Before You Start
Three accounts to create before our first session. Takes about 15 minutes. You don't need to install any software — everything runs in your browser.
GitHub
FreeWhere your project files live. Like Google Drive for code.
- 1Go to github.com and click Sign Up
- 2Use your personal email and choose a username (pick something sensible — it'll be visible)
- 3Complete sign-up and verify your email
Claude Pro
£20/monthThe AI that writes code for you. You describe what you want, it builds it.
- 1Go to claude.ai and create an account
- 2Click Upgrade and subscribe to the Pro plan
- 3Keep your login details handy — you'll use them to sign into the coding tool
Supabase
FreeYour database. Where your app stores all its data — users, projects, tasks, everything.
- 1Go to supabase.com and click Start your project
- 2Click "Continue with GitHub" to sign up with your GitHub account (keeps things simple)
- 3Click New Project, name it "my-first-app"
- 4Set a database password and save it somewhere safe
- 5Choose London (or nearest region) and click Create new project
- 6Wait about a minute for setup to complete
Accounts We'll Set Up During the Course
Don't create these yet — we'll do them together at the right time.
- •Resend (free) — email sending service, set up in Session 2
- •DigitalOcean (~£5/month) — hosting, set up in Session 4
Checklist
Before our first session, confirm:
Monthly Cost After the Course
£20/month
~£5/month
Free
These are direct payments to the respective service providers and subject to their pricing. They are not charged by or affiliated with Zero to Builder.
Important Note About Codespaces
During the course, you'll use GitHub Codespaces — a development environment that runs in your browser. GitHub gives you 60 free hours per month. This is plenty, but remember to stop your Codespace when you're done working (don't leave it running overnight). I'll show you how in Session 1.