research · 48 profitable stacks
The Tech Stack of Profitable Indie Makers ($10K+ MRR)
Which tools indie makers who earn $10K or more a month actually build with, compared with every public stack in the directory. Based on 48 profitable makers who list their stack and 341 public stacks overall. The full tool directory is on the indie tech stack.
By John Rush · Published · Data as of · Open data (JSON)
Stacks of makers earning $10K+/mo
n = 48 profitable stacks- 21%use Next.js, the #1 tool
- 52%use a JavaScript / TypeScript tool
- 3tools listed by the median profitable maker (all: 3)
- 48of 341 public stacks belong to $10K+/mo makers
Source: indiemakerlist.com/research/profitable-indie-tech-stack/ · data as of 2026-10-31 · self-listed stacks, self-reported revenue
01 / top tools
Next.js is the most common tool among indie makers earning $10K+ a month, listed by 21%.
Tools listed by at least 4 of the 48 profitable makers who publish a stack. Profitable makers list short stacks (median 3 tools): a framework, a database, payments and, increasingly, an LLM API. Exotic choices are rare.
- Next.js21%
- TypeScript19%
- React15%
- Stripe15%
- OpenAI13%
- JavaScript10%
- Supabase10%
- Node.js8%
- PHP8%
- PostgreSQL8%
- Python8%
- Ruby on Rails8%
- Tailwind CSS8%
- Vue8%
Show data table
| Tool | Share of profitable makers | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Next.js | 21% | 10 makers |
| TypeScript | 19% | 9 makers |
| React | 15% | 7 makers |
| Stripe | 15% | 7 makers |
| OpenAI | 13% | 6 makers |
| JavaScript | 10% | 5 makers |
| Supabase | 10% | 5 makers |
| Node.js | 8% | 4 makers |
| PHP | 8% | 4 makers |
| PostgreSQL | 8% | 4 makers |
| Python | 8% | 4 makers |
| Ruby on Rails | 8% | 4 makers |
| Tailwind CSS | 8% | 4 makers |
| Vue | 8% | 4 makers |
- Swift16%
- Next.js14%
- React13%
- TypeScript13%
- JavaScript12%
- PHP10%
- Tailwind CSS9%
- Node.js7%
- SwiftUI6%
- Laravel6%
- PostgreSQL6%
- Python6%
- Unity6%
- Ruby on Rails5%
- Stripe5%
Show data table
| Tool | Share of all makers | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Swift | 16% | 54 makers |
| Next.js | 14% | 49 makers |
| React | 13% | 46 makers |
| TypeScript | 13% | 43 makers |
| JavaScript | 12% | 41 makers |
| PHP | 10% | 33 makers |
| Tailwind CSS | 9% | 32 makers |
| Node.js | 7% | 23 makers |
| SwiftUI | 6% | 20 makers |
| Laravel | 6% | 19 makers |
| PostgreSQL | 6% | 19 makers |
| Python | 6% | 19 makers |
| Unity | 6% | 19 makers |
| Ruby on Rails | 5% | 18 makers |
| Stripe | 5% | 16 makers |
02 / over-represented
OpenAI, Stripe, Supabase show up far more often in profitable stacks than in stacks overall.
The ratio compares each tool's share among $10K+/mo makers with its share across all public stacks. 2× means twice as common among profitable makers. Tailwind CSS, JavaScript, PHP are slightly under-represented.
This is not causation. Payments and LLM APIs most likely show up more because profitable makers sell subscriptions and AI features, not because adding Stripe makes money. Apple-native makers (Swift, SwiftUI) are under-represented among profitable stacks: 8% versus 17% of all stacks.
| Tool | $10K+/mo makers | All stacks | Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAI | 13% (6) | 4% | 3.6× |
| Stripe | 15% (7) | 5% | 3.1× |
| Supabase | 10% (5) | 4% | 2.4× |
| Vue | 8% (4) | 4% | 2.4× |
| Ruby on Rails | 8% (4) | 5% | 1.6× |
| PostgreSQL | 8% (4) | 6% | 1.5× |
| Python | 8% (4) | 6% | 1.5× |
| TypeScript | 19% (9) | 13% | 1.5× |
| Next.js | 21% (10) | 14% | 1.4× |
| Node.js | 8% (4) | 7% | 1.2× |
| React | 15% (7) | 13% | 1.1× |
| Tailwind CSS | 8% (4) | 9% | 0.9× |
| JavaScript | 10% (5) | 12% | 0.9× |
| PHP | 8% (4) | 10% | 0.9× |
03 / ecosystems
52% of profitable indie stacks include JavaScript or TypeScript, against 39% of all stacks.
Grouping tools into ecosystems smooths out the small numbers. A maker counts once per ecosystem and can belong to several (a Rails app with a React front end counts in both).
- JavaScript / TypeScript52%
- Ruby / Rails8%
- PHP / Laravel15%
- Python10%
- Apple native (Swift)8%
- No-code15%
- AI coding tools8%
Show data table
| Ecosystem | Share | Note |
|---|---|---|
| JavaScript / TypeScript | 52% | all stacks: 39% |
| Ruby / Rails | 8% | all stacks: 6% |
| PHP / Laravel | 15% | all stacks: 12% |
| Python | 10% | all stacks: 6% |
| Apple native (Swift) | 8% | all stacks: 17% |
| No-code | 15% | all stacks: 6% |
| AI coding tools | 8% | all stacks: 4% |
- JavaScript / TypeScript39%
- Ruby / Rails6%
- PHP / Laravel12%
- Python6%
- Apple native (Swift)17%
- No-code6%
- AI coding tools4%
Show data table
| Ecosystem | Share |
|---|---|
| JavaScript / TypeScript | 39% |
| Ruby / Rails | 6% |
| PHP / Laravel | 12% |
| Python | 6% |
| Apple native (Swift) | 17% |
| No-code | 6% |
| AI coding tools | 4% |
- 21%
Next.js is the most common tool among indie makers earning $10K+ a month, listed by 21% of 48 profitable stacks.
