Indie Kit - The AI-Native Next.js Starter Kit

The AI-Native Next.js Starter Kit 🤖

Engineered for modern development. Optimized for AI.

This is the Open Source / Lite Version of Indie Kit Pro. It combines a production-grade tech stack with "AI Context Rules" that empower LLMs (Cursor, Windsurf, Copilot) to understand your codebase, write bug-free code, and navigate your project autonomously.

🚀 Features

Core Stack - The Right Architecture

• 🏗️ Next.js 16 (App Router) - Staying ahead of the curve.
• 🎨 Tailwind CSS v4 + Shadcn UI - Beautiful, accessible UI.
• 🔐 Better Auth (Social + Magic Link) - Secure and simple.
• 🗄️ Drizzle ORM + Bring Your Own Database - Connect to Supabase, Neon, or any Postgres provider.
• 💳 Stripe Subscription Webhooks - Ready for monetization.
• 📁 UploadThing for file storage - Easy file uploads.
• 🌙 Dark Mode built-in - Because developers love it.

Pre-built Pages

• 🏠 Landing Page (Hero, Features, Pricing, FAQ)
• 🔐 Auth Pages (Sign In, Sign Up)
• ⚙️ App Layout (Header, User Profile)
• 📄 Legal Pages (Privacy, Terms)

🤖 AI-Optimized Architecture

We've structured the codebase to be easily understood by LLMs (Cursor, Windsurf, Copilot, Antigravity). This means fewer hallucinations and better code generation, regardless of which tool you use.

• Self-Documenting Code: Your AI knows exactly where auth lives (.claude/skills/auth-handler), how to migrate the DB (.cursor/rules), and where to put new components.
• No Hallucinations: We force the AI to use existing patterns (like withAuthRequired) instead of inventing broken ones.
• One-Shot Prompts: Paste a single command like /bootstrap and watch it scaffold your entire MVP plan.

💡 Pro Tip: To use this kit with Google's Antigravity or other AI agents that expect a .agent folder, simply rename .claude to .agent:

mv .claude .agent

🛠️ Getting Started

⚡️ Quick Start (Recommended)

Run the following command to scaffold a new project interactively:

npx indiekit@latest 
# or
pnpm dlx indiekit@latest
# or
yarn dlx indiekit@latest

This CLI will:

• 🚀 Scaffold the project instantly (no git history to remove).
• 🛠️ Guide you through setup options.
• 📦 Install dependencies automatically.

🐢 Manual Setup

If you prefer to clone the repo manually:

1. Clone & Install

git clone https://github.com/Indie-Kit/nextjs-saas-starter.git my-saas
cd my-saas
pnpm install

2. Environment Setup

Copy the example environment file and fill in your secrets:

cp .env.example .env

You will need:

• Database URL: Use Supabase, NeonDB, or any PostgreSQL provider.
• Better Auth Secret: Run npx auth secret to generate.
• Stripe Keys: For payment processing.
• Social Keys: (Google/GitHub, optional).

Also, update src/lib/config.ts with your project name, description, and legal details (email, address) which are used in the footer and legal pages.

3. Database Setup

# Sync database schema to the database after adding new tables or modifying existing tables
pnpm run db:push

4. Run Development Server

pnpm dev

Open http://localhost:3000 to see your app.

🧠 The AI "Brain" (Exclusive)

This kit is designed to be "read" by LLMs. It includes:

• .cursor/rules: Context-aware rules for Cursor to understand project structure.
• Prompt Library: Pre-written prompts to generate features, DB schemas, and tests.
• Self-Correction: Setup to help AI fix its own linting errors.
• Skills: Specialized instructions for the AI to handle Auth, DB, and Payments correctly.

💎 Indie Kit Pro vs Starter

This starter is perfect for learning and building simple MVPs. For serious production apps, check out Indie Kit Pro.

Feature	Starter (Free)	Indie Kit Pro
Next.js 16 App Router	✅	✅
Better Auth	✅	✅
Postgres + Drizzle	✅	✅
Stripe Subscriptions	Basic	Full
AI Navigation Rules	Basic	Advanced
Dodo Payments	❌	✅
Stripe Payments	❌	✅
Lemon Squeezy Payments	❌	✅
PayPal Payments	❌	✅
Multi-Tenancy (Teams/Orgs)	❌	✅
Role-Based Access Control	❌	✅
User Impersonation	❌	✅
Super Admin Dashboard	❌	✅
Credit System (Usage Based)	❌	✅
Waitlist System	❌	✅
Blog & Docs (MDX)	❌	✅
Email Sequences (Inngest)	❌	✅
Documentation Site	❌	✅
Priority Support	❌	✅

Get 1-1 mentorship with CJ for free when you upgrade to Pro.

👉 Upgrade to Pro

See Pro in Action

🤝 Community & Support

• Free Discord Community: Join our community of indie hackers to ask questions and share your progress!
• Twitter: Follow @cjsingg for updates.
• Issues: Open a GitHub issue for bugs in the starter.

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Built with ❤️ by CJ.