The stack we use and why

Every agency has an opinion about stack. Ours is simple: use the tool that ships the fastest without painting you into a corner 18 months later.

Here's what we reach for and why.

TanStack Start

Full-stack React with SSR, file-based routing, and server functions - without the lock-in of a managed platform. TanStack Start gives us the data-fetching ergonomics of Next.js with more control over the runtime and deployment target.

The server function model is particularly useful for client work: you write one function, it runs on the server, and the client calls it like a regular async function. No REST layer to design, no API contract to maintain.

TypeScript, always

Not for the type safety lecture. Because clients come back six months later wanting changes, and TypeScript is the difference between a refactor taking one day and one week.

We use Zod at every data boundary - form inputs, server function params, API responses. If the data doesn't match the schema, it fails loudly at the boundary, not silently in production.

Tailwind CSS

Fast to write, easy to hand off, no context switching. The constraint of utility classes is a feature - it keeps the output consistent without a design system meeting.

What we don't use

We don't reach for a CMS unless the client genuinely needs to edit content themselves. We don't add a component library unless the design calls for it. Every dependency is a maintenance cost - we add them deliberately.