SaaS Boilerplate vs. Custom Code: Which is Best for SaaS?

When building a SaaS application, many developers and entrepreneurs believe that starting from scratch with custom code is the best way to create a personalized solution. They think this will give them more control and flexibility.

However, what they often don't realize is how much time and effort goes into building basic features that every SaaS app needs—like authentication, billing, admin tools, and marketing pages.

At useSAASkit, we've seen many startups make this mistake. But when you compare SaaS boilerplate vs code, starting from scratch may not always be the most efficient choice for building and growing your app. In this blog, we’ll explain why using a SaaS boilerplate is the smarter choice. It helps you launch faster, allowing you to focus on sales and marketing instead of just building basic features.

Table of Contents

• Understanding SaaS Boilerplate vs. Custom Code
• SaaS Boilerplate vs Custom Code: A Detailed Comparison
• Best Practices for Using a SaaS Boilerplate for Your Project
• Summing Up

Understanding SaaS Boilerplate vs. Custom Code

When building a SaaS app, you have to decide: Should you use a SaaS boilerplate or write custom code for your app’s basic features? Both have their pros and cons, and understanding the differences can help you choose the right option for your project.

What is a SaaS Boilerplate?

A SaaS boilerplate is a ready-made framework that includes common features for a SaaS app, like user login, multi-organization support, billing, admin tools, and marketing pages. It helps developers get started quickly, so they don’t have to build these features from scratch. You can easily customize it to fit your needs.

At useSAASkit, we offer an AI Boilerplate built with powerful tech like Next.js, Supabase, Tailwind CSS, and Stripe. This helps developers save time and launch faster by providing everything needed to build a scalable and customizable SaaS app.

With useSAASkit, you can focus on growing your business, not rebuilding common features.

What is Custom Code?

Custom code means building everything from scratch. You create every feature, including the user login system, database setup, payment system, and admin tools. This gives you total control over how everything works, but it can take a lot of time and effort to build, test, and maintain.

For startups, custom development can slow down the process of getting valuable customer feedback and generating revenue. With custom code, you need to design and implement everything yourself, which can be slow, especially if you’re starting from nothing.

SaaS Boilerplate vs Custom Code: A Detailed Comparison

When you're launching a SaaS product, you have two main options: using a SaaS boilerplate or developing everything with custom code. The choice you make will directly impact the speed, cost, scalability, and overall success of your product. Let’s break down both the options:

1. Faster Development

A SaaS boilerplate helps you launch your product faster because it already has common features like user login, billing, and admin tools built in. For startup founders, this means you can get your product out quicker and start receiving customer feedback sooner, while also focusing on improving your sales strategy.

On the other hand, when using custom code, developers have to build everything from scratch, like setting up user login, managing the database, and configuring all the necessary features.

The SaaS market is huge, with tough competition, so launching quickly is crucial. Instead of spending endless hours on development, it's essential to start focusing on marketing and customer support as soon as possible to stay ahead of the competition.

For example, with useSAASkit AI Boilerplate, you can build and launch your SaaS app in just a week, allowing you to shift your attention to customer engagement and scaling your business.

2. Rapid Prototyping

When developers start a new project or build a new feature, they first need to set up essential components like authentication, database connections, API routes, and deployment configurations. This setup can take a lot of time when done from scratch.

A boilerplate provides a ready-to-use structure with these foundational elements already in place, allowing developers to skip repetitive setup work and start coding actual features right away.

For example, a startup using a boilerplate can launch a basic version of their product (MVP) in weeks, gather feedback from users, and improve it based on real needs. With custom code, everything must be built from scratch, which takes a lot more time.

3. Built-in Best Practices for Developers

Using a SaaS boilerplate like useSAASkit provides developers with a ready-made foundation that follows the best industry practices.

For example, the login system is already set up securely with methods like token-based authentication. The database is built to perform well and grow with your app. Plus, the API follows best practices, making it easier to connect with other tools or services.

