Project handoff portals for freelance developers

The idea

The last deliverable of most freelance projects is a chaotic Google Drive folder and a WeTransfer link full of passwords in a text file. It undercuts an otherwise professional engagement at the exact moment the client decides what the work was worth, and it guarantees months of what is the FTP password emails that the freelancer answers for free.

Generic client portals like Copilot are built for ongoing service relationships, not for the specific artefact a dev handoff is: credentials that need real encryption, domains and certificates that expire on dates someone must watch, repos, deploy notes and walkthrough videos. The renewal reminders are the quiet wedge, because every reminder email is a rehiring prompt with the freelancer’s name on it.

Who pays

The buyer is the freelancer or micro-agency, not the client: 15 to 39 dollars a month, self-serve, justified as part of looking expensive. A polished handoff is invoice armour. Distribution runs through freelance-dev communities, web-agency Facebook and Slack groups, and the free tier’s branded footer on every portal, which puts the product in front of exactly the clients who hire other freelancers.

MVP scope

• Structured handoff template covering credentials, hosting, repos, videos and contacts
• Client-side encrypted credentials vault with passphrase decryption and a reveal log
• Branded public portal with magic-link client access
• Renewal-date reminders emailed to the client at 30 and 7 days, cc the freelancer
• Loom/YouTube embeds plus direct video upload
• Skip for v1: client messaging or comments, invoicing, multi-seat agency roles, portal analytics

Build Handover, a web app where freelance developers create branded handoff portals for finished client projects. Stack: Next.js (App Router), Supabase (Postgres, auth, storage), Stripe for subscriptions.

Core flow: the freelancer signs in (magic-link auth), creates a project, and fills a structured handoff template with sections: overview, credentials vault, hosting and domains, repo and deploy notes, walkthrough videos, and contacts. Publishing generates a portal at a clean URL (handover.app/p/slug, custom domain on the paid tier) with the freelancer's logo and accent colour. The client accesses it via their own magic link, no password to lose.

Credentials vault: secrets are encrypted client-side with a project passphrase before hitting Supabase, so the server never stores plaintext; the client enters the passphrase (shared out of band) to decrypt in the browser. Show a reveal log so the freelancer sees when credentials were viewed.

Renewal tracking: each domain, SSL cert or subscription entry has a renewal date; automated emails go to the client at 30 and 7 days out, cc-ing the freelancer, positioning the freelancer as the person to rehire for the renewal work.

Videos: paste Loom or YouTube embeds; also allow direct MP4 upload to Supabase storage capped at 500 MB per project.

Pages: dashboard of projects, portal editor with live preview, the public portal, account and billing.

Pricing: free for one active portal with Handover branding, 19 dollars a month for unlimited portals, custom domain and white label.