Open-source & self-hosted

The visual site builder that lives in your codebase.

React + Next.js, low-code, self-hosted. Editors build and publish visually; developers keep full control of the code. Your data, your infrastructure, every feature included.

Start free — no credit card, no email
Explore the open-source core
What is ChaiBuilder?

npm package

Drops directly into your existing Next.js app — no vendor lock-in.

Public starter

Next.js + Payload CMS — clone, deploy, and start building immediately.

Full ownership

Your data, your infrastructure. Every license includes every feature.

The core difference

Low-code, not no-code

Developers build it. Editors run it.

For developers

A plugin in your Next.js app

Override pages and routing. Plug in your own Payload collections. Extend the builder with custom blocks and panels. Anything the visual builder can't do, you build — by design, not as a workaround.

  • Override pages & routing — the builder lives inside your app
  • Plug in your own Payload collections — your schema, your types
  • Extend with custom blocks — register your own React components
  • Escape hatches everywhere — if the visual tool can't do it, code it
For editors

RBAC-based visual editing

Build and publish pages with no code. Role-based access control keeps the right people editing the right things — no developer bottleneck, no risky changes.

  • Drag, drop, and publish — the full page-building workflow
  • Role-based access control — granular permissions per user
  • Live preview — see exactly what your audience sees
  • No developer bottleneck — editors ship independently
One tool. Two audiences. Zero compromise.

From one command to published, in four steps

  1. 1

    Create your project

    Run npx chaibuilder-app create

    The CLI scaffolds a Next.js + Payload CMS project with chaipro set up and walks you through configuration - database, environment, the works.

  2. 2

    Deploy to your server

    Your hosting, your database. The 30-day trial starts when you deploy - no credit card, no email.

  3. 3

    Build visually

    Create pages, sections, and content on the visual canvas, with the AI assistant alongside.

  4. 4

    Publish in one click

    Changes go live in a single action.

Pages render with SSG + ISR - each page is built on its first visit, cached, and automatically revalidated when you publish.

See how it works in detail
Capabilities at a glance

What you can do with it

Five capability groups. One tool. Everything needed to build, ship, and scale.

Build & edit

Visual builderDesign tokensTheme systemData bindingCustom blocksExtensible builder UI

Content & media

MultilingualMedia managerImage editorConnect external CMS

Collaborate & ship

Multi-user editing with page lockingOne-click publishPreview mode (Next.js draft mode)Revisions & restore

AI

Page editing assistantSEO assistantTheme assistant

Access

Role-based access controlFull feature set, no tiers
Ownership by Design

Own everything you build

01

Own your data

Bring your own database - Postgres, SQLite, or any supported storage. All website content, registered users, and actions live in your database. ChaiBuilder has no access to any of it.

02

Own your infrastructure

ChaiBuilder is delivered as code you deploy on your own stack. You host it, you run it - there is no vendor-hosted runtime for your site.

03

No feature tiers

Every license unlocks the entire product. Plans differ by domains and branding, never by features. There are no feature flags and nothing to upgrade into.

Ownership isn't a plan tier or an add-on here - it's the architecture.

AI assistant

Edit by chat.
No coding required.

An in-builder chat panel that edits content, creates and edits sections, and helps with SEO and theming — all in plain language.

Bring your own AIVercel AI Gateway out of the box
Built on real code

Real code you control,
not a walled garden

Built on React, Next.js, Tailwind CSS v4, and Payload CMS. Payload ships by default; the CMS is swappable, and you can wire in external data.

React
/
Next.js
/
Payload CMS
/
Tailwind CSS v4

Payload by default

Payload CMS ships out of the box with the public starter. Clone, deploy, and you have a full content layer from day one.

Swappable CMS

Prefer a different headless CMS? Swap Payload for Sanity, Contentful, or your own backend. The builder stays the same.

Wire in external data

Connect external APIs, databases, or existing CMS instances. Your data bindings pull from wherever your data lives.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

How does the free trial work?
It's a 30-day trial with no credit card and no email required. Create your project with
npx chaibuilder-app create
, deploy to your server, and the trial starts on deploy. There are no refunds, so use the trial to validate fit before buying.
What does the license actually cover?
Licenses are perpetual within a version window: valid through the end of your year and eligible for any
chaipro
version released in that window. When it expires, renew to stay current or keep running the last eligible version.
What's open source and what's paid?
The open-source core (
chaicore
) is a basic Next.js website builder: visual builder, SQLite page storage, and rendering. The paid
chaipro
package adds a set of Pro extensions on top: roles, revisions, multilingual, redirects, media management, advanced AI, multi-tenancy, and more.
Can I use a different CMS?
Yes. Payload CMS ships wired in out of the box, but there is no coupling between Payload's tables and ChaiBuilder's. Swap in any CMS you prefer.
How does Bring-Your-Own-AI work?
The AI assistant runs on Vercel AI Gateway or OpenRouter out of the box, and you can configure any custom provider via ChaiBuilder config. Usage stays under your own provider account.

Start building today.

Deploy the starter in minutes. No credit card, no email. When you're ready, pick a plan that fits.

The Visual Website Builder

You Actually Own. React + Next.js, low-code, self-hosted. Your data, your infrastructure, every feature included.

Product

Solutions

Resources

OTHER

© ChaiBuilder. All rights reserved.