I built a Rails 8.1 SaaS boilerplate so I never have to wire up auth and billing again
I've started a few Rails SaaS projects over the years. Every single one began the same way — two weeks of wiring up Devise, configuring Stripe webhooks, setting up multi-tenancy, and getting Kamal to deploy before I could write a single line of actual product code.
That's 41 hours of setup work. Every. Single. Time.
So I finally built it once, properly, and packaged it up. Here's what that 41 hours breaks down to:
- Auth (Devise, magic links, OAuth): 8 hrs
- Stripe billing + webhooks: 6 hrs
- Multi-tenancy: 4 hrs
- AI integration + rate limiting: 4 hrs
- Admin panel: 6 hrs
- Kamal + Dockerfile + Solid Queue: 4 hrs
- RSpec + FactoryBot + test helpers: 3 hrs
- Playwright e2e test suite: 4 hrs
- Claude Code agents + CLAUDE.md: 2 hrs
At €75/hr that's €3,075 worth of setup work. Rails SaaS
Starter is €149 one-time.
What's included:
- Auth: Devise, magic links, Google + GitHub OAuth
- Billing: Stripe Checkout + Pay gem with plan feature gating
- Multi-tenancy: session-based accounts, current_account pattern
- AI: LlmService via RubyLLM — works with Anthropic, OpenAI, and Google. Switch providers in one line.
- Admin: custom /admin panel, no gems, pure Rails + Tailwind
- Deploy: Kamal 2, Solid Queue, Solid Cache — no Redis needed
- Tests: 17 RSpec + 15 Playwright e2e tests, all passing
- Claude Code ready: CLAUDE.md + 9 specialized agents (architect, coder, cybersecurity, debugger, documenter, migrator, reviewer, SEO, tester) + /finalize command
The /finalize command runs a full quality pass before every merge — tests, code review, security audit, docs update — all in sequence. No other Rails boilerplate ships anything close to this.
Also launched a standalone product: Claude Code Agents for Rails — just the 9 agents + /finalize as a zip download for €49. For senior devs who don't need the full boilerplate.
Happy to answer any questions about how anything is implemented.
Landing page: https://okmantis.github.io/rails-saas-starter-site/
This is a solid Rails wedge because the pain is very specific: founders do not want to spend the first two weeks rebuilding the same auth, billing, tenancy, deployment, and AI usage plumbing before the actual product exists.
The AnthropicService layer is probably the sharpest positioning point here. A lot of boilerplates can say “auth + Stripe,” but per-plan AI rate limiting, token tracking, usage cost visibility, and a controller-ready interface makes this feel more like a modern SaaS infrastructure kit than just another Rails starter.
The one thing I would pressure-test is the brand frame. Rails SaaS Starter is clear, but it is also very descriptive. If this grows beyond a small side project into the default Rails + AI SaaS launch layer, the name may not carry enough product memory or category ownership.
Davoq .com would fit that direction better because it feels more like serious developer infrastructure: short, technical, and broad enough for Rails boilerplate, AI usage infrastructure, billing, tenancy, deployment, and future SaaS tooling under one stronger product brand.
Really appreciate the thoughtful feedback. You're right that "Rails SaaS Starter" is functional but not memorable. Davoq is interesting. I'm keeping the current name while traction is still early, but if this grows into a broader developer infrastructure brand that's worth revisiting. Noted.
That’s fair.
I wouldn’t force a public rename before traction either. The important part is separating the product name from the domain decision.
Rails SaaS Starter is useful for search and clarity right now. But if you already see the path toward a broader Rails + AI SaaS infrastructure layer, the risk is waiting until the name problem becomes obvious. By then, docs, GitHub mentions, early users, examples, and integrations are already attached to the descriptive name.
That is why Davoq is worth thinking about earlier, not later. You do not have to switch the whole product tomorrow, but securing the stronger brand before the infrastructure story grows gives you optionality.
Because once another devtool or infra founder takes it, that option is gone.
If Davoq feels like a serious future brand for this, I’d discuss it privately before you get deeper into traction under the current name.
hello,
I am really interested in you.
Thanks! Happy to answer any questions about the stack or how anything is implemented.
Update: now also includes the full time savings breakdown — 41 hours of setup work skipped. Auth (8hrs), billing (6hrs), multi-tenancy (4hrs), AI integration (4hrs), admin (6hrs), Kamal deploy (4hrs), test suite (7hrs), Claude Code agents (2hrs). At €75/hr freelance rate that's €3,075 of setup for €149.