Build & Ship

Build & Ship articles from RaftLabs, practical write-ups from engineers who built these things.

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Voice AI · Research

Text-based interviews converted to automated phone calls

6× deeper insights

AI Automation · Ops

Manual invoice OCR across 40+ gas stations

20k+ txns day one

Loyalty · Retail

SuperValu & Centra loyalty platform with receipt validation

1,062 users in 4 weeks

SaaS · Logistics

Multi-carrier shipping hub for Indonesian eCommerce

2,000+ shipments yr 1

4.9 / 5 on ClutchSee all work

Seller photographing clothing items to list on a resale marketplace app

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How to Build an App Like Poshmark (Social Resale Marketplace)

The resale market is worth $230B and growing 20% per year. Here is what it takes to build a social commerce marketplace like Poshmark: the full feature set, tech stack, timeline, and cost.

Construction manager reviewing project plans on a tablet at a job site - how to build an app like Procore

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How to Build an App Like Procore (Construction Management)

A custom construction management platform like Procore costs $120,000–$200,000 and takes 20–24 weeks. Here is what to build, where the complexity hides, and which construction companies should stop paying Procore's per-user fees.

Accountant reviewing financial reports on a laptop with charts and spreadsheets visible

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How to Build an App Like QuickBooks

Building accounting software is harder than it looks. Here's what it actually takes: the core engine, the data model, the hardest bugs, and what it costs to ship.

Community forum platform on a laptop screen with posts, comments, and voting

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How to Build an App Like Reddit: The Community Platform Playbook

Reddit is the internet's largest forum network -- 100,000+ communities, 1.5 billion posts, and a ranking algorithm that surfaces the best content without an editorial team. If you are building a niche community platform, an industry forum, or a white-label discussion tool, here is what to build first, what will sink your budget, and the cold-start problem nobody talks about.

Developer reviewing financial charts on a laptop with a trading dashboard interface

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How to Build an App Like Robinhood

Building a trading app like Robinhood costs $200K–$350K and takes 20–28 weeks. Here is exactly what you need: broker-dealer APIs, market data feeds, KYC flows, and the regulatory path that determines your timeline.

dog walker with multiple dogs on leashes in a city park - How to build an app like Rover pet care marketplace

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How to Build an App Like Rover: Pet Care Marketplace Architecture

Rover charges 20% commission from sitters and a 5% fee from owners. Top sitters earn $30K-$80K per year. Here is how the booking engine, GPS walk tracking, escrow payments, and trust system work -- and what it costs to build one.

product manager reviewing CRM architecture diagram for custom Salesforce alternative

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How to Build an App Like Salesforce

A custom CRM costs $80,000-$130,000 to build. Salesforce costs $99,000 per year for 50 users on the Enterprise plan. Here is what it takes to build your own, what it costs, and when it makes sense.

fleet dispatcher monitoring real-time vehicle locations on a multi-screen operations dashboard

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How to Build an App Like Samsara (Fleet Management)

Samsara charges $27-$33 per vehicle per month. A fleet of 100 trucks pays up to $39,600 a year. Here is what it takes to build your own fleet management platform, what it actually costs, and who should do it.

Field service dispatcher reviewing technician job board on desktop computer

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How to build an app like ServiceTitan: field service software breakdown

ServiceTitan costs a 30-technician HVAC company $12,000-$20,000 a year. A custom field service platform costs $80,000-$140,000 to build once and owns the workflow your way. Here is exactly what to build, how long it takes, and when custom wins.

E-commerce platform dashboard on a laptop screen showing product listings and orders

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How to Build an E-Commerce Platform Like Shopify: The Architecture Guide

If you are building a vertical e-commerce platform for a specific industry, region, or business model that Shopify does not serve well, the engineering is substantial. Here is what it actually takes: multi-tenancy, a storefront builder, Stripe Connect payments, and more.

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How to build an app like Slack: Real-time messaging architecture and real costs

Slack supports 5 million simultaneous WebSocket connections and delivers messages in under 500ms. Here's what actually makes it hard to build - the infrastructure decisions most teams get wrong, and what it costs to build the real thing vs. a good enough version.

Runner checking fitness tracking app on smartphone during outdoor training

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How to Build an App Like Strava: The Builder's Guide

Strava has 120M users. But running shoe brands, gym chains, and event organizers don't want their athletes on someone else's platform. Here's how to build the fitness tracking app your brand actually owns.

Developer reviewing payment infrastructure architecture diagram on monitor

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How to build an app like Stripe: marketplace payment infrastructure explained

Nobody is rebuilding Stripe. But thousands of marketplace platforms, on-demand apps, and financial services companies need Stripe-level payment infrastructure: split payments, payouts, escrow, and subscription billing. Here is what that build actually looks like.

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How to Build an App Like Substack: Newsletter Platform Architecture

Substack takes 10% of paid subscription revenue. A newsletter doing $20K/month sends $2,000 to Substack every month. Here's the full architecture for building a newsletter platform you own outright.

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How to build an app like Swiggy: Architecture, dark stores, and what makes it hard

Swiggy started as a food delivery app and became a super-app with Instamart grocery delivery, Swiggy Genie errands, and cloud kitchens. Here's how the three-app architecture works and what it actually takes to build something in this space.