What Software Stack is Best for a Membership Service Website?

When dealing with 10,000 users migrating from an existing platform, making sure you securely manage content access and authentication is crucial. Using Next.js and Stripe is a good combo. Since you're a beginner, consider adding next-auth for managing user authentication. It works well with Stripe, allowing you to check subscription statuses easily. A critical point is to avoid building your own content access control; use middleware to ensure you don’t accidentally expose premium content. Also, consider that Vercel’s free tier might not suffice at this scale—look into alternatives like Railway or a budget VPS for better control.

Honestly, for someone at your level of experience, it might be a bit risky to handle a website that involves other people's money. It could be worth considering building your skills more before jumping into a project like this.

It's smart to tread carefully, especially when managing subscriptions for 10,000 users. My recommended stack includes Next.js for the frontend, Postgres (via Supabase or Neon) for your database, and Stripe for payment processing, deploying everything on Vercel for hassle-free scaling and CDN support. Set up Stripe webhooks to keep user subscription statuses current, and perform checks server-side before granting access to premium content. Don't forget to secure your app with HTTPS, use parameterized queries, and test everything in Stripe’s sandbox until you're sure it works. For migrating users, create a clean CSV, ensure no duplicates by email, and invite them to activate accounts without auto-billing initially.

To keep things simple, stick with a basic stack: Next.js, Stripe, and a managed Postgres service like Supabase, then host on Vercel. Make sure to manage subscription data server-side with Stripe webhooks to enforce access controls rather than relying on client-side checks. Store media in object storage and use signed URLs for secure links, plus add some rate limiting and monitoring to keep things in check.

For handling payments, I highly recommend using Stripe. It's easy to use, well-documented, and designed for both recurring and one-time payments. As for deployment, Vercel is a fantastic choice because it integrates directly with GitHub—just push your repo, and it handles the deployment for you. Remember to keep your API keys secure in .env files and set them in Vercel’s environment variables to prevent any crashes. Next.js could be a solid framework option since it allows you to manage both the front and back end together in one project.