technologies that align with your expertise and project needs. The journey is replete with adjustments and learning; let the tech be a stepping stone, not a stumbling block.

Cloud Run

Cloud run is part of the google cloud platform and allows you to deploy containers (that listen for http requests) on demand. The free tier is incredibly generous, (though can become expensive at scale, at which point you should probably migrate away.) With 2,000,000 requests a month, 360,000 GB-seconds of memory, 180,000 vCPU-seconds of compute time, and 1 GB of Egress (from North America) per month.

The astute will have realised that there are more than 180,000 seconds in a month, however with cloud run your deployment can be configured to only be running when it recieves a request, this means you are not charged when you are not recieving requests. Of course the caveat to this is that there is an initial startup time when a container has stopped. So this might not be ideal for those who write slow backends. But once a container has started, it will remain idle for approximately 15 minutes before shutting down. (You are not charged for idle time)

Stripe Billing

Let's navigate the financial component of our stack: Stripe Billing. Renowned for its seamless integration and transparent pricing, Stripe has etched itself as a fundamental tool for digital entrepreneurs, especially for those building MVPs in the SaaS space.

Ease of Setup

When threading the needle through MVP development, simplicity is key. Stripe Billing encapsulates this by offering an easy setup, gracefully integrating with even the most elementary stacks like NextJS, Netlify, and Clerk.Dev. With copious documentation and a developer-friendly API, you can configure it to accommodate your specific use-case without trudging through complex setup processes.

Pay as You Grow

Embarking on a lean startup journey often implies being mindful of costs, and Stripe resonates with this sentiment. The initial plan operates on a pay-as-you-go model. You're not burdened with ongoing monthly fees; instead, a fee is incurred per transaction, aligning your costs directly with your revenue and aiding in maintaining a lean financial operation.

Flexible & Robust Product Handling

In the dynamic ecosystem of SaaS, your billing solution must be versatile. Stripe Billing champions this by allowing management of multiple products and subscriptions with aplomb. Whether you’re offering free trials, managing numerous product tiers, or orchestrating varying billing cycles for subscriptions (e.g., premium vs. standard, or monthly vs. yearly vs. lifetime subscriptions), Stripe navigates these intricacies with ease. It empowers you to create a billing system that can morph alongside your evolving product offerings and business model, without demanding an overhaul as your MVP evolves into a mature product.

Clerk.Dev

Diving into Clerk.Dev, it shines as a user authentication and management solution, saving valuable time compared to crafting this system from scratch. It's a breeze to integrate with our stack, particularly with NextJS and Netlify, at an inviting initial cost of $00.00. The pay-as-you-grow pricing model is a boon for bootstrapped startups, only scaling costs as your user base expands. Security is well-handled, with built-in measures to safeguard user data. The robust API and well-outlined documentation make it developer-friendly, simplifying the task of integrating a secure and effective user authentication system in your MVP journey. Clerk.Dev’s offerings are geared towards easing the early-stage hustle, letting you channel your efforts towards core product validation and development.

Data Storage

Metadata Management with Clerk.Dev

In the realm of SaaS, especially those with minimal data requirements, metadata handling is vital, yet often overlooked. Clerk.Dev deftly handles metadata through three classifications: public, private, and unsafe. Public metadata is accessible by anyone, making it ideal for storing non-sensitive data. Private metadata is secured and only accessible by authorized entities, perfect for storing user-specific data. Unsafe metadata, although stored server-side, should never house sensitive information as it's not encrypted. This triad of metadata management equips you with the flexibility to handle data responsibly and in alignment with your application's data sensitivity levels.

Firestore: Broadening Data Horizons

Transitioning to scenarios necessitating more extensive data storage, Firestore emerges as a formidable choice. Part of Firebase's suite, Firestore's free tier is substantial, offering 1 GiB of storage and 10k writes, 50k reads, and 20k deletes per day. This generous allotment is conducive for validating your SaaS idea without incurring costs.

