The solo founder stack
Eight tools that fit together. Every pick is Essential or Strong, and they cover the whole loop from code to customer.
The The solo founder stack is a curated 6-tool stack. Everything one person needs to build, launch, and sell — without a team and without the bloat. All-in it runs about $78/mo at solo scale, and several picks start free, and it averages 87/100 on our 8020 rubric. Every tool covers one job in the workflow, with no overlap between picks.
What's in it, and why.
How the pieces fit.
The solo founder stack covers the full loop from writing code to charging a customer, and it does it with eight tools that each own exactly one job. There is no second project tracker, no backup analytics tool, and no overlap to pay for twice.
The workflow runs in a straight line. You build features in Cursor, plan them in Linear, and ship to Vercel on every push. Stripe takes the money, Notion holds everything that does not belong in code, and Claude sits alongside for design reviews and writing. Plausible shows what is working, and Cal.com books the calls without handing your calendar to a third party.
What makes it an 80/20 stack is the scoring. Every pick rates Essential or Strong on our rubric, so you are not compromising on any single tool to keep the set small. The discipline is in what is left out: no CRM until you have customers to manage, no BI tool until Plausible stops answering the question, no team-chat app for a team of one.
What to swap. The roles matter more than the specific tools. If you do not write code, drop Cursor and Vercel and the stack becomes a five-tool operator kit. Prefer an all-in-one? Notion can absorb the planning role and you can cut Linear. Each pick links to its category, where you can compare it against the alternatives we scored.
The point of the stack is restraint. Most founders pay for twelve tools and use six. This is the six that matter, plus two for the builders — and nothing that quietly renews without being used.
Frequently asked questions
What tools are in the The solo founder stack?
The The solo founder stack is 6 tools: Cursor (build), Linear (plan), Notion (document), Claude (assist), Plausible (measure), Cal.com (meet). Each one owns a single job in the workflow, so the stack covers the whole loop without paying for two tools that do the same thing.
How much does the The solo founder stack cost?
About $78/mo all-in at solo scale, and several tools ship a free tier you can start on. Each pick's entry price is in the cost breakdown; swapping any tool for a cheaper or free alternative in the same category lowers the total.
Who is the The solo founder stack for?
Everything one person needs to build, launch, and sell — without a team and without the bloat. It is built for one operator or a small team that wants full coverage of the workflow without tool overlap or enterprise overhead.
Can I swap tools in the The solo founder stack?
Yes. Each role — Build, Plan, Document, Assist, Measure, Meet — can be filled by another tool in the same category. These are our 8020 defaults, not the only option; open any tool's page to compare it against its scored alternatives.