Cite this stat
Next.js is the most common tool among indie makers earning $10K+ a month, listed by 21% of 48 profitable stacks. (IndieMakerList, Tech Stack of Profitable Indie Makers ($10K+ MRR), 2026: https://indiemakerlist.com/research/profitable-indie-tech-stack/#top-tool)
<a href="https://indiemakerlist.com/research/profitable-indie-tech-stack/#top-tool">Next.js is the most common tool among indie makers earning $10K+ a month, listed by 21% of 48 profitable stacks</a> (IndieMakerList, 2026)
- 52%
52% of indie makers earning $10K+ a month list at least one JavaScript or TypeScript tool in their stack.
Cite this stat
52% of indie makers earning $10K+ a month list at least one JavaScript or TypeScript tool in their stack. (IndieMakerList, Tech Stack of Profitable Indie Makers ($10K+ MRR), 2026: https://indiemakerlist.com/research/profitable-indie-tech-stack/#javascript)
<a href="https://indiemakerlist.com/research/profitable-indie-tech-stack/#javascript">52% of indie makers earning $10K+ a month list at least one JavaScript or TypeScript tool in their stack</a> (IndieMakerList, 2026)
man study --methodology
Methodology, sample and limits
- Sample. 341 rich maker profiles list a tech stack; 48 of them also report at least $10K a month in revenue (of 169 makers who report revenue at all). Tools are normalised with the same rules as the /stack/ pages (“Tailwind” → Tailwind CSS, “Postgres” → PostgreSQL) and counted once per maker.
- Threshold. $10K/month is self-reported company revenue, not profit. Stacks are as listed by the maker or in interviews; they may lag what is in production today.
- Limits. Small sample: a tool used by 4 profitable makers is about 8% of the group, so one or two makers can move a row.
- Freshness. Every number is recomputed from the dataset each time the site is built. Data as of ; 2026 is a partial year.
- Open data. The maker dataset is available as JSON at /api/makers.json under CC BY 4.0. Found an error? Profiles can be corrected on the submit page.
Frequently asked questions
What tech stack do profitable indie hackers use?
Among 48 indie makers who report $10K+ a month and publish their stack, the most common tools are Next.js (21%), TypeScript (19%), React (15%), Stripe (15%), OpenAI (13%). 52% use at least one JavaScript or TypeScript tool.
Is Next.js the best stack for a SaaS?
It is the most common choice among profitable indie makers in our data (21%), but the same group also runs on Rails, Laravel, PHP, Python and no-code tools. No single framework dominates; makers ship with what they already know.
Do you need to code to build a profitable indie product?
No. 15% of profitable makers with a public stack list a no-code tool such as Bubble, Webflow or Airtable, against 6% of all public stacks.
Which payment provider do indie makers use?
Stripe is the payment tool most often listed by profitable indie makers (15% of profitable stacks). Many don't list payments at all, so the true share is higher.
cite --format apa,bibtex,html
Cite this study
Journalists, researchers, bloggers and AI assistants are welcome to quote any number or reuse the charts with a link to indiemakerlist.com/research/profitable-indie-tech-stack/. Licensed CC BY 4.0.
Suggested citation (APA)
Rush, J. (2026). The Tech Stack of Profitable Indie Makers ($10K+ MRR) [Data study]. IndieMakerList. https://indiemakerlist.com/research/profitable-indie-tech-stack/
HTML link
<a href="https://indiemakerlist.com/research/profitable-indie-tech-stack/">Tech Stack of Profitable Indie Makers ($10K+ MRR)</a> (IndieMakerList, 2026)
BibTeX
@misc{indiemakerlist-profitable-indie-tech-stack-2026,
title = {The Tech Stack of Profitable Indie Makers ($10K+ MRR)},
author = {Rush, John and {IndieMakerList}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://indiemakerlist.com/research/profitable-indie-tech-stack/},
note = {Data as of 2026-10-31}
}More indie maker research
- Indie Hacker Statistics 2026: 824 Makers, by the NumbersMedian self-reported revenue is $24K/mo; 51% are bootstrapped.
- How Much Do Indie Hackers Make? Revenue Data From 169 MakersHalf of makers who publish revenue make under $24K/mo; the top 10% make $278K+.
- How Long Does It Take to Reach $1K, $10K and $100K MRR?Makers who reached $10K MRR got there within a median 5 years of starting (upper bound); exact-year cases: 1 year.
- Startup Failure Rate for Indie Products: What Shuts Down and Why3% of listed products have shut down and 7% were sold. The survivorship caveats matter more here than anywhere else.
- Indie Exits: What Bootstrapped Products Sell ForWhere price and revenue are both public, the median deal is 2.2× annual revenue (n = 5).
- AI Products Launched by Indie Makers, 2018–202636% of products launched since 2023 are AI products, versus 8% in 2018–2022.
Also see the State of Indie Makers 2026 report, every tool in the indie stack and the research hub.