Sample app
SAM-pul ap
A complete, working application that demonstrates how to use a product or API for a specific use case.
A sample app is a complete, working application that demonstrates your product in a realistic context. Unlike code snippets (which show one API call), a sample app shows the full picture: authentication, error handling, data flow, and UI.
Developers learn by reading and modifying existing code. A sample app gives them a starting point that works out of the box. They clone the repo, run it locally, and then modify it for their needs. This is faster than building from scratch and teaches patterns the documentation might not cover.
The best sample apps are realistic but not complex. They demonstrate the key features without burying them in boilerplate. They use popular frameworks (React, Express, Django) that most developers are familiar with. And they are maintained: code that does not run is worse than no code at all.
Examples
A company publishes sample apps for common use cases.
The GitHub org has 10 sample apps: a Next.js starter, a Python CLI, a React Native mobile app, and more. Each has a README with setup instructions, environment variable configuration, and a one-command deploy option. Together they cover the most common developer use cases.
A sample app accelerates a developer's evaluation.
A developer evaluating the product clones the Next.js sample app, runs npm install and npm run dev, and has a working app in 3 minutes. They spend the next 30 minutes modifying it to test their specific requirements. Without the sample app, the evaluation would take 3 hours.
A sample app reveals a DX issue.
While building a sample app, the DevRel team discovers that the authentication flow requires 8 API calls. They report this to engineering. The team builds a helper function that reduces it to 2 calls. The sample app drove a product improvement.
In practice
Read more on the blog
Frequently asked questions
How many sample apps should a developer platform have?
Enough to cover the most common frameworks and use cases your developers work with. A typical set: 3-5 sample apps covering the top languages/frameworks, each demonstrating the most important product features. Quality over quantity.
How do you keep sample apps up to date?
Automated CI that builds and tests sample apps on every product release. If a sample app breaks, the team gets an alert. Treat sample apps like production code: they need tests, CI, and maintenance. Broken sample apps erode developer trust.
Related terms
A step-by-step guide that teaches a developer how to accomplish a specific task or build a specific project using a product.
A concise, step-by-step guide that gets a developer from zero to a working implementation in the shortest time possible.
A short, focused snippet of code that demonstrates how to use a specific API endpoint, SDK method, or product feature.
Written resources that explain how to use a product, including guides, tutorials, API references, and troubleshooting information.
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