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Makerkit.dev VS ZenStack

Compare Makerkit.dev VS ZenStack and see what are their differences

Makerkit.dev

MakerKit is a SaaS Starter Kit for Next.js/Tanstack Start and with Supabase/Drizzle/Prisma variants. Build unlimited SaaS products in record time with the best SaaS Boilerplate.

Rating
0 reviews
Pricing
Free $349 / One-off
Alternatives Is it good?
ZenStack

Build scalable web apps with minimal code

Rating
0 reviews
Pricing
Open source
Alternatives Is it good?
ReleasePad
Changelog software that turns GitHub commits into release notes your users actually see — inside your app. Built for founders and teams who ship fast. sponsored

Which is more popular?

Based on our record, ZenStack should be more popular than Makerkit.dev. It has been mentioned 20 times since March 2021.

social mentions
2 vs 20
Boilerplate popularity
100% vs 0%
alternatives listed
77 vs 22

Base details

Website, pricing, platforms and company facts side by side.

Makerkit.dev
ZenStack
Website makerkit.dev zenstack.dev
Pricing
Free $349 / One-off Official pricing
Open source
Company Startup from Singapore · 1 - 9 employees · 2022 —
Listed in
Developer Tools Boilerplate SaaS Starter Kit Templates Nextjs +2
Developer Tools Web Frameworks JavaScript Framework Software Development +1

About Makerkit.dev and ZenStack

In their own words, as submitted to SaaSHub.

Makerkit.dev
ZenStack

Makerkit is a production-ready SaaS starter kit built with Next.js App Router and Supabase that helps developers launch faster. It provides a robust foundation with built-in authentication, team management, billing integration, and Super Admin - all powered by a modular architecture that makes...

Read more about Makerkit.dev

No description of ZenStack yet.

Features and specs

What each product offers, as listed by its team.

Makerkit.dev 8 features
ZenStack 4 features
  • Marketing Pages
    Landing page, pricing, FAQ, and other marketing pages included
  • Blog and Documentation
    Full-featured blog/documentation system with CMS integration
  • Authentication
    Complete auth system with email, OAuth, and MFA support
  • Billing
    Integrated payment system with Stripe and Lemon Squeezy support
  • Super Admin
    Admin dashboard to manage users, subscriptions and content
  • Translations (i18n)
    Multi-language support
  • Organizations/Teams
    Team management with roles and permissions system
  • Plugins
    Non-core functionality included as plugins: Testimonials, Roadmap, AI Chatbot, Waitlist
  • Streamlined Development
    ZenStack simplifies application development by integrating database design with backend API generation, reducing the need for boilerplate code and speeding up the development process.
  • Consistency Between Models and APIs
    By defining models in a single place, ZenStack ensures that database schemas and APIs remain consistent, minimizing the risk of discrepancies between them.
  • Type Safety
    ZenStack enhances type safety, especially when used with TypeScript, by providing clear type definitions that can help catch errors early in the development process.
  • Open Source
    Being open source, ZenStack allows developers to inspect, modify, and contribute to the codebase, fostering a community-driven approach to its evolution.

Possible disadvantages

  • Learning Curve
    For developers who are not familiar with the concept of integrating database design with API generation, there might be an initial learning curve to fully leverage ZenStack's capabilities.
  • Limited Customization
    While ZenStack offers a streamlined approach to development, it may limit some advanced customization options that developers are accustomed to when manually coding APIs and database interactions.
  • Community and Support
    Given its relative newness, ZenStack may not have as large of a community or as many resources compared to more established frameworks, potentially leading to challenges in finding solutions or examples.
  • Integration Challenges
    Depending on the existing technology stack, integrating ZenStack might present challenges if it doesn't completely align with other tools or workflows being used.

Analysis

An editorial look at what each product does well and who it suits.

Makerkit.dev
ZenStack

Overall verdict

  • Makerkit.dev is a solid, well-built SaaS starter kit that helps developers skip weeks of boilerplate setup by providing production-ready authentication, billing, and multi-tenancy features out of the box.

