Monolith
Definition
A software architecture where all components of an application are built and deployed as a single unified unit, as opposed to microservices where components are deployed independently.
Why it matters
Monoliths are simpler to develop, test, and deploy in the early stages of a product. The push toward microservices before a product is proven adds enormous complexity without equivalent benefit. Most successful products start as monoliths.
Example
A founder builds her SaaS product as a single Next.js monolith application connecting to one database. As the product grows to 5,000 users, it performs perfectly well. Splitting it into microservices would have added months of engineering complexity with no user-facing benefit at that scale.
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