Mylestech Admin 9c1bf0a285 Central skills catalog: 472 skills + WORKING_SET + AGENTS

2026-07-13 14:05:05 -04:00

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Tech Stack Options

Default comparison data for PLAID tech stack questions. Use these as a baseline and adapt recommendations based on the specific product’s needs. The comparison format and pros/cons should be adjusted to reflect how each option fits the founder’s particular product.

Frontend Frameworks

Web Apps

Next.js — React framework with server-side rendering, file-based routing, and excellent deployment options.

✓ Largest React ecosystem, huge community, extensive documentation
✓ App Router with server components for performance
✓ Excellent integration with Vercel, Convex, Clerk, and most services
✓ Best-supported by AI coding tools (most training data)
✗ Can be complex — many ways to do things (server vs client components)
✗ Opinionated about project structure
Best for: Most web apps. Default recommendation unless there’s a specific reason not to.

Remix — Full-stack React framework focused on web standards and progressive enhancement.

✓ Excellent form handling and data loading patterns
✓ Progressive enhancement — works without JavaScript
✓ Simpler mental model than Next.js (loaders + actions)
✗ Smaller ecosystem than Next.js
✗ Less AI coding tool familiarity
Best for: Form-heavy apps, content-heavy sites, apps that need to work without JS.

SvelteKit — Svelte framework with file-based routing and server-side rendering.

✓ Significantly less boilerplate than React
✓ Excellent performance — smaller bundle sizes
✓ Built-in state management (no Redux/Zustand needed)
✗ Smaller ecosystem and community than React
✗ Fewer component libraries available
✗ Less AI coding tool support
Best for: Performance-critical apps, developers who prefer less boilerplate.

Mobile Apps

Expo / React Native — Cross-platform mobile framework with managed workflow.

✓ Write once, run on iOS and Android
✓ Expo managed workflow eliminates native build complexity
✓ React knowledge transfers directly
✓ Over-the-air updates
✗ Performance can lag behind native for graphics-heavy apps
✗ Some native APIs require ejecting from managed workflow
Best for: Most mobile apps. Default recommendation for mobile.

Flutter — Google's cross-platform UI toolkit using Dart.

✓ Excellent performance — compiles to native
✓ Beautiful, customizable UI components
✓ Single codebase for iOS, Android, web, desktop
✗ Dart is a separate language to learn
✗ Less ecosystem integration with JS/TS backends
✗ Less AI coding tool support than React Native
Best for: Apps needing pixel-perfect custom UI or very high performance.

Desktop Apps

Electron — Build cross-platform desktop apps with Chromium and Node.js. Powers VS Code, Slack, Discord, Figma, and Notion.

✓ Most mature desktop framework — battle-tested at massive scale
✓ Full web technology stack (HTML, CSS, JS/TS) — no new language to learn
✓ Largest ecosystem of plugins, tools, and community resources
✓ Excellent AI coding tool support (most training data)
✗ Heavy memory footprint — each app bundles its own Chromium instance
✗ Large bundle sizes (100MB+ minimum)
✗ Can feel non-native on macOS — requires extra work to match platform conventions
Best for: Most desktop apps. Default recommendation for desktop. Especially strong when the team already knows web technologies.

Tauri — Lightweight desktop framework using the OS's native webview and a Rust backend.

✓ Dramatically smaller bundles than Electron (often 5-10MB vs 100MB+)
✓ Lower memory usage — uses the OS webview instead of bundling Chromium
✓ Rust backend for performance-critical operations and system access
✓ Strong security model — fine-grained permission system for system APIs
✗ Younger ecosystem — fewer community resources and plugins than Electron
✗ Rust knowledge needed for backend plugins and system integrations
✗ OS webview inconsistencies can cause cross-platform rendering differences
Best for: Desktop apps where bundle size and memory matter, or when deep system integration is needed. Good for developers comfortable with Rust.

Flutter (Desktop) — The same Flutter framework listed under Mobile, with support for macOS, Windows, and Linux.

✓ Single codebase across mobile, web, and desktop — true cross-platform
✓ Compiles to native — good performance without a webview
✓ Consistent UI across all platforms
✗ Desktop support is less mature than mobile — some platform APIs are missing
✗ Dart ecosystem is smaller than JS/TS for desktop-specific needs
✗ Apps don't follow native platform UI conventions by default
Best for: Projects that need a single codebase across mobile AND desktop. Not recommended for desktop-only apps — Electron or Tauri are better choices there.

