ShipFast vs Makerkit vs Supastarter: 2026 Updated

TL;DR

ShipFast ($199-299), Makerkit ($299+), and Supastarter ($299+) are the three most-purchased SaaS boilerplates in 2026. They target different builders: ShipFast is for indie hackers who want to ship a product in a week, Makerkit is for teams who want a plugin-based system with room to grow, and Supastarter is for developers who need multi-tenancy (organizations + teams) baked in from day one. Here's the honest comparison.

Key Takeaways

• ShipFast ($199-299): fastest to launch, best community, weakest on multi-tenancy — ideal for B2C indie projects
• Makerkit ($299+): plugin architecture, best for complex feature sets, good B2B with teams
• Supastarter ($299+): best multi-tenancy and i18n, strongest for B2B with organizations
• Auth: all three include email + OAuth — differences are in session handling and SSR support
• Billing: all three support Stripe — Makerkit also supports Lemon Squeezy; Supastarter supports both
• Stack: all three are Next.js-first — Supastarter also ships Nuxt 3 version

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The Three Contenders

ShipFast — Launched by Marc Lou

Price	$199 (Starter) / $299 (All-in)
Stack	Next.js 14/15 + Tailwind + MongoDB or Supabase
Creator	Marc Lou (indie hacker, ~250K followers)
Community	7,500+ Discord members (largest of the three)
GitHub Stars	Private (purchase-based)

ShipFast's philosophy: ship in a weekend. It's deliberately minimal — the goal is reducing friction to your first user, not supporting every enterprise feature.

// ShipFast's simplicity — checkout in ~50 lines:
// libs/stripe.ts
import Stripe from 'stripe';

const stripe = new Stripe(process.env.STRIPE_SECRET_KEY!);

export const createCheckout = async ({
  priceId,
  userId,
  successUrl,
  cancelUrl,
  couponId,
}: {
  priceId: string;
  userId: string;
  successUrl: string;
  cancelUrl: string;
  couponId?: string;
}) => {
  const session = await stripe.checkout.sessions.create({
    mode: 'subscription',
    payment_method_types: ['card'],
    line_items: [{ price: priceId, quantity: 1 }],
    success_url: successUrl,
    cancel_url: cancelUrl,
    client_reference_id: userId,
    ...(couponId && { discounts: [{ coupon: couponId }] }),
  });
  return session.url;
};

What ShipFast includes:

• Auth: Supabase Auth OR NextAuth.js (your choice at setup)
• Payments: Stripe (subscriptions + one-time) + Lemon Squeezy
• Email: Resend, Mailchimp, or Sendgrid
• Database: MongoDB OR Supabase Postgres (not both)
• UI: shadcn/ui + Tailwind + DaisyUI
• SEO: sitemap, robots.txt, structured data
• Blog: simple markdown blog
• Analytics: Plausible integration

What ShipFast is missing:

• Multi-tenancy (no organizations/teams)
• Role-based permissions
• Plugin system
• i18n (internationalization)
• Admin dashboard

ShipFast is right for you if:

• You're building B2C (users, not teams)
• Speed to launch is your #1 priority
• You want the largest community for help
• You're an indie hacker, not a dev team

---

Makerkit — The Plugin Architecture

Price	$299 (Core) + $99-199/plugin
Stack	Next.js 15 App Router + Supabase + Stripe
Creator	Giancarlo Buomprisco
Community	2,000+ Discord members
GitHub Stars	Private (purchase-based)

Makerkit's philosophy: extensible foundation. The core kit is lean; plugins add specific features. This keeps the base codebase clean while letting you add only what you need.

// Makerkit's plugin pattern — teams plugin example:
// packages/plugins/team-accounts/src/lib/server/teams.ts

export async function getTeamMembers(organizationId: string) {
  const client = getSupabaseServerClient();
  const { data, error } = await client
    .from('organization_members')
    .select(`
      id,
      role,
      user:users(id, email, display_name, photo_url),
      created_at
    `)
    .eq('organization_id', organizationId)
    .order('created_at', { ascending: true });

  if (error) throw error;
  return data;
}

// Invitation flow (plugin-provided):
export async function inviteUserToTeam({
  email,
  organizationId,
  role,
}: {
  email: string;
  organizationId: string;
  role: 'owner' | 'admin' | 'member';
}) {
  // Creates invitation token, sends email, tracks invite
}

Makerkit core includes:

• Auth: Supabase Auth (full SSR support via @supabase/ssr)
• Billing: Stripe OR Lemon Squeezy (configurable)
• Multi-tenancy: organization model (in core, not plugin)
• Role-based access: owner, admin, member
• Email: Nodemailer or Resend
• UI: shadcn/ui + Radix + Tailwind
• Admin panel: user + organization management
• i18n: next-intl built-in (12+ languages)

