Helix

Transform your ideas into full-stack intelligent apps and publish with a single click

What is Helix?

Helix is an open-source AI powered website builder that lets anyone from solo makers to large teams ship immersive, performant and smoother web experiences in minutes..

Why Helix?

Most website builder today are either closed-source, or build bad designs. Helix is different:

• ✅ Open-Source – No hidden agendas, fully transparent.
• 🦾 AI Driven - Build your product with Agents & LLMs.
• 🔒 Data Privacy First – Helix does not track, collect, or sell your data in any way.
• ⚙️ Self-Hosting Freedom – Run your own website builder with ease.
• 🚀 Developer-Friendly – Built with extensibility and integrations in mind.

Tech Stack

Helix is built with modern and reliable technologies:

• Frontend: Next.js, React, TypeScript, TailwindCSS, Shadcn UI
• Backend: Node.js, Prisma ORM
• Database: PostgreSQL
• Authentication: Better Auth, Google OAuth

Getting Started

Prerequisites

Required Versions:

• Node.js (v18 or higher)
• npm (v10 or higher)
• Docker (v20 or higher)

Before running the application, you'll need to configure environment variables. For more details on environment variables, see the Environment Variables section.

Setup Options

1. Clone and Install

   # Clone the repository
   git clone https://github.com/akashwarrior/helix.git
   cd helix
   
   # Install dependencies
   npm install
   
   # Start database locally
   docker run -d 
    --name helix-db 
    -e POSTGRES_USER=postgres 
    -e POSTGRES_PASSWORD=mysecretpassword 
    -e POSTGRES_DB=helix 
    -p 5432:5432 postgres

2. Set Up Environment

   • Run npm run env to setup your environment variables
   • Start the database with the provided setup
   • Initialize the database: npm run db:migrate --dev

3. Start the App

   npm run dev

4. Open in Browser

   Visit http://localhost:3000

Environment Setup

1. Better Auth Setup

   • Open the .env file and change the BETTER_AUTH_SECRET to a random string. (Use openssl rand -hex 32 to generate a 32 character string)

     BETTER_AUTH_SECRET=your_secret_key

2. Google OAuth Setup

   • Go to Google Cloud Console

   • Create a new project

   • Enable the Google OAuth2 API

   • Create OAuth 2.0 credentials (Web application type)

   • Add authorized redirect URIs:

     • Development:
       • http://localhost:3000/api/auth/callback/google
     • Production:
       • https://your-production-url/api/auth/callback/google

   • Add to .env:

     GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID=your_client_id
     GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET=your_client_secret

   • Add yourself as a test user:

     • Go to Audience
     • Under 'Test users' click 'Add Users'
     • Add your email and click 'Save'

Warning

The authorized redirect URIs in Google Cloud Console must match exactly what you configure in the .env, including the protocol (http/https), domain, and path.

Environment Variables

Run npm run env to setup your environment variables. It will copy the .env.example file to .env and fill in the variables for you.

Database Setup

Helix uses PostgreSQL for storing data. Here's how to set it up:

1. Start the Database

   Run this command to start a local PostgreSQL instance:

   docker run -d 
    --name helix-db 
    -e POSTGRES_USER=postgres 
    -e POSTGRES_PASSWORD=mysecretpassword 
    -e POSTGRES_DB=helix 
    -p 5432:5432 postgres

   This creates a database with:

   • Name: helix
   • Username: postgres
   • Password: mysecretpassword
   • Port: 5432

2. Set Up Database Connection

   Make sure your database connection string is in .env file.

   For local development use:

   DATABASE_URL="postgresql://postgres:mysecretpassword@localhost:5432/helix"
   

3. Database Commands

   • Create migration files (after schema changes):

     npm run db:generate

   • Apply migrations:

     npm run db:migrate

   • View database content:

     npm run db:studio