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supastack team1 min read

supastack vs TanStarter

TanStarter runs a lean TanStack Start app on Cloudflare Workers. supastack is a tested Next.js + Expo + Tauri monorepo with teams and integrations. How to choose.

supastack team

TL;DR

TanStarter bets on TanStack Start and Cloudflare Workers: a lean codebase with very low hosting costs. supastack bets on Next.js, Expo and Tauri in one monorepo, with teams and a developer platform built in.

  • Pick TanStarter if hosting cost must be near zero, your product is web only, and you like TanStack Start.
  • Pick supastack if you need mobile or desktop apps, team workspaces, API keys and webhooks, or the Next.js ecosystem.

At a glance

supastackTanStarter
FrameworkNext.js 16.3 + Expo 57 + TauriTanStack Start + Vite
HostingVercel, Docker, self-hostCloudflare Workers
Mobile / desktopYesNo
AuthBetter Auth with 2FA, passkeys, OTP, adminBetter Auth with admin
Team workspacesYesNo
BillingStripe or Lemon Squeezy, per-seatStripe, Creem, Waffo
CreditsNoBasic
AIRouter, BYOK keys, budgetsAI SDK + fal.ai
API keys + webhooksYesNo
StorageStorage packageCloudflare R2
Languagesen, de, es, fren, zh
Test files in repo14420 (+ Playwright)
TypeScript files~470~365

Where supastack is stronger

Ecosystem — Next.js has far more examples, libraries and AI coding-assistant knowledge than TanStack Start, which means fewer surprises.

Multiple clients — mobile and desktop apps share the same packages.

B2B features — teams, seat billing, API keys, webhooks, audit log, GDPR export.

Tests — 144 test files versus 20.

Where TanStarter is stronger

Hosting cost — Cloudflare Workers and R2 keep the bill very low at small and medium scale.

Lean codebase — fewer files and one app to learn.

Chinese and English — both included.

More payment choices for Asia — Creem and Waffo alongside Stripe.

Who should pick which

You are buildingPick
Low-traffic web tool on a tight budgetTanStarter
Web product for Chinese usersTanStarter
Team or B2B productsupastack
Product with mobile or desktop appssupastack
Product with API integrationssupastack

Verdict

TanStarter is a smart choice for lean, web-only products where hosting cost dominates. supastack is the better choice once the product needs teams, more clients or integrations, and its test suite makes it safer to grow.

Comparison based on the source code of both starters as of September 2026. Check each project's docs for the latest features.

Keep reading

supastack vs TurboStartersupastack vs MkSaaSsupastack vs ShipAny

Frequently asked questions

14 questions

What is supastack?

supastack is a modular foundation for building AI-powered SaaS products. It brings together common infrastructure so you can focus on product-specific features.

Does it support web and mobile?

Yes. supastack includes Next.js and Expo apps as starting points for web and mobile experiences.

What authentication is included?

Better Auth covers email OTP, magic-link, and social sign-in; email/password stays available at the API layer and through the Auth.js credentials engine for products that need it. Personal workspaces are provisioned with the account so product records stay scoped from day one.

How does it support AI?

supastack includes configurable multi-provider AI, usage tracking, budgets, and encrypted bring-your-own-key support.

How are subscriptions handled?

For products built on the kit, Stripe billing, subscriptions, and entitlements form the paid-access foundation. Provider secrets stay server-only.

Where does my product-specific code live?

Product-specific features remain in a separate codebase while the product configures and integrates supastack’s foundation modules.

How does supastack pricing work?

The kit is a one-time purchase with lifetime updates: One Platform at $249 (temporary launch price, $100 off the regular $349) — your pick of Next.js (Web), Expo (iOS & Android), or Tauri (macOS & Windows Desktop) — or the All Platforms Bundle at $499 (temporary launch price, $100 off the regular $599) with every platform and the full monorepo, plus $75 per extra developer seat. No kit subscription. Checkout on this site delivers your license key by email, with repository access via GitHub invite.

How do workspaces scope my data?

User-owned records are scoped by workspaceId. Identity, entitlements, AI usage, billing events, and audit entries stay inside the personal workspace boundary.

How do background jobs work?

Trigger.dev is the explicit job runtime. The JobRunner contract only promises enqueue, status, and cancel—workflow semantics stay Trigger.dev-specific and explicit.

How is email different from outreach?

Transactional email covers product workflows such as completion notices. Cold outreach and campaigns are product concerns outside this kit’s email module.

How do mobile purchases work?

Mobile includes native purchases and restore through RevenueCat, with access verified by your server. Configure the store accounts and complete device testing before release. Web billing remains separate.

Where do AI provider keys live?

Bring-your-own-key credentials are encrypted and stay server-only. Keys are redacted from logs; usage and budgets remain visible at the workspace level.

Which payment methods does checkout accept?

The Stripe-hosted checkout accepts cards and can also offer Alipay and WeChat Pay once those wallets are enabled on the Stripe account — handy for buyers in China. Wallet authorizations confirm asynchronously, so the license page updates as soon as the payment clears.

Can I get a refund?

After you've got access to the repository, supastack is yours forever, so it cannot be refunded. But rest assured, you get the complete source code with lifetime updates to build and ship unlimited products for yourself or clients. You just cannot resell the code or redistribute the repository as a starter kit or template.

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