Chapter 7

Choosing Your Tools: The Tech Stack

Compare frameworks and tools, and understand why we chose ours.

What Is a Tech Stack?

A tech stack is the combination of languages, frameworks, libraries, and tools used to build a project. StudyTracker's stack is: Next.js (framework), React (UI library), TypeScript (language), Tailwind CSS (styling), Prisma (database toolkit), PostgreSQL (database), and Supabase (auth + hosting). Each choice has trade-offs.

Key Comparisons

Click each card to flip it and see the pros and cons. Every technology has strengths and weaknesses — the best choice depends on your project's needs:

Next.js

React framework with SSR, routing, API routes

Click to flip

Pros: File-based routing, server components, built-in API, great DX, Vercel integration
Cons: Vendor lock-in concerns, complex mental model (server vs client), build times can grow

PostgreSQL

Relational database with ACID compliance

Click to flip

Pros: Rock-solid reliability, complex queries, relationships, 30+ years of battle-testing
Cons: Harder to scale horizontally, requires schema migrations, more setup than NoSQL

Tailwind CSS

Utility-first CSS framework

Click to flip

Pros: Fast prototyping, consistent design, tiny production bundle, no naming conventions needed
Cons: Verbose class strings, learning curve for utility names, harder to extract complex themes

TypeScript

JavaScript with static type checking

Click to flip

Pros: Catches bugs at compile time, excellent autocompletion, self-documenting code
Cons: Extra compilation step, verbose generic types, learning curve for type system

Choose Your Own Stack

Answer a few questions to get a personalized technology recommendation. This interactive guide considers your project type, scale, and team experience:

Question 1 / ?

What kind of project are you building?

Why StudyTracker Chose This Stack

Our tech choices were driven by three priorities: (1) Developer experience — TypeScript + Prisma catch errors before they reach production. (2) Full-stack simplicity — Next.js lets us keep frontend, backend, and API in one project. (3) Proven reliability — PostgreSQL and Supabase Auth are battle-tested at scale.

There is no "best" tech stack — only the best stack for your project. A personal blog doesn't need the same tools as a banking app. Start with what you know, and upgrade when you hit real limitations, not hypothetical ones.

Test Your Knowledge

Question 1 of 3Score: 0

What is a tech stack?

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