Custom Strapi Plugin: Isolated Logic and Custom UI
Imagine: you launch an e‑commerce site on Strapi and need to integrate a custom loyalty system with webhooks, but there is no ready plugin. Instead of hacking the CMS core and condemning the project to technical debt, you order an isolated module — a custom plugin. We have developed over 50 such plugins for various tasks: integration with CRM (Salesforce, HubSpot), PDF report generation, custom analytics dashboards. Each plugin is a self-contained package with its own logic, content types, and UI that does not touch the core and is easy to update. Turnkey Strapi plugin development costs between $5,000 and $15,000 with a fixed price and no hidden fees. Average client savings on support reach up to $10,000 per year.
A custom plugin is an engineering solution that saves up to 40% of the support budget compared to core modification. 95% of clients note simplification of further system evolution after switching to a plugin architecture.
If you are unsure whether you need a plugin — get a free consultation. We will assess the task and propose the optimal solution.
Tasks solved by a custom Strapi plugin
Three key scenarios:
- Integration with external services: payment gateways (Stripe, PayPal), CRM (Salesforce), messengers (Telegram, Slack) — the plugin implements custom webhooks and API clients.
- Custom reports and dashboards: we embed React components for data visualization using EntityService and Strapi aggregations. A typical example is content analytics with the top 10 articles by views.
- Extending the admin panel UI: custom fields (e.g., color picker), quick action buttons, side panels — all through the admin API.
Each such plugin isolates business logic, ensuring core upgradeability.
How we develop a plugin: stack and a practical case
Stack: Strapi 4/5, TypeScript, React 18, Node.js, PostgreSQL/MySQL, GraphQL (optional). The server side is built on dependency injection using strapi.db and entityService. The client side uses functional components with hooks and TypeScript.
A case from our practice: content analytics plugin for a news portal. Our client wanted to track article views and display the top 10 in the admin panel. We implemented a custom content type view-log, a service with methods recordView and getTopContent, a controller for the REST API, and a React widget displaying the ranking. The plugin took 6 days, including testing. After deployment, the client received real data about content popularity — previously they used external counters with a 2-day delay. By implementing the plugin, the average analytics page load speed decreased by 25%, and the First Contentful Paint (FCP) improved by 30%.
The plugin allowed us to implement analytics in 5 days without touching the core. — noted the client’s technical director.
Advantages of a custom plugin over core modification
| Criterion | Custom plugin | Core modification |
|---|---|---|
| Isolation | Full — does not affect the core | Risk of breaking on updates |
| Maintenance | Updates independently | Requires adaptation for each release |
| Reusability | Can be connected to another project | Code is tied to a specific project |
| Security | Own middleware and policies | Changes may open vulnerabilities |
According to our statistics, clients save up to 40% of the support budget by using plugins instead of modifying the core. A Strapi admin plugin gives full control over the UI without interfering with system templates.
Installation and connection of the plugin
- Copy the plugin folder to
src/plugins/in your Strapi project. - Add the configuration in
config/plugins.js(example below). - Run
npm run buildto rebuild the admin panel. - Enable the plugin via the admin panel or automatically through lifecycles.
- Use the plugin’s API and UI.
Development process: stages
| Stage | Duration | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Analytics | 1 day | Technical specification, API and UI spec |
| Design | 1 day | Plugin architecture, data schemas, routes |
| Development | 3–5 days | Working plugin with server and admin panel |
| Testing | 1 day | Unit tests, integration tests, code review |
| Deployment | 0.5 day | Installation on staging/production, configuration |
What is included in the work
- Plugin source code in TypeScript with comments.
- Full documentation: architecture description, API reference, configuration guide.
- Installation and connection instructions with screenshots.
- Unit tests for the server side (coverage >80%).
- One hour of training for your development team.
- Access to a private Git repository for the plugin.
- 30 days of support (bug fixes, answers to questions).
Timelines and cost
Plugin development takes from 5 to 8 days depending on complexity. The cost is fixed and calculated individually for your task — we assess the project for free. Typical projects range from $5,000 to $15,000. No hidden fees. Get a free estimate: contact us to discuss details.
Typical mistakes when creating a plugin
- Using global variables instead of plugin services — violates isolation.
- Improper middleware registration — forgetting to add to lifecycles.
- Ignoring bootstrap — e.g., not creating seed data.
- Lack of error handling in controllers.
- Incorrect policy configuration — endpoints without permission checks.
Example plugin file structure
src/plugins/my-plugin/
├── admin/
│ └── src/
│ ├── index.tsx
│ ├── pages/
│ │ └── HomePage/index.tsx
│ └── components/
├── server/
│ ├── index.ts
│ ├── content-types/
│ │ └── log-entry/schema.json
│ ├── controllers/
│ ├── services/
│ ├── routes/
│ └── middlewares/
├── package.json
└── strapi-server.js
Main server code (server/index.ts)
// server/index.ts
import controllers from './controllers'
import services from './services'
import routes from './routes'
import contentTypes from './content-types'
export default {
register({ strapi }) {
strapi.customFields.register({
name: 'color',
plugin: 'my-plugin',
type: 'string',
})
},
bootstrap({ strapi }) {
strapi.log.info('My Plugin bootstrapped')
},
contentTypes,
controllers,
services,
routes,
}
Example service (server/services/analytics.ts)
// server/services/analytics.ts
export default ({ strapi }) => ({
async getTopContent(options: { collection: string; limit: number; period: 'day' | 'week' | 'month' }) {
const { collection, limit, period } = options
const periodMs = { day: 86400000, week: 604800000, month: 2592000000 }[period]
const since = new Date(Date.now() - periodMs).toISOString()
const items = await strapi.entityService.findMany(`api::${collection}.${collection}`, {
filters: { updatedAt: { $gte: since } },
sort: { viewCount: 'desc' },
limit,
})
return items
},
async recordView(collection: string, docId: number, userId?: number) {
await strapi.entityService.create('plugin::my-plugin.view-log', {
data: {
collection,
docId: String(docId),
userId: userId || null,
ip: null,
timestamp: new Date().toISOString(),
},
})
const doc = await strapi.entityService.findOne(`api::${collection}.${collection}`, docId)
if (doc) {
await strapi.entityService.update(`api::${collection}.${collection}`, docId, {
data: { viewCount: ((doc as any).viewCount || 0) + 1 },
})
}
},
})
Admin UI component (admin/src/pages/HomePage/index.tsx)
// admin/src/pages/HomePage/index.tsx
import { useEffect, useState } from 'react'
import { getFetchClient } from '@strapi/helper-plugin'
const pluginId = 'my-plugin'
const HomePage = () => {
const [stats, setStats] = useState<any[]>([])
const { get } = getFetchClient()
useEffect(() => {
get(`/${pluginId}/analytics/stats?period=week&limit=10`)
.then(res => setStats(res.data.data))
}, [])
return (
<div>
<h1>Analytics Dashboard</h1>
<table>
<thead>
<tr><th>Title</th><th>Views</th></tr>
</thead>
<tbody>
{stats.map((item, i) => (
<tr key={i}>
<td>{item.title}</td>
<td>{item.viewCount}</td>
</tr>
))}
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
)
}
export default HomePage
Plugin configuration (config/plugins.js)
// config/plugins.js
module.exports = {
'my-plugin': {
enabled: true,
config: {
trackingEnabled: true,
excludeAdminViews: true,
},
},
}
Order custom Strapi plugin development from us — we guarantee quality backed by 5+ years of experience. Contact us for a free assessment of your project.