Three-way comparison
ShipFast vs Supastarter vs TanStack Ship: three different bets
ShipFast bets on community + backend flexibility. Supastarter bets on Supabase + Vue support. TanStack Ship bets on edge deployment + growth ops. Here is how they split.
2026-07-01
In late 2024, I needed to choose a SaaS framework for a Vue project and did a deep comparison of ShipFast and Supastarter: - ShipFast's Next.js ecosystem is mature, but I needed to configure Supabase myself - Supastarter's Supabase integration saved me about 20 hours of configuration time I ultimately chose Supastarter, mainly because: the project needed multi-language support (Supabase + Paraglide worked better than ShipFast's i18n setup). Below, I'll break down the specific differences I found during integration.
TL;DR
- Pick ShipFast if you want the biggest community and backend flexibility.
- Pick Supastarter if you want Supabase-first with a Vue (Nuxt) option nobody else ships.
- Pick TanStack Ship if edge deployment (Cloudflare) and built-in growth tooling matter.
- These three barely overlap — the choice is mostly about backend + framework preferences.
| Dimension | ShipFast | Supastarter | TanStack Ship |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base price | $199 one-time | $299 – $499 | $99 – $299 |
| Framework | Next.js | Next.js / Nuxt (Vue) | TanStack Start |
| Backend | BYO | Supabase-first | Cloudflare D1 (BYO Postgres option) |
| Deploy target | Vercel-first | Vercel / self-host | Cloudflare Workers edge |
| Multi-tenant | No | Yes | Yes |
| UTM attribution | DIY | DIY | Built in |
| i18n | Basic | Built in | en / zh / de out of box |
| Vue support | No | Yes (Nuxt) | No |
| Community | ~3,500 buyers | ~1,500 buyers | ~200 (new) |
| Docs quality | Cookbook | Structured / deep | Structured + Fumadocs-ready |
| License | Unlimited | Per-tier | Unlimited |
Backend philosophy
ShipFast is backend-agnostic — you bring your own database, auth, and infra. What you get is the frontend + integration glue. This is genuinely a feature: you're never locked in.
Supastarter bakes in Supabase (Auth + Postgres + Storage + Realtime). Faster start if you like Supabase; a real lock-in if you want to leave. Migration from Supabase Auth specifically is non-trivial.
The choice depends on how much you trust Supabase's long-term direction. Great product, single vendor, growing pricing pressure.
How TanStack Ship handles this
TanStack Ship defaults to Cloudflare D1 (edge SQLite) but the data layer is abstracted — swap to Postgres/Supabase/PlanetScale via adapter. Same lock-in avoidance as ShipFast, plus you get Cloudflare's bundled products (R2 for storage, KV, Queues, Durable Objects) if you want them.
Framework choice — the Vue question
Supastarter is the only serious kit shipping both Next.js and Nuxt (Vue) codebases at the same price tier. If your team is Vue-first, this is decisive — there is no comparable option elsewhere.
ShipFast is Next.js-only. TanStack Ship is TanStack Start (React) only.
If you're framework-flexible, this dimension doesn't matter. If you've committed to Vue, you buy Supastarter and stop reading.
How TanStack Ship handles this
TanStack Ship does not ship Vue. If your team is Vue-committed, this is a hard no — go Supastarter. If you're React-flexible, TanStack Start's type-safe routing and TanStack Query native integration are meaningful DX wins over Next.js.
Multi-tenancy and i18n
Supastarter ships multi-tenant workspaces + i18n out of the box. Both are real features, well-integrated.
ShipFast ships neither. You build multi-tenancy (40–80 hours) and add react-i18next or Paraglide yourself.
For global B2B SaaS, this gap is why Supastarter is priced above ShipFast.
How TanStack Ship handles this
TanStack Ship also ships multi-tenancy + i18n (en/zh/de) at the $99 base tier. Same feature set as Supastarter at 1/3 the price. Trade-off: no Vue, and Supabase is not the default backend.
