Stack debates used to be a matter of taste. In 2026 they're mostly a matter of which defaults save your team the most time for the shape of project in front of you. For the majority of the marketing sites, dashboards, and customer portals we build, that default is Next.js — but it's a default we're happy to override, and knowing when to is more valuable than knowing the framework itself.
Why we default to Next.js
The case for Next.js as a starting point is straightforward: React Server Components have matured to the point where you can ship an interactive, app-like product without shipping a mountain of JavaScript to the browser. Image and font optimization are handled for you. File-based routing keeps a growing codebase legible without a bespoke routing layer. And you get one deployment target that handles both your marketing pages and your authenticated app, instead of stitching together a static site and a separate SPA.
When we reach for something else
A pure backend service with no rendering concerns is better served by a plain Node or NestJS API — wrapping it in a full framework just adds ceremony. A content-only microsite with no interactivity doesn't need server components at all; a lightweight static generator gets you there with less to maintain. And for products built around heavy real-time collaboration — think live cursors, shared documents, multiplayer editing — we run a dedicated WebSocket service alongside Next.js rather than trying to force that traffic pattern through server-rendered pages.
Choosing a database: Postgres vs MongoDB
Database choice follows a similar logic, and it's one we get asked about constantly. Postgres is our default for anything transactional or relational — billing, inventory, multi-tenant data with real referential integrity requirements. MongoDB earns its place when the data is genuinely flexible-shaped, like the CMS-style content that powers this very blog, where each record can vary slightly without needing a migration every time. Pick based on how rigid your schema actually needs to be, not which one is trending.
Performance budgets aren't optional
Core Web Vitals still influence both search ranking and, more importantly, whether visitors stick around. Server components help here by default, since less logic ships to the client, but it's still easy to undo that advantage with a bloated client bundle, unoptimized images, or a component tree that re-renders more than it needs to. We treat performance budgets the same way we treat test coverage: a number we check on every release, not an afterthought before launch.
Migrating an existing app without a full rewrite
For teams sitting on an older create-react-app or bespoke SPA setup, the good news is you rarely need a full rewrite. Server components and routes can be adopted incrementally, page by page, which is usually the difference between a project a team will actually finish and one that stalls out at 60% migrated.
Getting a second opinion
If you're weighing a rebuild, a migration, or just want a second opinion on your current architecture, that's the kind of conversation our Web Development team has with founders and engineering leads every week — reach out and we'll walk through what actually fits your product.