I Built a SaaS in 25 Minutes with Base44. Here’s the Full Build.

I woke up with a coffee and an idea: turn the thousands of photos sitting on our phones into beautiful printed books.

In this 25-minute walkthrough, I build Booksy AI: a photo-book platform with customer accounts, a database, an editor, a published website and a successful Stripe test checkout. You can follow the whole process without writing code.

Watch directly on YouTube →

Base44 is the platform I use for this build. You describe what you want in plain English, and it builds the screens people see plus the systems behind them.

That means the front end, database, user accounts, authentication, backend logic, hosting and publishing live in one workflow. Payments connect through Stripe. You can also manage data permissions, run security checks and connect your own domain.

For a nontechnical founder, that is the appeal. I can focus on the customer experience instead of stitching together a stack of development tools. You don’t need to open Claude Code or Codex to follow this tutorial.

I also use ChatGPT for optional design concepts and ad images later in the video. Base44 builds and hosts the actual application.

Try Base44 and build along →
Affiliate link: I may earn a commission if you sign up through my link.

Open Base44, create an account and choose Plan before you start building. Leave the model on Auto if you don’t know which one to choose. There is nothing to install on your computer.

My idea is simple: choose a book design, upload photos, customize the pages and order a book. I use Mixbook as a reference for the customer journey, then ask for a simpler, original version focused only on photo books.

The planning stage turns a plain-English idea into the product’s core flows and requirements. Watch this step ↗

A product requirements document (PRD) is just a clear description of what the app should do. Answer the follow-up questions before clicking Start building. In this demo, I choose to build pricing and checkout now, with printing connected later.

Plan note: You can explore Base44 before committing to a paid plan, but the Stripe integration shown here requires Builder or higher. Check the current plan limits in your account.

I add reference screenshots of a book editor and explain the controls I want: book sizes, page counts, photo uploads, layouts, text, backgrounds and stickers. Start with a small set of templates so the first version stays manageable.

Get the main workflow working first. You can make the landing page beautiful once there is a real product behind it.

Click Start building. When the first version is ready, switch from Preview to Dashboard.

In the video, Base44 creates records for book formats, orders, photos, projects and templates. These are the app’s database tables: the organized places where the product stores its information.

The actual Base44 dashboard, with the app’s book formats, orders, photos, projects and templates. Watch this step ↗

Open the pages and try the buttons. A generated screen is the starting point. The next steps show whether the pieces actually work together.

Before publishing, open Dashboard → Security, run the security scan and review the suggested fixes. I apply the fixes in the video before opening the public app.

The security scan flags issues to fix before the first public test. Watch this step ↗

Then review Authentication, enable the login method you need and publish. I use the built-in Base44 address and test signing in on the published site.

For a photo app, check that each customer can access only their own photos, projects and orders. A clean scan is useful, but you should still test with separate customer accounts.

Your domain: The demo uses a base44.app address. To use your own address later, go to Dashboard → Domains and follow the connection instructions. Base44’s current docs list custom domains on Starter or higher; buying a domain is separate.

On the published app, log in, create a book and choose a template. I upload photos, move them around, add a sticker and edit text. Then I open the order screen and check the book size and cover options.

Testing the actual photo-book editor with an uploaded photo, text and a sticker. Watch this step ↗

Repeat this on your phone as well as your computer. Check that saving, reopening a project and moving between pages behave as expected. Tell Base44 exactly what fails and where it happens.

Ask the Base44 chat to connect Stripe in its test environment. Review the installation prompt, follow the sandbox setup and confirm the products and prices it creates.

A sandbox is a practice version of the payment system. Publish the updated app, open its checkout and use Stripe’s test card details. In my walkthrough, the $77 test order succeeds, appears in the app’s order history and shows up in Stripe.

The app confirms a successful test payment. This is sandbox activity, not real revenue. Watch this step ↗

Stay in test mode while you finish the product. Activate real payments only when your Stripe account, pricing and fulfillment process are ready.

I also ask Base44’s Superagent to research the reference business, find public ads and social content, and organize the sources in a Google Sheet. That gives me ideas for positioning, audiences and creative while the app is taking shape.

The Superagent’s research spreadsheet organizes marketing ideas and source links. Watch this step ↗

Try this: “Research the public marketing for this photo-book business. Find its ad-library links, social content and main selling points. Organize the sources in a sheet, then suggest three original ad angles for our product.”

I explore travel, pets, weddings and family memories. Public ad examples help generate ideas; they don’t reveal which ads are profitable. I use ChatGPT to turn the chosen ideas into visual concepts.

Here is the first storefront Base44 produced:

Before: the first functional storefront, before the visual redesign. Watch this step ↗

I take a screenshot, ask ChatGPT for three visual directions and choose a warmer photo-led concept. Then I upload that design back into Base44.

Here is the result shown at the end of the build:

After: Booksy AI’s redesigned storefront, with photo-book imagery and clear occasion categories. Watch this step ↗

The important part is that the design sits on top of a working flow. After the redesign, I go back into the app and open the editor again.

This is the foundation for a business you can now finish and test. The 25-minute video shows the build walkthrough; it is not a guarantee that every new app will be production-ready in 25 minutes.

That is what makes this exciting: you can spend your time refining a product people can actually use, instead of spending the first week setting up tools.

Try Base44 → · Watch the complete build →

Want to build alongside us? Join AI Builders for practical tutorials and a community building real apps with AI.