Quickstart
Choose the right infrastructure path for your project.
Pick one deployment path first, then optimize later. You can mix building blocks over time, but starting from a clear baseline is faster and safer.
When to use this page
- You are starting a new project and need to choose infrastructure quickly.
- You need a recommendation based on team size, compliance needs, and operational overhead.
- You want a clear next step into the detailed implementation guides.
Prerequisites
- Basic understanding of your product requirements (traffic, uptime expectations, compliance constraints).
- Decision on whether you need web-only or web + mobile deployment.
Decision matrix
| Path | Best for | Tradeoff | Estimated pricing | Next step |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Default Stack (Fly.io + Cloudflare) | MVPs, internal tools, early-stage products, small teams | Less low-level control than full AWS | $20-50/month | /docs/cloud/default-guide/intro |
| AWS Cloud Stack | Large systems, strict compliance, orgs requiring fine-grained cloud controls | Higher setup and ops complexity | $60-100/month | /docs/cloud/aws-guide/intro |
| VPS / On-Premise (Hetzner + Kamal) | Teams wanting simple VPS hosting with direct infrastructure control | More server ownership and manual ops than managed platforms | $10-20/month | /docs/cloud/hetzner-guide/intro |
Choose a path
Default Stack
- Fly.io for application servers, Postgres, Redis, and S3-compatible object storage
- If you have an SPA, host it on Cloudflare Workers as a static site
- For email, we recommend Mailgun or Resend
Recommended for early-stage products, MVPs, and teams optimizing for speed and low ops overhead. Also recommended for bigger apps that require business and product validation.
AWS Cloud Stack
- Full AWS infrastructure: EC2, ECR, S3 + CloudFront, ElastiCache, RDS
- For email, we recommend SES. If that is not an option, use Mailgun or Resend
Recommended for large-scale systems, strict compliance needs, and teams that require fine-grained control.
VPS / On-Premise Stack
- Hetzner server setup with Kamal deploy workflow
- Postgres and Redis as Kamal accessories
- Daily backup to object storage
Cost summary:
- 2 servers + LB: $20/month
- 1 server only: $10/month
Recommended for regulated environments, data residency constraints, or orgs that must run on their own hardware.
Mobile
Our mobile stack stays the same regardless of project complexity:
- EAS for builds and OTA updates
- FCM/APNs via Expo Notifications for push notifications
See the Mobile introduction for the full context.
Verify your choice
- Confirm the selected path matches your current compliance and scale requirements.
- Confirm your team can operate the chosen stack with current skills.
- Move to the linked guide and complete prerequisites before deployment work.