FAQ
short answers, with links to the details.
Questions buyers ask before and after installing Kiln. Every answer comes from the pages of this guide.
01General
Does Kiln work without an AI key?
Yes. Without a key, sites are built as structured drafts from the brief and the page presets, at no cost. Templates also need no key. See Drafts without AI.
Are AI, Stripe, Cloudflare, Resend or Pexels accounts included?
No. You bring every key, and each provider bills your own account directly. Kiln adds no fee of its own. See Costs.
Which AI providers work?
Anthropic Claude (default claude-opus-5-5), OpenAI, OpenRouter, and any OpenAI-compatible endpoint such as Gemini, Groq, Mistral or a local Ollama. The model must support JSON-schema output. See Providers and models.
Do I need a database server?
No. Kiln keeps its data in two SQLite files and a folder of images in data/.
Does it run on Windows?
Use WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux) with Ubuntu, install Node.js inside it and follow the Linux steps. Native Windows (without WSL) is not supported.
Can it run on serverless hosting?
Kiln is a long-running Node.js process with SQLite files and images on disk, so it needs a server with a persistent disk. The sites it builds can be deployed to Cloudflare or exported as static files.
02Clients and sites
Can my clients edit their own sites?
Yes, with the client role: texts and images of existing sections only. The server refuses any other change. See Roles.
Does a client need an account to approve a site?
No. Send a review link; the client clicks through the site and approves it or asks for changes. See Review links.
Can a site leave Kiln?
Yes, when the plan allows code export: download it as static HTML or as an Astro project. The forms keep posting to your Kiln server. See Export.
Will the AI invent testimonials or prices?
It is instructed not to. Where a section needs a real fact, it writes a placeholder such as [price], which the Checks tab flags as an error. Kiln does not block publishing, so check before you publish. See The copy rules.
Where can published sites live?
On your server (a sites domain or /s/<site>/), on client domains after a DNS check, or in your own Cloudflare account. See Hosting sites and Cloudflare.
03Operator
I lost the console owner's password or authenticator.
Run node dist/src/server/recover-owner.js owner@your-agency.com on the server (add --reset-2fa to remove two-factor). See Troubleshooting.
What happens if I lose ADMIN_SECRET_KEY?
The saved API keys cannot be decrypted. Sites, accounts and settings stay intact. Put a new key in .env, restart and enter every key again. See If you lose ADMIN_SECRET_KEY.
Do I have to sell plans through Stripe?
No. Billing is optional. With it off, you assign plans and credits by hand on the console's Workspaces page. See Without Stripe.
Can I change the look without code?
Name, tagline, logo, accent colour, badge, sign-up and more are console settings. The builder's layout and texts need a code change and a rebuild. See Customization.