Category
56 posts in this category.
Most people searching for a Node.js workflow engine are holding two problems at once. We split the shelf along that seam: job queues (BullMQ, pg-boss) on one side, workflow engines with durable execution (Hatchet, Trigger.dev, Temporal, Inngest) on the other, and the test that tells you which one you need.
Appsmith, ToolJet, and Budibase are the open-source answer to Retool. We compare the three self-hostable internal tools builders for a Next.js SaaS in 2026, split honestly by license and by weight.
A curator's take on the three open-source auth picks for a Next.js SaaS in 2026 (Better Auth, Auth.js, Supabase Auth), and the one axis that decides which shelf you pull from.
React-Admin is the most popular open-source React admin framework, but is it the right admin panel for a Next.js SaaS in 2026? A ShipGarden curator's hands-on take on the free MIT core, the Enterprise Edition paywall, and where Refine or AdminJS fit better.
Serverless Postgres is four different bets in 2026, not one. A ShipGarden curator's source-checked guide to Neon, Supabase, Xata, and Nile for a Next.js SaaS: branching, real pricing, multi-tenancy, and where each one loses.
Sentry vs GlitchTip vs Highlight for error monitoring in a Next.js SaaS in 2026: the license fork, what each costs to self-host, and honest where-each-loses.
Meilisearch, Typesense, and Elasticsearch for search in a Next.js SaaS in 2026: where the engine runs, the license ceiling, and honest where-each-loses, with real repos and costs.
Refine, React-Admin, and AdminJS are the three open-source ways to add an admin panel to a Next.js SaaS in 2026. We compare architecture, deploy path, real cost, and where each one loses.
Payload, Strapi, and Directus for a Next.js SaaS content layer in 2026: Next.js-native vs standalone, schema-first vs database-first, and the license ceiling that decides the tie.
Drizzle, Prisma, and Kysely for the data layer of a Next.js SaaS in 2026: why they are not the same category, real repos and costs, and honest where-each-loses.
Polar, Lemon Squeezy, and Paddle for merchant-of-record billing on a Next.js SaaS in 2026: real fees, the open-source pick, the Stripe angle, and honest where-each-loses.
Qdrant, Weaviate, and Chroma are the three open-source vector databases you can actually self-host. We compare embedded versus server, self-host cost, license, managed pricing, and when pgvector wins.