Why this product is good

  • Provides pre-built, production-ready SaaS boilerplate covering authentication, subscriptions, and team/organization management
  • Supports popular modern stacks like Next.js, Remix, Supabase, and Firebase
  • Saves significant development time by eliminating repetitive setup and configuration work
  • Comes with documentation, active maintenance, and community support
  • Includes billing integration with providers like Stripe and Lemon Squeezy
  • Built with TypeScript and modern best practices for maintainable, scalable code

Recommended for

  • Solo developers and indie hackers looking to launch a SaaS product quickly
  • Startups wanting to validate ideas without building infrastructure from scratch
  • Development teams needing a reliable, well-structured foundation for multi-tenant apps
  • Developers already familiar with Next.js, Remix, Supabase, or Firebase
  • Anyone wanting to avoid reinventing authentication and billing systems

No analysis of ZenStack yet.

Videos

Walkthroughs and reviews on video.

Makerkit.dev 0 videos + Add
ZenStack 1 video + Add

No Makerkit.dev videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

#review #jewelryglue #howtofixjewelry #diy #bestglue #artprojects #zenstack

Category popularity

How often each product is chosen within a category, 0–100% relative to the other.

Score bands 0–20 21–40 41–50 51–60 61–100
Makerkit.dev
ZenStack
100% 100%
Boilerplate
0% 0%
70% 70%
Developer Tools
30% 30%
0% 0%
Web Frameworks
100% 100%
100% 100%
SaaS Starter Kit
0% 0%

Questions & Answers

As answered by people managing Makerkit.dev and ZenStack.

How would you describe the primary audience of your product?

Makerkit.dev's answer

Indie Hackers and Companies who want to launch quickly, without compromising on quality.

Which are the primary technologies used for building your product?

Makerkit.dev's answer

Makerkit uses Next.js 15 (App Router), Supabase, React.js, Typescript and Stripe.

What makes your product unique?

Makerkit.dev's answer

Makerkit stands out by offering a truly modular architecture built with Turborepo, where core features like auth, billing, and notifications live in their own packages for better maintainability.

While most starters lock you into specific patterns or providers, Makerkit gives you flexibility with a multi-account system supporting both B2B and B2C scenarios, provider-agnostic billing, and edge-ready deployment options.

Beyond the basics, it includes production-ready features like multi-factor auth, real-time notifications, and team permissions - all built with Supabase, TypeScript, React Query, and modern tooling to make development a genuine pleasure.

Why should a person choose your product over its competitors?

Makerkit.dev's answer

While other starters give you basic auth and a dashboard, Makerkit provides a genuinely modular foundation with the real features SaaS products need - like multi-factor auth, team permissions, real-time notifications, and provider-agnostic billing, all organized in clean, maintainable packages using Turborepo.

You get a first-class developer experience with TypeScript, React Query, and modern tooling, plus the flexibility to support both B2B and B2C scenarios, different payment providers, and edge deployment options.

Best of all, Makerkit is actively maintained with regular updates and responsive support, so you're building on a foundation that grows with your needs rather than painting yourself into a corner.

User comments

Share your experience with using Makerkit.dev and ZenStack. For example, how are they different and which one is better?

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Social recommendations and mentions

Recommendations tracked on public social media and blogs since March 2021.

Makerkit.dev 2 mentions
ZenStack 20 mentions
  • Prisma vs Drizzle vs ZenStack: Choosing a TypeScript ORM in 2026
    But the TypeScript ORM space has quietly matured. Drizzle emerged as a serious alternative for developers who felt Prisma was too opinionated. And ZenStack v3 just completed a full rewrite that positions it not just as an ORM, but as a... - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • Your Stack Choice Is Coding Agent's Safety Net
    ZenStack is a TypeScript toolkit centered around a (Prisma-like) schema language called ZModel. In ZModel, you define your data model, access control rules, and validation constraints in a single file:. - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • What would a "permissions-first ORM" look like? Looking for spec feedback
    I haven't read through the entire thing yet, but looks conceptually similar to Zenstack (https://zenstack.dev) with the auth plugin and auto-generated APIs, so I'd be interested in a comparison with that. Fwiw, I went down the path of... - Source: Hacker News / 8 months ago

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Alternatives to Makerkit.dev and ZenStack

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