Makerkit available plugins:

• Text editor (novel.sh based)
• Chatbot / AI integration
• Roadmap / feature voting
• Blog (full-featured)
• Billing portal (custom)
• Enhanced analytics

Makerkit is right for you if:

• You want to pay for only what you need
• Your SaaS will grow in feature complexity over time
• You need i18n from day one
• You're building for teams, not just individuals

---

Supastarter — Multi-Tenancy First

Price	$299 (Next.js) / $349 (Next.js + Nuxt)
Stack	Next.js 15 / Nuxt 3 + Supabase + Stripe/Lemon Squeezy
Creator	Jan Hesters
Community	2,500+ Discord members
GitHub Stars	Private (purchase-based)

Supastarter's philosophy: Supabase-native and B2B-ready from day one. It's the most complete Supabase integration of any boilerplate — RLS policies pre-written, storage buckets configured, realtime wired up.

// Supastarter's organization model — deep Supabase integration:
// app/[locale]/(app)/[organization]/settings/members/page.tsx

// The membership system is pre-built with RLS:
// CREATE POLICY "members can read org memberships"
// ON memberships FOR SELECT
// USING (
//   organization_id IN (
//     SELECT organization_id FROM memberships
//     WHERE user_id = auth.uid()
//   )
// );

// Supastarter server action — invite member:
'use server';
import { createClient } from '@/utils/supabase/server';

export async function inviteMember(formData: FormData) {
  const supabase = await createClient();
  const { data: { user } } = await supabase.auth.getUser();

  // Permission check (RLS + application-level):
  const hasPermission = await checkOrganizationPermission(
    user!.id,
    formData.get('organizationId') as string,
    'invite_members'
  );
  if (!hasPermission) throw new Error('Permission denied');

  await supabase.functions.invoke('send-invitation', {
    body: {
      email: formData.get('email'),
      organizationId: formData.get('organizationId'),
      role: formData.get('role'),
    },
  });
}

Supastarter includes:

• Auth: Supabase Auth (email, magic link, OAuth, OTP) — full SSR
• Organizations: multi-tenancy with RLS pre-written for all tables
• Roles: granular permissions (owner, admin, member, + custom)
• Billing: Stripe + Lemon Squeezy (per-seat billing supported)
• Storage: file uploads + Supabase Storage buckets configured
• Realtime: notifications via Supabase Realtime
• Email: Resend pre-configured
• i18n: next-intl (7+ languages)
• Admin dashboard: user + org management
• Blog: MDX blog built-in
• UI: shadcn/ui + Tailwind
• Both Next.js and Nuxt 3 versions (unique to Supastarter)

Supastarter is right for you if:

• You're building B2B SaaS (organizations buying seats)
• You need complete Supabase integration (RLS, storage, realtime)
• Your team uses Nuxt instead of Next.js
• You need i18n from day one
• You want the most feature-complete starting point

---

Feature-by-Feature Comparison

Feature	ShipFast	Makerkit	Supastarter
Price	$199-299	$299+	$299-349
Next.js	✅ 14/15	✅ 15 App Router	✅ 15
Nuxt 3	❌	❌	✅
Auth: email	✅	✅	✅
Auth: magic link	✅	✅	✅
Auth: OAuth	✅	✅	✅
Auth: OTP	❌	❌	✅
Organizations	❌	✅ (basic)	✅ (deep)
Role permissions	❌	✅	✅ (granular)
RLS pre-written	❌	Partial	✅
Stripe	✅	✅	✅
Lemon Squeezy	✅	✅	✅
Per-seat billing	❌	Partial	✅
i18n	❌	✅	✅
Admin dashboard	❌	✅	✅
File uploads	Partial	Partial	✅ (pre-configured)
Realtime	❌	❌	✅
Blog	Basic	Plugin	✅ built-in
Plugin system	❌	✅	❌
Community size	🏆 Largest	Medium	Medium
Docs quality	Good	Excellent	Good

---

Auth Deep Dive

All three use Supabase Auth (or NextAuth for ShipFast) but with different SSR implementations:

// Makerkit — auth via @supabase/ssr (correct pattern):
// packages/core/supabase/src/supabase.server.ts
import { createServerClient } from '@supabase/ssr';
import { cookies } from 'next/headers';

export function getSupabaseServerClient() {
  const cookieStore = cookies();
  return createServerClient(
    process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_URL!,
    process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY!,
    {
      cookies: {
        getAll() { return cookieStore.getAll(); },
        setAll(cookiesToSet) {
          cookiesToSet.forEach(({ name, value, options }) =>
            cookieStore.set(name, value, options)
          );
        },
      },
    }
  );
}

