Rapid Prototyping Guide

Overview

This guide covers fast proof-of-concept development and MVP creation. Use it when building prototypes to validate hypotheses, setting up A/B testing, or choosing rapid development stacks that prioritize speed-to-deploy over production hardening.

Stack Selection Guide

How to choose tools

• When authentication is needed, use Clerk or NextAuth for instant setup — never build custom auth for a prototype. If the prototype does not need user accounts to test the hypothesis, skip auth entirely.
• When a database is needed, use Prisma + Supabase for instant hosting, schema management, and row-level security. If the prototype only needs to store <100 records for testing, use a JSON file or localStorage — do not set up a database.
• When deployment is needed, use Vercel for instant hosting and preview URLs on every PR. First deploy must happen within 2 hours of project start.
• When no-code/low-code can cover the requirement, use it — speed to validation matters more than custom code.
• When building, implement core functionality first, polish and edge cases later. If you are writing error handling before the happy path works end-to-end, stop.