The NoSQL database is structured to scale effortlessly with your project, and its real-time syncing capability ensures data consistency across your application, a critical feature as your user base expands. Integration with our stack is straightforward, and coupling Firestore with Clerk.Dev for user authentication creates a robust foundation for managing both user and app data efficiently. Its granular security rules further ensure data integrity and accessibility are finely controlled.

The seamless transition from Clerk.Dev's metadata management to Firestore's broader data storage capability exemplifies a well-thought-out data management strategy, crucial for scaling your SaaS application while keeping operational overheads lean. This duo caters to varying data needs, ensuring your tech stack remains efficient and cost-effective from MVP to a mature product.

Gandi.net

Finally, Gandi.net. It may seem strange that I have listed a domain registrar as a part of the tech stack, but when you buy a domain through gandi.net, you get 2 free mailboxes for a year. This is a seemingly small yet significant perk, especially in the embryonic stages of a micro SaaS business. These mailboxes are essentially all that's needed to validate a micro SaaS idea, and they integrate seamlessly with the Clerk.Dev email verification system.

Specifically, having a domain like notifications@<yourdomain> is paramount. It not only lends a professional veneer to your outgoing emails but also ensures that the email verification process is smooth and trustworthy from a user's perspective. Gandi.net’s offering dovetails nicely with Clerk.Dev's email verification mechanism, thereby streamlining the user onboarding process. This is a prime example of how different components of your tech stack should interlock to create a seamless and professional user experience, even in a micro SaaS setup.

A Modular Stack

The beauty of the proposed tech stack lies in its modularity and the ability to pick and choose components based on the specific needs and stage of your SaaS project. Not every element is requisite to kickstart your journey; the stack is designed to be as lean or as robust as your project necessitates.

For instance, if your initial goal is to validate your idea with a landing page to gauge interest, a combination of NextJS and Netlify might suffice. This duo allows you to swiftly deploy a professional-looking landing page with minimal fuss, enabling you to collect leads and measure interest in your offering.

As your project evolves, and you find the need to introduce user authentication, Clerk.Dev easily integrates into your existing setup, adding a secure and efficient user management layer. Similarly, as your data needs grow, introducing Firestore into your stack provides a scalable and powerful database solution without a steep learning curve or complex migration processes.

Each component in this stack serves a distinct purpose, and the decision to utilize them should align with the current needs and long-term vision of your project. The stack's flexibility allows for seamless integration and disintegration of components, ensuring your tech setup remains agile, scalable, and cost-effective throughout your project's lifecycle.

This tailored approach empowers you to maintain a lean operation, prioritizing resources and efforts towards validating and iterating on your core product offering. It underscores the principle of not over-engineering solutions prematurely, but rather evolving your tech stack in tandem with your project’s growth and validation milestones.

To Conclude

Embarking on a micro SaaS journey entails navigating through a plethora of decisions, each with the potential to accelerate or hinder your venture. The tech stack delineated herein is meticulously curated to foster a smooth sail from ideation to validation, offering a blend of modularity and robustness, sans the hefty price tag.

The essence lies in the stack's ability to morph in alignment with your project's stage and needs. Whether you are at the helm of a budding idea validated through a simple landing page via NextJS and Netlify, or steering a growing project necessitating robust user authentication with Clerk.Dev and expansive data handling with Firestore, this stack is engineered to adapt seamlessly.

Each component is a cog in a well-orchestrated machine, designed to reduce operational friction, expedite the validation voyage, and lay a solid foundation for scalable growth. The flexibility to pick and choose components ensures your tech setup remains lean yet potent, ready to evolve in tandem with your project's trajectory.

As you venture into the micro SaaS realm, armed with a tailored tech stack, may your focus remain undiverted towards solving real-world problems and delivering value to your users. The journey from a nascent idea to a validated product is exhilarating, and with the right tools in your armory, the path is significantly smoothened, propelling you forward with confidence and agility.