Backend

Convex — Reactive backend-as-a-service with built-in database, real-time sync, and TypeScript-native functions.

✓ Real-time data sync out of the box — no WebSocket setup
✓ Zero backend boilerplate — define functions, they just work
✓ Built-in auth, file storage, scheduling, search
✓ TypeScript end-to-end with full type safety
✓ Excellent DX for solo developers — fast iteration
✓ ACID transactions on the database
✗ Newer ecosystem — fewer community resources
✗ Vendor dependency — data lives on Convex Cloud
✗ Different mental model from traditional REST APIs
Best for: Most products, especially real-time apps, solo developers, MVPs. Default recommendation.

Supabase — Open-source Firebase alternative built on PostgreSQL.

✓ PostgreSQL under the hood — full SQL power, relational data
✓ Real-time subscriptions, auth, storage, edge functions
✓ Open source — can self-host if needed
✓ Large and growing community
✗ More setup than Convex — manual schema migrations
✗ Real-time requires explicit subscription setup
✗ Edge functions are less integrated than Convex functions
Best for: Products with complex relational data, teams that want SQL and open-source.

Node.js + Express + PostgreSQL — Traditional server setup with full control.

✓ Maximum flexibility — build exactly what you need
✓ Largest ecosystem of packages and middleware
✓ Full control over infrastructure and hosting
✗ Significant boilerplate — auth, validation, error handling, CORS, etc.
✗ You manage everything: database migrations, deployment, scaling
✗ Slower to iterate as a solo developer
Best for: Experienced backend developers who want full control, or products with unusual requirements.

Database

Convex Database — Document-relational database built into the Convex platform.

✓ Automatic reactive queries — UI updates when data changes
✓ ACID transactions with optimistic concurrency
✓ Automatic indexing — define indexes in schema, they just work
✓ TypeScript schema validation built-in
✗ Only available with Convex backend
✗ Document-oriented — different from SQL thinking
Best for: Any product using Convex backend. Use this — it’s part of the package.

PostgreSQL — The gold-standard open-source relational database.

✓ Rock-solid reliability and ACID compliance
✓ Full SQL power — complex queries, joins, aggregations
✓ Excellent for relational data with complex relationships
✓ Massive ecosystem of tools and extensions
✗ Requires migrations for schema changes
✗ No built-in real-time — need separate pub/sub
Best for: Products with complex relational data. Pairs with Supabase or traditional backends.

Supabase Database (PostgreSQL) — Managed PostgreSQL via the Supabase platform with a dashboard, auto-generated APIs, and real-time subscriptions.

✓ Full PostgreSQL — complex queries, joins, extensions, relational power
✓ Auto-generated REST and GraphQL APIs from your schema
✓ Real-time subscriptions built in
✓ Row Level Security for fine-grained access control
✓ Dashboard with table editor — visual schema management
✗ Only makes sense with Supabase backend
✗ Migrations still needed for production schema changes
Best for: Supabase backends — use this, it’s part of the package. Excellent for relational data.

None (local-only / no database) — The app stores data on-device only (AsyncStorage, SQLite, UserDefaults, local files).

✓ Zero infrastructure — no backend costs, no latency
✓ Works offline by default
✓ Simpler architecture — no sync, no API calls
✗ Data is lost if the user deletes the app (unless backed up)
✗ No cross-device sync
✗ No server-side logic or shared data
Best for: Mobile apps that are primarily tools (calculators, trackers, utilities), offline-first apps, or MVPs that don’t need shared data. Consider adding a backend later if the product grows.

Auth Providers

Convex Auth — Native auth built into the Convex platform.

✓ Zero-config integration with Convex backend
✓ Supports email/password, OAuth providers, magic links
✓ User data lives in Convex — no external service calls
✗ Only works with Convex backend
✗ Fewer pre-built UI components than Clerk
Best for: Convex backends where simplicity is priority.

Clerk — Drop-in auth with pre-built UI components.

✓ Beautiful, pre-built sign-in/sign-up components
✓ Social login, MFA, organization management out of the box
✓ Excellent React/Next.js integration
✓ Generous free tier (10,000 MAUs)
✗ External service dependency
✗ Monthly cost at scale
Best for: Products that want polished auth UI fast. Works with any backend.

Auth.js (NextAuth) — Open-source auth for Next.js.