// Supastarter — similar pattern, but adds org context:
export async function createClient() {
  const cookieStore = await cookies();
  return createServerClient(/* ... */);
}

// ShipFast — simpler, but getSession() is deprecated:
// (ShipFast uses createRouteHandlerClient from older @supabase/auth-helpers-nextjs)
// ⚠️ The newer @supabase/ssr package is the correct approach

Auth verdict: Makerkit and Supastarter use the current @supabase/ssr approach correctly. ShipFast's Supabase integration uses the older auth-helpers pattern — functional but not the recommended 2026 approach.

---

Database Choice

ShipFast:
  - MongoDB (default) OR Supabase Postgres
  - Choose at setup, not interchangeable
  - MongoDB = no RLS, simpler data model
  - Supabase = Postgres + RLS + realtime

Makerkit:
  - Supabase Postgres only
  - Prisma schema included
  - Can swap to Neon/PlanetScale with URL change
  - RLS policies for core tables (orgs, memberships)

Supastarter:
  - Supabase Postgres only
  - Raw Supabase client (no Prisma by default)
  - Full RLS for ALL tables pre-written
  - Migration files: run with `supabase db push`

Database verdict: Supastarter has the most complete Supabase setup. If you're building on Supabase and want everything pre-configured (RLS, storage, realtime), Supastarter saves the most time. Makerkit offers more flexibility (Prisma makes DB swapping easier).

---

Billing Complexity Supported

// Simple Stripe subscription (all three):
const session = await stripe.checkout.sessions.create({
  mode: 'subscription',
  line_items: [{ price: monthlyPriceId, quantity: 1 }],
  // ...
});

// Per-seat billing (Supastarter):
// Billing updates when team members are added/removed:
await stripe.subscriptions.update(subscriptionId, {
  items: [{
    id: currentItem.id,
    quantity: newSeatCount,
  }],
  proration_behavior: 'create_prorations',
});

// Makerkit per-seat (partial — you add seat counting):
// Makerkit's billing module handles the subscription
// but seat-count billing requires custom implementation

// ShipFast — no per-seat (B2C model only):
// One price per user, no organization seat counting

---

Documentation Quality

	ShipFast	Makerkit	Supastarter
Getting started	Excellent	Excellent	Good
Auth guide	Good	Excellent	Good
Billing guide	Good	Excellent	Good
Multi-tenancy guide	N/A	Good	Good
Plugin guide	N/A	Excellent	N/A
Video tutorials	Some (Marc's YouTube)	Few	Few
Community Q&A	🏆 Best (Discord)	Good	Good

Makerkit has the best written documentation. ShipFast has the best community support via Discord — with 7,500+ members, someone has usually solved your problem already.

---

Pricing Reality

ShipFast:
  $199 — Core (one domain)
  $299 — All-in (unlimited domains + future updates)
  → One-time payment, lifetime updates

Makerkit:
  $299 — Core kit
  + $99-199 per plugin (teams, blog, roadmap, etc.)
  A fully-featured setup: $299 + 2-3 plugins = $500-700
  → One-time payment, lifetime updates

Supastarter:
  $299 — Next.js version
  $349 — Next.js + Nuxt 3 bundle
  → One-time payment, lifetime updates

True cost if you need full-featured B2B SaaS:

• ShipFast: you build multi-tenancy yourself (~2-3 weeks dev time)
• Makerkit: $299 + plugins = ~$500-600 total
• Supastarter: $299 flat (most features included)

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Decision Framework

Pick ShipFast if:

• You're building B2C (no teams, no organizations)
• Speed to launch > feature completeness
• You want the largest community
• Your product is simple (auth + payments + dashboard)
• You're a solo indie hacker

Pick Makerkit if:

• You want to pay incrementally as features are needed
• Your SaaS will add features over time (plugin system is future-proof)
• You need i18n and admin from day one
• You want Prisma (easier to swap databases)
• You're a small dev team building a product with uncertain requirements

Pick Supastarter if:

• You're building B2B SaaS (companies buy accounts, not individuals)
• Multi-tenancy is a day-1 requirement (save 2-3 weeks of development)
• You want complete Supabase integration (RLS, storage, realtime)
• Your team uses Nuxt (only option with a Nuxt version)
• You need i18n from launch

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Compare ShipFast, Makerkit, and Supastarter in detail at StarterPick.