Your FileMaker app got you here. Let's take it further.
15+ years building FileMaker systems. Now I use AI-powered tooling to migrate them into modern web apps — in weeks, not months. Fixed price. No vendor lock-in. Your data, your code.
Not sure migration is the answer? Start with an assessment →
Jose from Solutions Cay led the migration of our group travel management system from FileMaker to a modern platform — fast, low-maintenance, and built to last.
The Problem
Rising Licensing Costs
Per-seat pricing adds up fast as your team grows. Every new hire means another license. Avg $540/user/year for Claris licensing.
Limited Portability
Your business logic lives inside a proprietary format. Inspecting, versioning, or migrating it requires specialized tools that limit your options.
Shrinking Talent Pool
Experienced FileMaker developers are increasingly hard to find. As the talent pool contracts, maintaining and extending your system gets more difficult.
Platform Limitations
Real-time collaboration, native mobile, and modern API integrations are difficult to achieve in FileMaker without significant workarounds.
Resilience Concerns
A single .fmp12 file architecture means your system has a single point of failure. Backups help, but recovery can still mean costly downtime.
Roadmap Uncertainty
Claris has publicly addressed questions about FileMaker's future. For teams planning long-term, it's worth considering what your options look like.
The Process
Export Your DDR
You send me your FileMaker Database Design Report. It's a built-in export — takes 2 minutes. This gives me your complete schema: tables, fields, relationships, scripts, layouts, value lists.
AI Drafts a Migration Plan
My custom-built migration skill analyzes your DDR and drafts a first-pass migration plan — data model, entity relationships, business logic mapping, and a modern schema ready for PostgreSQL or any database. It is a starting point for discovery, not a final specification.
Rapid App Rebuild
Using iterative AI-assisted development, I rebuild your application as a modern web app. Same business logic. Better UX. Real-time. Mobile-ready. AI-powered features you never had before — built in weeks, not months.
Data Migration & Launch
We migrate your actual data, validate everything, and cut over. Take the source code, database, and hosting credentials and run it yourself — or let us host and maintain it. Zero lock-in.
Case Study — Live Migration
From a FileMaker Solution to an AI-Powered Web Application
A FileMaker solution originally built for a furniture store, migrated to a full-stack web application with AI-powered features — as a live demonstration.
Before — FileMaker
- Desktop-only access via FileMaker Pro
- Per-seat licensing costs
- No mobile access for sales team
- Manual reporting and data entry
- Proprietary format — no portability
- Single developer dependency
After — Modern Web App
- Browser-based — works on any device
- Zero licensing fees
- Full mobile experience for field sales
- AI-powered inventory and recommendations
- Open source code — any dev can maintain
- Real-time collaboration and dashboards
The Sitting Room Day 3
— Jose (@SolutionsCay) February 19, 2026
From legacy FileMaker desktop app to AI-first web ap
No 10 gorillion MRR. No Reddit validation. No TikTok slop.
Real software for real business. pic.twitter.com/RFV6Kh2iAC
Watch the Migrations — Full Series
All episodes →GFM Business — German ERP
An 8-file German ERP migrated to a full-stack web app in one day. DDR parsing, Shadcn components, EN/DE localization, PDF export.
FM Starting Point
FM Starting Point — a FileMaker classic — converted to a full-stack web app. migrate-filemaker → prd-builder → design-builder.
Furniture Store — Part 4
Full recap of the four-part migration. DDR parsing to deployed web app, built with Claude Code.
Furniture Store — Part 3
Part 3 of the migration series.
Furniture Store — Part 2
Part 2 of the migration series.
Furniture Store — Part 1
Part 1 of the migration series.
Why Me
15+ Years in FileMaker
Building production FileMaker solutions since 2008. I know the platform inside out — the strengths, the limitations, and the details that make migrations go smoothly.
Enterprise Experience
Principal Member of Technical Staff at Oracle. Managed teams that deployed 20+ production applications in 8 months.
Custom AI Tooling
I built a Claude Code skill that reads your DDR and drafts a first-pass migration plan. Automated, repeatable, and fast.
Texas-Based. Se Habla Español.
Based in Plano, TX. I work directly with business owners — no overseas team, no account managers.
MBA + Technical Depth
MBA with Business Analytics minor. I understand your P&L, not just your schema. Every migration decision is a business decision.
No Lock-In. Ever.
You get the source code, the database, and the deployment credentials. Walk away any time with everything you paid for.
Start here
The first step is a fit review, not a migration plan. We talk through your system and decide whether there is a fit. If there is, a paid diagnostic maps the real scope before any build, and the sprint that follows is fixed-price.
A Database Design Report (DDR) is a useful input to that diagnostic, not a full specification. It shows structure, not records, runtime behavior, data quality, integrations, or the unwritten rules. The first conversation needs no file upload.