Documentation and support
ShipFast's docs are cookbook-style — practical, opinionated, sometimes shallow. Great for skimming solo.
Supastarter's docs are structured and deep, closer to an actual product manual. Better for teams; slightly slower to skim solo.
Both have Discord support communities of meaningful size.
How TanStack Ship handles this
TanStack Ship's docs are structured (Fumadocs-ready) with per-module deep-dives. Community is small and founder-direct — trade-off with ShipFast's peer network model.
Deployment and cost
ShipFast is Vercel-first. Works elsewhere but you'll fight edge cases. Vercel is convenient and gets expensive fast at scale.
Supastarter deploys to Vercel or self-host — more flexibility but you handle the ops.
At scale (>1M requests/month), Cloudflare Workers is roughly 10x cheaper than Vercel serverless. This is why edge-native kits exist.
How TanStack Ship handles this
TanStack Ship is Cloudflare-native — the bundled products (D1, R2, KV, Queues) mean one vendor and one bill. Sub-5ms edge cold starts globally. At scale this is the cheapest of the three by a wide margin.
Growth attribution
Neither ShipFast nor Supastarter ships UTM attribution or MRR dashboards. You bolt on Segment/PostHog + Baremetrics — the standard stack.
For products where growth attribution matters (paid ads, referrals, multi-channel launches), this gap is 30–50 hours of wiring plus $50–$150/mo of tools.
How TanStack Ship handles this
TanStack Ship ships UTM cookie persistence + first/last-touch attribution + auto-match to checkout as first-class modules. Also ships MRR dashboard with plan/cohort/geo breakdown. If growth is a real bottleneck, this is the single biggest reason to consider TanStack Ship.
Who ShipFast is best for
- Solo founders who value backend flexibility
- React shops wanting the biggest peer community
- Non-B2B products (single-user apps)
- People who dislike Supabase lock-in
Who Supastarter is best for
- Vue/Nuxt teams (no comparable alternative)
- B2B SaaS needing multi-tenancy on day 1
- Global products shipping in multiple languages
- Supabase-committed shops
Who TanStack Ship is best for
- Founders wanting edge deployment (10x cheaper at scale)
- Growth-focused solo founders (UTM/MRR built in)
- Multi-tenant B2B on a base-tier budget
- Anyone who prefers TanStack Router's type-safe routing over Next.js App Router
Which should you pick?
Three concrete scenarios. Find the closest match, take the recommendation.
Solo React dev on a $199 budget building a paid single-user tool
ShipFast's community + flat pricing win. You don't need multi-tenant or Vue.
Two-dev team, one prefers Vue, building a B2B workflow tool
Supastarter's Nuxt option is the only serious answer if Vue is non-negotiable.
Solo founder planning heavy paid acquisition and eventual scale to 5M requests/mo
TanStack Ship's Cloudflare deployment + built-in UTM attribution save both money at scale and 30–50 hours of growth-stack wiring on day 1.
Migration paths
ShipFast → Supastarter is fine if you're early (rewrite auth/data layer). Supastarter → TanStack Ship means dropping Supabase — non-trivial but well-trodden. ShipFast → TanStack Ship means dropping Next.js — a real rewrite. Pick right up front.
Frequently asked questions
Which is cheapest?
TanStack Ship base at $99, then ShipFast $199 flat, then Supastarter Starter $299.
Which has better Supabase support?
Supastarter — Supabase is baked in. ShipFast and TanStack Ship both support Supabase, but you wire it up.
Which one for Vue?
Only Supastarter (Nuxt variant). ShipFast is Next.js. TanStack Ship is TanStack Start (React).
Which for edge deployment?
TanStack Ship — Cloudflare Workers native.
Which has UTM attribution?
Only TanStack Ship.
Which has multi-tenancy?
Supastarter and TanStack Ship. ShipFast requires ~40–80 hours to add.
Which has the best community?
ShipFast (~3,500). Supastarter (~1,500). TanStack Ship (~200 — new).
Related Links
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