How I Built 2 Astro Websites and a Full-Stack Boilerplate in Just One Week
TL;DR: In just 7 days, I developed two full Astro websites (from scratch, no templates), and created a personal Astro + Svelte + Supabase boilerplate to speed up future SaaS and MVP launches. AI was my co-pilot throughout, helping me write better UI, copy, and structure.
⚡ Why I Went All In with Astro
I fell in love with Astro for two reasons: simplicity and power.
Astro helps you build lightning-fast static sites with SSG, prefetch, and view transitions that make it feel buttery smooth - something I’ve never really experienced with WordPress. Plus, the built-in component support lets me sprinkle interactivity using Svelte (or React/Vue), without bloating performance.
A week ago, I jumped into Astro using Cursor and ChatGPT. At first, I was confused. I was getting code but didn’t fully understand it. That’s when I paused and read the official Astro docs - and it clicked.
Unlike Django, where you define routes in urls.py
, Astro gives you file-based routing through the /pages
directory. That alone makes prototyping so much faster. (No hate on Django - it’s still my go-to for secure, backend-heavy apps.)
Since my goal is to ship fast, write blog posts, case studies, and build digital tools and SaaS products - Astro just fits.
🚀 The Three Projects I Shipped
1. Personal Website
This is my main online identity - a place to show that I’m a professional developer. It includes:
- Case studies of my past projects
- Blog posts (like this one)
- A services page for hiring me
I optimized SEO right inside the layout.astro
file. Each page gets its own dynamic title
and description
, with default fallbacks.
Styling: Astro + Tailwind + DaisyUI
No templates. 100% custom-built.
2. Agency One-Pager
This is a beautiful, single-page site showcasing the developer services I offer as a subscription-based agency.
What do I offer?
Senior full-stack developer access at a price lower than hiring a junior dev.
Built with MagicUI components and DaisyUI for a polished, premium feel.
How AI helped:
ChatGPT helped me refine the UI and even write high-converting sales copy that I couldn’t have done this well in such a short time.
3. Astro + Svelte + Supabase Starter Boilerplate
This one is my secret weapon for shipping fast.
What it solves:
- I can build MVPs, tools, and SaaS ideas super fast
- No more setting up auth or database from scratch
- Just update the
.env
file and go
Features:
- Supabase auth (magic link + Google login)
- Pre-built UI with Svelte components
- Markdown blog support
Future?
Not sure. I might sell it like Marc Lou’s ShipFast, or open source it. Either way, it’s saving me hours already.
💻 My Stack & Workflow
Stack Used:
- Astro for structure and SSG
- Svelte for UI interactivity
- Supabase for auth + DB
- Tailwind + DaisyUI + MagicUI for styling
AI Tools I Used:
- ChatGPT for copy, code refactoring, structuring layouts
- Cursor for creating multiple page structures in one go
- GitHub Copilot for code clean-up and small completions
🛠️ Dev Diary Snippet
Day 3: I was stuck trying to get Supabase auth working smoothly inside Astro with Svelte - especially making the redirect flow work with the magic link. After some back-and-forth with AI and testing locally, I cracked it. Now it’s fully integrated in the starter!
📦 What’s Next?
- Stripe integration (once my account is approved 🤞)
- Optional admin dashboard module
- Markdown-powered blog CMS (no headless CMS needed!)
- All content stays in GitHub
- No worries about subscriptions ending and losing everything (like my old WordPress blog 😅)
📢 Work With Me
Need lightning-fast landing pages, MVPs, or full-blown SaaS apps built in weeks, not months?
Subscribe to my developer service - get a senior full-stack dev at a fraction of the cost of hiring in-house.
Check out my projects | Hire me
Let me know what you think, or reach out if you want help shipping your idea fast!