Some of the links below are affiliate links, which means that if you choose to make a purchase, I will earn a commission. This commission comes at no additional cost to you. I have first-hand experience using all of these tools for my own business, so I'm recommending them because I know they are useful and will help you build your business. You are not obligated to click on any of the affiliate links or purchase these products if you don't feel they will help you in any way. Thanks for reading this disclosure.
The Solopreneur Toolkit
The exact tools I use and recommend to start, grow, and automate an online business, tested across 10+ years of building Simple Startup.
🤖 AI & Automation
The tools that let one person run a whole business.
Claude
AI Assistant
My AI workhorse... it writes drafts, builds automations, and even rebuilt this website. The closest thing to hiring a team without hiring a team.
Visit Claude →Zapier
Automation
Connects your apps so work flows automatically: form fills become contacts, posts become tweets, no code required.
Visit Zapier →Buffer
Social Scheduling
Queue a week of social posts across X, Facebook, and LinkedIn in one sitting... exactly how I keep socials alive on autopilot.
Visit Buffer →📧 Email Marketing & List Building
Turn readers into subscribers, and subscribers into customers.
ActiveCampaign
Email Marketing
The email marketing and automation platform I use to run my entire list: tagging, welcome sequences, and product funnels on autopilot.
Visit ActiveCampaign →Thrive Themes
List Building
Thrive Leads powers every opt-in form on this site: popups, scroll mats, and content upgrades that actually convert readers into subscribers.
Visit Thrive Themes →CoSchedule
Content Planning
Marketing calendar that keeps blog, email, and social publishing organized in one drag-and-drop view.
Visit CoSchedule →🌐 Website, Domains & Hosting
Get online fast with a foundation that scales.
Bricks Builder
WordPress Builder
The visual builder behind this very site: fast, clean code, and full design freedom without page-builder bloat.
Visit Bricks Builder →WP Rocket
Performance
The caching plugin that keeps this site fast... set it once and your Core Web Vitals thank you.
Visit WP Rocket →Namecheap
Domains
Where I register every domain: honest pricing, free privacy protection, and a clean dashboard.
Visit Namecheap →Bluehost
Hosting
Beginner-friendly WordPress hosting with one-click installs, a solid, affordable way to get your first site live.
Visit Bluehost →ThemeForest
Themes
Thousands of professional WordPress themes and templates when you want a designed look without hiring a designer.
Visit ThemeForest →🎨 Design & Content Creation
Look professional without a design degree.
Canva
Design
Social graphics, lead magnets, ebook covers, slide decks: drag-and-drop design that looks like you hired a pro.
Visit Canva →Ulysses
Writing (Mac)
My distraction-free writing app for Mac... where every blog post and book chapter starts before it hits WordPress.
Visit Ulysses →Vellum
Book Formatting
Turns your manuscript into a beautifully formatted ebook and print book in minutes... essential if you're self-publishing.
Visit Vellum →🛒 Selling Digital Products
Turn your knowledge into revenue.
ThriveCart
Checkout & Carts
High-converting checkout pages, order bumps, and upsells for your digital products, with a one-time price instead of monthly fees.
Visit ThriveCart →Gumroad
Simple Selling
The fastest way to start selling ebooks, templates, and guides: upload, set a price, share the link.
Visit Gumroad →⚡ Productivity & Focus
Protect your time... it's the only non-renewable resource you have.
Notion
Workspace
My business command center: content calendar, product roadmaps, and SOPs all in one connected workspace.
Visit Notion →Todoist
Task Management
The task manager I trust with everything: capture fast, organize by project, and actually ship what matters each day.
Visit Todoist →Freedom
Focus
Blocks distracting apps and websites across all your devices... the single best tool I know for protecting deep work time.
Visit Freedom →Evernote
Notes & Ideas
My second brain for over a decade: capture ideas, clip research, and organize everything for your business.
Visit Evernote →Some links below are affiliate links. If you buy through them I may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. I only recommend tools I genuinely use or have used.
Want my complete startup stack?
Grab the free Startup Toolkit: every tool above plus the AI agent workflows that connect them into one automated business.