In our AI Boilerplate, you can easily use different login methods, like email-password, magic link, social media login, and phone number login. All you need to do is update one configuration file to enable these features in your app.

These built-in best practices help developers avoid common problems. The result is an app that’s secure, easy to manage, and built to scale from day one, without spending too much time on basic setups.

4. Cost-Effective Approach

Using a SaaS boilerplate is far more cost-effective than developing custom code. The boilerplate comes with the essential features already built, so you don’t have to hire extra developers or spend time developing these common features.

This lowers your development costs, allowing you to allocate resources to other areas of the business like marketing, customer support, or adding advanced features. For developers, the boilerplate saves time and energy, letting you focus on what makes your product unique.

With custom code, the costs are higher. You need to hire specialized developers, and the development process takes longer. As the app grows, you’ll also have to handle ongoing maintenance and updates, which adds to the costs.

5. Scalability and Flexibility

A SaaS boilerplate is designed to grow with your app. It comes with built-in support for things like handling multiple organizations, so as your user base expands, your app can keep up.

Developers don’t need to worry about rebuilding key parts of the app to support growth. This gives founders confidence that their product will be able to handle more users without needing major changes.

On the other hand, when building from scratch with custom code, scaling can be tricky. As your app grows, performance issues might arise, and developers will need to constantly optimize the code to keep things running smoothly. This can slow down progress and add complexity to the project, as every new feature might require extra work to ensure it scales properly.

6. Building What Users Actually Want

Getting early customer feedback isn’t just about listening to users—it directly shapes your product.

When you launch a SaaS tool, you may assume users want certain features, but real feedback often reveals different priorities. Competitors move fast, and if they launch before you, they start acquiring users and improving their product based on feedback while you’re still building.

Imagine two startups creating an AI chatbot. One uses a SaaS boilerplate and launches in two months, while the other spends months building everything from scratch. The first startup quickly realizes users want Slack integration and adds it within weeks. Meanwhile, the second startup launches late, only to find that users have already moved to Slack and WhatsApp-based chatbots.

Building features without feedback can lead to wasted effort. Launching early and gathering feedback ensures that development aligns with real user needs, avoiding unnecessary work and keeping competitors from getting ahead.

7. Simplified Maintenance and Updates

With a SaaS boilerplate, maintaining and updating your app becomes much easier for developers. Since the basic features are already set up, developers don’t need to rebuild them every time there’s an update or bug fix.

For example, if there’s a need to improve security for user logins, developers can quickly apply the fix to the already set-up system, saving time and avoiding mistakes. Similarly, changes to the database or APIs are easier because everything is organized and ready to go.

The way a SaaS boilerplate is built allows developers to work on specific parts of the app without affecting the whole system. This makes adding new features or fixing bugs faster and less risky. As the app grows, it’s much easier to keep everything running smoothly.

Developers can focus on improving the app while quickly rolling out updates and keeping the user experience top-notch.

8. Lower Learning Curve

A SaaS boilerplate has a lower learning curve for developers. Since it’s pre-built and often comes with detailed documentation, developers can quickly learn how to integrate and customize it for their projects.

With clear instructions, they can easily set up, modify, and deploy the template without wasting time figuring things out. useSAASkit provides step-by-step documentation, making it even simpler to integrate and customize the boilerplate to fit your needs.

In contrast, with custom code, developers must build everything from scratch, which takes more time to understand and implement each component. This adds complexity to the development process and can slow down progress.

9. Strong Community Support

A SaaS boilerplate often has a strong community of developers who contribute updates, fix bugs, and share solutions.

If you run into problems, chances are someone else has already solved them, and you can find answers in forums, documentation, or GitHub discussions. This saves developers time and helps them stay productive.

With custom code, you are on your own. Every issue must be fixed by your team, which can be time-consuming. If a developer leaves the project, a new team member will need extra time to understand the code, making progress slower. This kind of support is extremely valuable for startups that need to move fast.

