6 architectures I considered for a privacy-first personal SaaS — and why I built two of them

Short summary

An indie founder evaluates six architectural approaches for a privacy-first SaaS, explaining how data custody, zero operating costs, and offline-first requirements eliminated five options. Final stack: React + Vite + sql.js (browser SQLite) + Google Drive sync, giving users complete data ownership. The constraint-first methodology is a replicable pattern for privacy-focused products.

• •Privacy constraint forces data to stay on user devices, not company servers—eliminates traditional backends
• •Zero-cost requirement rules out any managed infrastructure (Supabase, DigitalOcean) before subscriber one
• •Final architecture: client-side SQLite + Google Drive sync = offline-capable, zero-infrastructure SaaS

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