> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://vlyai-1c28d863.mintlify.site/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Templates

> Pre-built starting points for new projects — SaaS, marketplace, dashboard, chat, blog. Fork and customize.

Don't always start from a blank prompt. Templates give you a working scaffold for the most common app shapes; you fork and customize from there.

## Browse templates

Open **vly.ai/templates** or, when creating a new project, select "Start from template" instead of "Start from prompt".

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Multi-tenant SaaS" icon="building">
    Workspaces, teams, roles, billing. The base for B2B apps.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Marketplace" icon="shopping-cart">
    Two-sided with Stripe Connect. Listings, search, purchases.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Dashboard" icon="layout-dashboard">
    Charts, filters, time ranges. Real-time updates.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Real-time chat" icon="message-square-text">
    Channels, threads, presence, attachments.
  </Card>

  <Card title="AI chatbot" icon="message-circle">
    Streaming, history, tool calling.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Notes app" icon="notebook-pen">
    Rich-text notes, tags, search.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Blog" icon="newspaper">
    Posts, categories, author profiles, RSS.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Internal tool starter" icon="briefcase">
    Auth, layouts, basic CRUD scaffolding.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Forking a template

<Steps>
  <Step title="Pick a template">
    Click "Use this template".
  </Step>

  <Step title="Name your project">
    A new project is created with the template's code, ready to deploy.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Customize by prompt">
    Iterate as usual: "Change the brand color to teal", "Add a settings page", etc.
  </Step>
</Steps>

The template becomes your project. Updates to the template don't auto-apply (that would overwrite your customizations); pull updates manually if needed.

## When to use a template vs. start from prompt

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="✅ Use a template when…" icon="check-circle">
    Your app is close to a known shape (SaaS, marketplace, dashboard) and you want a 30-minute head start on the foundation.
  </Card>

  <Card title="✅ Start from prompt when…" icon="check-circle">
    Your app is unusual or you want full control over every architectural decision from the start.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

In practice: **most users start from a template for shippable work**; **start from prompt for exploration and learning**.

## Community templates

The [vly.ai/templates](https://vly.ai/templates) gallery includes both first-party templates (maintained by vly) and community-submitted ones. Submit your own via the gallery — popular ones earn featured placement.

## Related

<CardGroup cols={3}>
  <Card title="Recipes" icon="utensils-crossed" href="/recipes/overview">
    Step-by-step builds with full prompts — adjacent to templates.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Cross-project referencing" icon="link" href="/building/cross-project-referencing">
    Pull a component from one of your projects into another.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Knowledge base" icon="book" href="/building/knowledge-base">
    Long-lived reference material.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>


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