Best Practices for Using a SaaS Boilerplate for Your Project

When your team decides to use a SaaS boilerplate to kick off a project, it’s important to follow some best practices to make sure everything runs smoothly.

Understand the Client’s Requirements First

Before even choosing a boilerplate, sit down with the client and clearly define what they want. What specific features do they need? What kind of users will be using the platform? Do they need to integrate with any third-party systems?

Having a strong grasp of these requirements will help you choose the right boilerplate that fits the project’s needs.

Evaluate the Boilerplate Thoroughly

Not all SaaS boilerplates are created equal. Take the time to evaluate the boilerplate you’re considering, especially when it comes to things like:

• Security: Does it follow best practices like encrypted passwords, secure user authentication, and data protection?
• Scalability: Can the boilerplate handle growing user numbers? This is important if the app will scale quickly.
• Customizability: How flexible is it in terms of adding custom features? Make sure it won’t be a hassle if the client needs something unique in the future.

Check the Documentation

Solid documentation is your best friend. The boilerplate should come with detailed, easy-to-follow instructions on how to set up, customize, and deploy the application. Documentation helps your team hit the ground running and saves time.

Modular Approach to Customization

Even though boilerplates come pre-packaged with certain features, they’re not always one-size-fits-all. You’ll often need to customize things to meet specific client requirements. The key is to work with the modular parts of the boilerplate—use them where they fit, and modify others as needed.

For example, if your client needs a custom subscription model, you can tweak the billing part of the boilerplate without disrupting the whole system.

Set Up Version Control Early

Using a version control system (like Git) from the start is a must. When you integrate a boilerplate, make sure that your team is constantly committing changes and pushing them to a shared repository. This will prevent any potential disasters and makes it easier for multiple developers to collaborate.

Keep Non-Technical Stakeholders in the Loop

While the technical team is deep in the weeds, it’s crucial to keep non-technical stakeholders (like your client or project manager) updated on progress. Use clear communication to explain what’s being built and how it aligns with their goals. Regular demos and progress reports are key.

It builds trust with the client and helps them feel confident that you’re building the product they need. It also keeps the project on track and aligned with business goals.

Test Early and Often

Even though the boilerplate has pre-built features, you still need to test everything—especially when customising or adding new features. Start testing early in the process so that you can catch any issues before they grow. This includes functional testing, security testing, and load testing.

Catching bugs early prevents them from affecting the timeline and ensures that the product will be stable for users.

Prepare for Maintenance and Future Updates

A SaaS product is never truly “finished.” You’ll need to continue updating, improving, and maintaining the product. Since you’re using a boilerplate, much of the maintenance is handled by the boilerplate’s core updates, but you’ll still need to manage custom features and integrations.

Make sure your team is prepared for ongoing maintenance and that they have a plan in place for handling client requests after launch.

Focus on the Client’s User Experience

While technical details matter, always keep the client’s users in mind. Make sure that the application is intuitive, fast, and easy to use. Pay attention to the user interface (UI) and user experience (UX) design—these are just as important as the backend. A user-friendly product will ensure higher adoption rates and better client satisfaction.

By following these best practices, you’ll save time, ensure scalability, and deliver a high-quality product that your client will love.

More Related Blogs:

• Best SaaS Boilerplate to Launch Your SaaS Product in 2025
• Top 10 Tips for Choosing the Best SaaS Website Template
• SaaS UI/UX Design: 13 Best Practices and Benefits in 2025

Summing Up

When deciding whether to use a SaaS boilerplate or custom code, it really comes down to what you need for your project.

Use a SaaS Boilerplate when:

• You want to launch quickly.
• You need to save time and costs.
• You want it to scale easily as you grow.
• Your focus is more on adding features than building basic ones.

Consider custom code when:

• You need complete control and flexibility.
• Your app has special, unique features that don’t fit a standard setup.

Using a SaaS boilerplate is a smart choice when you're a startup and want to acquire customers quickly. If you're ready to get started, useSAASkit Next.js Boilerplate is a solid choice to help you launch quickly while ensuring your app can grow and perform well.