Frequently Asked Questions

Omaship is a SaaS starter kit that gives you a production-ready Rails 8 foundation: auth, payments, CI/CD, Kamal deployment, security scanning—everything you need to build, ship, and operate a SaaS product.

Unlike platforms like Vercel or Replit, you own the code completely—no lock-in. Unlike building from scratch, everything is already configured, tested, and optimized for AI coding agents.

Serial builders who launch SaaS products, validate fast, and want a solid foundation from day one—whether they keep or exit.

Solo founders using AI coding agents (Claude Code, Cursor) who want a Rails codebase that AI tools can navigate and extend effortlessly.

Indie hackers who want to ship fast but keep full ownership and control of their technology.

vs. Vercel/Replit/Lovable: You own the code. No lock-in. No platform dependency. Scale on your terms.

vs. Other Rails starters: Production-ready, not just scaffolding. Includes CI/CD, Kamal deployment, security scanning, payments. Built for AI coding agents.

vs. Building from scratch: Skip weeks of infrastructure decisions. Every architectural choice is battle-tested. Ship your product on day one.

vs. Vibe-coded prototypes: Exit-ready foundation. Clean architecture that passes due diligence. Buyers trust what they see.

A GitHub account and a server to deploy to (Hetzner, DigitalOcean, or any VPS with Docker support). That's it.

An AI coding agent like Claude Code or Cursor is recommended but not required. Every Omaship project includes AGENTS.md (and CLAUDE.md as a symlink) with project-specific context for AI tools.

30 seconds to generate your codebase.

5 minutes to deploy to your server (first time only).

After that, every change deploys automatically through GitHub Actions.

No. Rails' convention over configuration means AI coding agents know exactly where everything goes. Models in app/models, controllers in app/controllers—predictable structure that Claude Code and Cursor navigate effortlessly.

Describe the feature you want. Your AI agent builds it. The conventions guide both of you.

Every Omaship project includes AGENTS.md (with CLAUDE.md symlinked to it) with project-specific context: architecture decisions, naming conventions, testing patterns, and deployment workflows. AI agents read this context and immediately understand your project.

Rails 8's convention over configuration means there's one obvious place for everything. AI agents don't guess—they follow conventions backed by 20 years of training data.

Convention over configuration. Rails has one way to structure a project. Next.js has hundreds. AI agents excel when patterns are predictable.

As DHH (creator of Rails) put it: "Convention over configuration set the path for 20+ years of great training data for AI to use today."

Y Combinator president Garry Tan called Rails + Claude Code "a crazy unlock." The framework was accidentally optimized for AI-assisted development.

You need basic technical comfort—running terminal commands, understanding what a database is, knowing what an API does. You don't need to write Ruby from scratch.

With Claude Code or Cursor, you describe features in plain English. The AI writes the code. Omaship's conventions ensure the AI writes good code in the right place.

AI integration means your app can call OpenAI, Claude, or Gemini APIs—your product uses AI as a feature.

AI-agent optimization means your codebase is structured so AI coding agents can build your app faster. AGENTS.md and CLAUDE.md context, consistent conventions, clean architecture.

Some competitors offer AI API wrappers. Omaship optimizes the entire development workflow for AI agents. One adds AI to your product; the other uses AI to build your product.

When a buyer does technical due diligence, they look for: clean code structure, test coverage, security practices, documented architecture, and no vendor lock-in.

Omaship gives you all five from day one. CI/CD with security scanning, self-hosted infrastructure, comprehensive test setup, and clean Rails conventions. The foundation passes due diligence before you write your first feature.

Yes. Buyers care about the product, the revenue, and the code quality—not whether you started from scratch. A well-maintained Rails app with clean architecture, tests, and CI/CD is more valuable than a custom-built mess.

In fact, buyers often prefer standard Rails apps because they're easier to maintain and extend after acquisition.

Platform-dependent apps (Vercel, Heroku, Replit) create transfer risk. The buyer has to migrate accounts, renegotiate terms, or stay on a platform they didn't choose.

Self-hosted apps on standard VPS infrastructure are portable. Point Kamal at the buyer's server. Deploy. Done.

Rails 8.1 with Hotwire (Turbo + Stimulus), Tailwind CSS, and Import Maps. No webpack, no complex JavaScript build process.

SQLite for everything—database, cache, background jobs, real-time updates. No Redis or PostgreSQL to manage.

Kamal 2.0 for deployment to any server with Docker support.

See full technical details →

Yes. SQLite handles most workloads beautifully (thousands of requests per second), but if you need PostgreSQL, migration is straightforward. Rails makes database switching simple.

Anywhere that runs Docker: Hetzner (€4/month), DigitalOcean ($6/month), AWS, Google Cloud, or your own hardware.

Kamal handles zero-downtime deploys, SSL certificates (via Let's Encrypt), and container orchestration automatically.

Omaship's core functionality is delivered as a Rails Engine. Update when you're ready:

bundle update omaship_base

Your customizations stay intact. Override any template or behavior you need.

Starter is €249 for one project, Professional is €449 for unlimited projects, and Unlimited is €699 with lifetime updates and support.

All paid plans are one-time purchases. You own the code and only keep paying your own hosting bill.

Starter covers one project. Professional and Unlimited cover unlimited projects. All plans include full modification rights, deploy-anywhere freedom, and commercial use.

• Full source code access
• Unlimited modifications
• Deploy to any server
• All future updates to the engine
• Commercial use

You own the code. No runtime dependencies, no phone-home, no vendor lock-in.

We offer onboarding support for all customers. You'll have access to documentation, guides, and direct support during setup.

For ongoing help, the code works beautifully with AI tools. Claude Code and Cursor can help you make changes, debug issues, and add features.

Yes. If Omaship doesn't work for you within the first 14 days, we'll refund your purchase. No questions asked.

We offer custom development services for customers who need bespoke features. Contact us after purchase to discuss your needs.