# Framework platforms we build on

> The front-end frameworks SmartaStudio builds on — Next.js for app-like builds and Astro for content-first sites — and how we choose between them.

URL: https://www.smartastudio.com/stack/framework

_What we build the front end with._

The framework sets the performance budget and the ceiling for what the front end can do. We build app-like surfaces in Next.js and content-first sites in Astro — the right tool for the shape of the job.

For interactive, app-like builds — portals, dashboards, logged-in product — Next.js is our default: one React framework that scales from a marketing page to a platform. For content-heavy estates where the performance budget has to hold after launch, Astro ships almost no JavaScript by default. Both are modern, both are fast when built well; the choice comes down to how interactive the surface really is.

## What a framework solves — and what the wrong one costs

The framework is the engine of the front end. It decides how pages are rendered, how much JavaScript ships to the browser, and how far the site can grow before it needs rebuilding. A good choice makes the site fast, maintainable and cheap to extend for years.

The wrong choice is expensive in ways that only show up later. Pick something app-heavy for a simple content site and you carry a performance tax on every page load. Pick something too lightweight for a genuinely interactive product and you end up fighting the tool, bolting on complexity it was never meant to hold. Re-platforming a front end mid-life is one of the costliest mistakes a project can make — so we choose deliberately, up front.

## How we decide with you

One question settles most of it: how interactive is the surface, really?

- **How app-like is it?** — Dashboards, portals and logged-in product lean to Next.js. Content-led sites with a few interactive pockets lean to Astro.
- **What is the JavaScript budget?** — If page weight and Core Web Vitals are the priority, we start from the framework that ships the least JavaScript for the job.
- **How will it grow?** — We pick for where the project is going in two years, not just launch — the framework has to scale with the roadmap.
- **Who maintains it?** — A mature ecosystem and a large hiring pool matter; we avoid niche tools that leave you dependent on one agency.

## Build tooling & monorepos

The machinery that keeps larger codebases fast to build and easy to share code across — invisible to visitors, vital to velocity.

- **Turborepo** — High-performance monorepo builds with smart caching, so large projects compile in seconds, not minutes.
- **Nx** — Monorepo tooling for bigger estates — shared libraries, dependency graphs and coordinated builds across many apps.
- **Vite** — The fast dev server and bundler under most modern builds — near-instant reloads while developing.
- **pnpm workspaces** — Efficient, disk-friendly package management for multi-package repositories.
- **ESLint & Prettier** — Automated code quality and formatting so a codebase stays consistent and reviewable as it grows.

## Static site generators

When a site is pure content, generating it to static HTML at build time gives the fastest, cheapest, most secure result there is.

- **Astro** — Our default SSG — ships minimal JavaScript and pulls content from any headless CMS.
- **Next.js (SSG mode)** — Static generation and incremental regeneration when a project also needs dynamic areas later.
- **Eleventy** — A lean, flexible generator for documentation and content sites with no framework overhead.
- **Hugo** — Extremely fast static builds for very large content sites where build time itself matters.

## Our chosen frameworks

- [Next.js](https://www.smartastudio.com/stack/framework/nextjs) — Our default React framework for app-like builds.
- [Astro](https://www.smartastudio.com/stack/framework/astro) — Near-zero JavaScript for content-heavy sites.