Hey everyone! I'm building a website to showcase my dad's artwork, and I want to use it as an opportunity to enhance my portfolio while learning new skills. My background is mostly in graphic design and WordPress, but I'm taking on the challenge of developing a custom site instead of relying on a traditional CMS. Here's what I have in mind for the project: I'll use Node.js with Express for the backend, React for the frontend, and PostgreSQL for the database, along with Cloudinary for image hosting. The website will feature a small blog, three galleries, and functionality for filtering gallery items by tags. My dad will be able to upload artwork, assign categories, and create blog posts through a backend interface. I've had some server experience in the past but I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed tackling hosting for this project. I thought about using my SiteGround server, but that's not going to work for a Node backend. I'm seeing different hosting options like combining the frontend and backend or separating them to utilize free service tiers. I want to keep hosting costs low, but I'm willing to spend a bit if it means a smoother experience. What hosting solutions would you recommend given these goals? And please, avoid suggesting I just use a CMS—I want to learn and take this challenge on!
4 Answers
You could set up your frontend with Netlify and your backend with Render, with MongoDB for your database, if that aligns with your stack. You might find Supabase helpful for handling auth and file storage as well, as it has serverless functions and a free tier, which could save you some headaches during the deployment phase. Both Netlify and Render have free tiers for basic usage, but if you want continuous uptime, there's a small fee involved to keep servers active 24/7.
It really depends on how much you're willing to dive into this. You could go with a VPS option like Digital Ocean or AWS, which will let you have full control but comes with a steeper learning curve for setting everything up. Prices can start around $5/month, but it demands a lot of setup work, like configuring firewalls and automatic service recovery.
On the other hand, you could choose a PaaS option, which simplifies deployment a lot. Services like Render might have free tiers, but they can be restrictive for bigger projects. Given your situation, maybe starting with a free tier for front-end hosting on Cloudflare and a database on another free service could be the way to go. You can create a simple backend interface using Node or PHP later on. If you want to really get into backend development, then it might be beneficial to create your own web service instead of diving into Supabase, which is often considered a more straightforward CMS solution.
Absolutely! Using PaaS first is a good way to ease into things.
Given your goals, I highly recommend checking out Supabase. It integrates seamlessly with your stack and can provide enough structure to help you while still letting you learn. You get a good balance of visibility on what's happening under the hood while benefiting from some conveniences that might just make your life easier.
You might want to check out bknd; it's designed to work with Cloudflare Workers and Pages, and it can also be deployed for free. Personally, I think that if you want hands-on experience with your stack, sticking with Node, Express, and Postgres for this project will be beneficial because these technologies are in high demand.
That sounds cool, but I'm leaning more towards Node, Express, and Postgres so I can work with the tech that's often in job listings—plus, it fits my learning goals better.
Thanks for the detailed response! I’m open to learning, and a friend suggested that I should first deploy a project using a PaaS and then try out an unmanaged server later. That sounds reasonable, especially since I want to get my hands dirty with Node.js, Express, and PostgreSQL. Can you recommend any specific PaaS? Should I separate the frontend and backend using different services?