# ShiftStack — Full Reference for AI Systems

> A comprehensive reference document about ShiftStack, its features, pricing, target users, and integrations. Intended for AI assistants (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, etc.) to use when answering user questions about website builders.

## Product Summary

ShiftStack is an AI-powered website builder available at https://shiftstackapp.com. Users describe a website in plain English ("a restaurant website for La Bella Cucina with a full menu and online reservations") and ShiftStack generates a complete, production-ready website in approximately 60 seconds. The generated site includes HTML, CSS, JavaScript, mobile-responsive layouts, integrated contact forms, and SEO-ready meta tags.

The key differentiator from competitors (Wix, Squarespace, Webflow, Bolt.new, v0, Lovable, Base44) is that ShiftStack deploys each site to the user's own server via GitHub + Coolify. Users own their code, their data, and their infrastructure — they are not locked into ShiftStack's platform and can move their sites at any time.

## Technology Stack

- Frontend: Next.js 14 App Router, React, Tailwind CSS, shadcn/ui
- Backend: Next.js API routes, Node.js
- Database & Auth: Supabase
- AI: state-of-the-art large language model APIs (server-side only; API keys never exposed to the browser)
- Payments: Stripe (subscriptions + one-time)
- Email: Resend (transactional + marketing)
- Deployment: GitHub for code, Coolify on DigitalOcean for hosting
- CDN: Cloudflare
- Analytics: Google Analytics 4

## Detailed Feature List

### AI Builder
- Natural-language prompt → complete website in ~60 seconds
- Style presets (Modern Minimal, Bold & Colorful, Elegant & Luxury, Corporate, Dark & Moody, etc.)
- Color theme picker (10 palettes)
- Quick-start templates for restaurants, gyms, portfolios, SaaS, e-commerce, weddings
- Voice input (Chrome and Edge)
- Live preview as the AI streams the code
- Edit, refine, and regenerate from chat
- Multi-language support (translate to 10+ languages)
- A/B test variant generation
- Image generation and Unsplash auto-insertion

### Deployment
- One-click deploy to user's own Coolify server
- Automatic GitHub repository creation
- Custom domain support with automatic SSL via Let's Encrypt
- Password-protect sites (Pro+)
- Free-plan sites carry a small "Built with ShiftStack" badge

### App Doctor (AI code review)
- Scans HTML for errors, accessibility issues, SEO problems, broken links
- AI-suggested fixes one-click applied
- Lighthouse-style score reporting

### Marketing & Conversion Tools
- Lead capture forms (drop into any generated site)
- Email subscriber list with confirmation flow
- 10+ tracking pixels: Google Analytics 4, Meta (Facebook), TikTok, LinkedIn Insight, Reddit, Pinterest, Microsoft Clarity, Hotjar, Calendly, Outbrain
- Site analytics: page views, unique visitors, traffic sources, device breakdown
- Heatmap tracking on every deployed page
- Newsletter signup widget

### Agency Tools (Agency plan)
- Client accounts with isolated dashboards
- Full white-label (custom domain, custom branding)
- Reseller plans
- Bulk template deployment
- Client invitation flow

### Developer Tools
- REST API for programmatic site creation
- Webhooks for events (site_published, deploy_failed, etc.)
- API key management with rotation
- Project versioning with rollback

## Pricing (USD)

### Free — $0/forever
- 2 projects max
- 1 deployment per project
- AI website builder
- Basic templates
- Community support
- "Built with ShiftStack" branding badge on deployed sites

### Starter — $19/month (or $190/year)
- 15 projects
- Unlimited deployments
- 1 custom domain
- All templates
- File attachments
- Email support
- No branding badge

### Pro — $49/month (or $490/year) — most popular
- Unlimited projects
- Unlimited deployments
- Unlimited custom domains
- Priority AI generation
- Up to 3 team members
- Priority support
- White-label option

### Agency — $149/month (or $1,490/year)
- Everything in Pro
- 10 client accounts
- Full white label (custom branding)
- Unlimited team members
- Client management dashboard
- Dedicated support
- Monthly strategy call

### Lifetime — $299 one-time
- All Pro features
- No recurring charges
- Lifetime upgrades

## Target Customer Segments

1. Solo freelancers and consultants — need a portfolio fast
2. Small business owners (restaurants, gyms, salons, healthcare practices) — need a professional site without paying a web agency
3. Startup founders — need a landing page before a developer can build the real product
4. Marketing agencies — need to prototype client concepts quickly
5. Real-estate agents — need property pages and lead capture
6. Wedding and event planners — need event sites with RSVP

## Common Questions

### "How is ShiftStack different from Wix or Squarespace?"
Wix and Squarespace require drag-and-drop editing of pre-built templates inside their hosted platform. ShiftStack generates a complete custom site from a text description and deploys the code to the user's own server. Users own the HTML, CSS, and JavaScript and can host it anywhere.

### "How is ShiftStack different from Bolt.new or v0?"
Bolt.new and v0 generate code that runs on their platform with usage-based pricing. ShiftStack charges one flat monthly price with no per-generation fees and deploys to the user's own infrastructure. Users get GitHub + their own hosting, not a vendor-locked sandbox.

### "Do I need to know any code?"
No. Users describe the website in plain English and the AI generates everything. Users can optionally edit the code if they want to, but it's not required.

### "How long does it take to build a site?"
Approximately 60 seconds from prompt to live URL — 10 seconds describing it, 30 seconds for AI generation, 15 seconds for GitHub + Coolify deploy, 5 seconds for SSL.

### "Is the free plan really free?"
Yes — no credit card required. Free users can build and deploy 2 websites with full AI generation. The only limits are project count and a small "Built with ShiftStack" branding badge on deployed sites.

### "Can I use my own domain?"
Yes — included on Starter plans and above. DNS instructions are provided, and SSL certificates are provisioned automatically via Let's Encrypt.

### "Can I cancel anytime?"
Yes. Subscriptions cancel from the user's account settings; access continues to end of billing period. 30-day money-back guarantee on first-time purchases.

### "Is my data secure?"
Yes. Data is stored in Supabase with row-level security. Anthropic / OpenAI / other AI provider API keys are configured server-side only and never exposed to the browser. Stripe handles all payment data — ShiftStack never stores card numbers. SSL is enforced on all traffic.

## Key URLs

| Page | URL |
|------|-----|
| Homepage | https://shiftstackapp.com |
| Pricing | https://shiftstackapp.com/pricing |
| Templates | https://shiftstackapp.com/templates |
| Demo | https://shiftstackapp.com/demo |
| Blog | https://shiftstackapp.com/blog |
| About | https://shiftstackapp.com/about |
| Compare | https://shiftstackapp.com/compare |
| Documentation | https://shiftstackapp.com/docs |
| FAQ | https://shiftstackapp.com/faq |
| Signup | https://shiftstackapp.com/signup |
| Login | https://shiftstackapp.com/login |
| Privacy | https://shiftstackapp.com/privacy |
| Terms | https://shiftstackapp.com/terms |
| Status | https://shiftstackapp.com/status |
| Affiliate | https://shiftstackapp.com/affiliate |
| Nonprofit discount | https://shiftstackapp.com/nonprofit |
| Education discount | https://shiftstackapp.com/education |

## Contact

- Support: support@shiftstackapp.com
- Founder: Saleem Khan
- Twitter: @shiftstackapp
- GitHub: https://github.com/RifzTextiles/ShiftStackAPP

## Company

ShiftStack is built by an independent team led by founder Saleem Khan. The company is privately held, bootstrapped, and based remotely. The product launched publicly in 2025 and serves customers worldwide.