✓ Open source — no vendor dependency
✓ Supports many OAuth providers
✓ Database adapters for most databases
✗ More setup and configuration than Clerk
✗ Less polished UI — you build your own forms
✗ Session management can be tricky
Best for: Developers who want open-source auth with full control.

Supabase Auth — Auth built into the Supabase platform.

✓ Integrated with Supabase — Row Level Security uses auth
✓ Email/password, magic links, OAuth providers
✓ Free with Supabase
✗ Only makes sense with Supabase backend
✗ Less polished than Clerk’s UI components
Best for: Supabase backends — use this, it’s part of the package.

None (no auth needed) — The app doesn’t require user accounts or sign-in.

✓ Simpler UX — no sign-up friction, instant access
✓ Less infrastructure to manage
✓ Better for tools, utilities, and single-player experiences
✗ No personalization or saved preferences across devices
✗ Can’t gate features behind subscription tiers (without device-level checks)
Best for: Mobile utility apps, offline tools, calculators, single-player experiences, or MVPs testing core value before adding accounts. Can always add auth later.

Payment Providers

Web / SaaS Payments

Polar — Developer-first payment platform for SaaS and digital products.

✓ Built specifically for developers and SaaS products
✓ Handles subscriptions, one-time payments, and licensing
✓ Excellent API and webhook support
✓ Generous free tier — no monthly fee, only transaction fees
✓ Built-in customer portal
✗ Newer platform — smaller community than Stripe
✗ Less suitable for physical goods or complex billing
Best for: SaaS products, digital products, developer tools. Default recommendation for web.

Stripe — The most flexible and widely-used payment platform.

✓ Supports virtually any payment model
✓ Largest ecosystem — extensive documentation, libraries, integrations
✓ Stripe Checkout for quick integration
✓ Billing portal, invoicing, subscription management
✗ Complex — many concepts to learn (Products, Prices, Subscriptions, etc.)
✗ You handle tax calculation separately (or use Stripe Tax)
✗ More setup than Polar for simple SaaS billing
Best for: Products with complex billing needs, marketplaces, or if you need maximum flexibility.

Lemon Squeezy — Merchant of record for digital products.

✓ Handles global tax compliance — they’re the merchant of record
✓ Simple setup for subscriptions and one-time payments
✓ Built-in affiliate program
✓ No need to register for tax in different jurisdictions
✗ Higher fees than Stripe (they handle tax liability)
✗ Less flexible than Stripe for complex billing
✗ Smaller ecosystem
Best for: Solo founders selling internationally who don’t want to deal with tax compliance.

Mobile In-App Payments

For mobile apps distributed through the App Store or Google Play, in-app purchases (IAP) are often required by platform policies. These tools manage subscriptions and purchases through the native store billing systems.

RevenueCat — Cross-platform in-app subscription management.

✓ Abstracts Apple and Google billing APIs into one SDK
✓ Handles receipt validation, entitlements, and subscription status server-side
✓ Excellent dashboard with analytics, cohorts, and churn tracking
✓ Generous free tier — free up to $2,500/month in tracked revenue
✓ Works with React Native/Expo, Flutter, Swift, Kotlin
✓ Webhook support for backend integration
✗ Another dependency and point of failure in the payment flow
✗ Paid tiers add up as revenue grows (1% of tracked revenue after free tier)
Best for: Any mobile app with subscriptions or one-time IAP. Default recommendation for mobile payments.

Superwall — Paywall A/B testing and management platform.

✓ Build and deploy paywalls remotely — no app update needed to change pricing UI
✓ Built-in A/B testing for paywall designs, pricing, and placement
✓ Pre-built paywall templates that convert well
✓ Analytics on conversion, trial starts, and revenue per paywall
✓ Works with RevenueCat or handles purchases directly via StoreKit/Billing
✗ Focused on paywall presentation — not a full subscription backend (pair with RevenueCat for that)
✗ Adds SDK overhead to your app
✗ Free tier is limited — paid plans required for A/B testing
Best for: Mobile apps that want to optimize subscription conversion through paywall experimentation. Best paired with RevenueCat for the full billing stack.

None (no payments needed) — The app is free with no monetization, or monetization will be added later.

✓ Ship faster — no payment integration complexity
✓ No App Store commission considerations
✓ Focus entirely on core product value
✗ No revenue from day one
✗ Adding payments later requires an app update and review
Best for: Free utility apps, apps exploring product-market fit before monetizing, or apps monetized through other channels (ads, enterprise contracts, etc.).

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