How to Use This List
We build a PHP e-commerce site for selling digital products. Each prompt builds on the previous. Run them in Claude Code in your project folder. After every 10 prompts: test thoroughly, fix any issues, then continue.
Project: "RubanShop" - digital products store (themes, plugins, templates)
Phase 1: Foundation (P1-P10)
P1 - Project initialization
> Initialize RubanShop - a PHP e-commerce site for digital products.
Create directory structure, CLAUDE.md, config files, .htaccess.
Stack: PHP 8.2, MySQL 8, Bootstrap 5.3, no frameworks.
Create all empty placeholder files with correct PHP file headers.P2-P10 (condensed)
P2: Create the complete database schema:
products, categories, users, orders, order_items,
downloads, reviews, coupons, wishlists tables.
Include all FK relationships, indexes, and seed data for 5 categories.
P3: Build includes/header.php and footer.php with responsive navbar
(logo, search bar, cart icon with count, login/register links).
P4: Build assets/css/style.css - complete stylesheet:
CSS variables, typography, card styles, buttons, responsive grid.
P5: Create config/app.php and config/db.php with environment variable support.
P6: Build the homepage (index.php):
Hero with search, featured products grid (8 products), top categories,
new arrivals, testimonials section, newsletter signup.
P7: Build the category listing page (category.php?slug=X):
Filter bar (price range, rating, sort), product grid,
pagination, category description, breadcrumb.
P8: Build the product detail page (product.php?slug=X):
Product images gallery, title/price/description, purchase button,
tabs (description, screenshots, reviews), related products.
P9: Build the search page (search.php?q=X):
Results with highlighted search term, filter by category/price/rating,
"did you mean" spelling suggestion, no results message.
P10: Create a shared functions.php:
formatPrice(), generateSlug(), getStarRating(), timeAgo(),
sanitizeInput(), redirect(), flashMessage().Phase 2: Catalog (P11-P20)
P11-P20 (condensed)
P11: Create ProductModel.php:
findAll(), findById(), findBySlug(), findByCategory(),
search(), getFeatured(), getNew(), incrementViews().
P12: Create CategoryModel.php:
findAll(), findBySlug(), getTree() (nested categories),
getWithProductCount().
P13: Add product reviews system:
reviews table, ReviewModel, review form on product page,
star rating display, average rating calculation,
admin approval required before showing.
P14: Build the wishlist feature:
Add/remove from wishlist (AJAX), wishlist page,
move to cart button, share wishlist link.
P15: Build the product comparison feature:
Add up to 4 products to compare, comparison table
showing specs side by side, sticky compare bar.
P16: Build the admin - Product Management:
List all products, Create/Edit/Delete forms,
image upload (multiple images per product),
bulk status change, CSV import.
P17: Build the admin - Category Management:
Tree view of categories (parent/child),
drag-to-reorder, add/edit/delete.
P18: Build the admin - Reviews Management:
List pending reviews, approve/reject/delete,
reply to review, bulk approve.
P19: Add product image gallery with lightbox:
Multiple images per product, thumbnail strip,
fullscreen lightbox, keyboard navigation.
P20: Add product tags and tag search:
tags table, many-to-many product_tags,
tag cloud on sidebar, click-to-filter.Phase 3: Commerce (P21-P30)
P21-P30 (condensed)
P21: Build the shopping cart (session-based):
Add/remove/update quantity, cart sidebar,
cart page with order summary, save cart for logged users.
P22: Build the checkout flow (single page):
Customer details, payment method selection,
order summary, place order button, success page.
P23: Integrate Razorpay payment:
Create order, payment form, verify payment webhook,
mark order as paid, send confirmation email.
P24: Create OrderModel.php:
create(), findById(), findByUser(), updateStatus(),
getWithItems(), generateInvoice().
P25: Build digital product delivery:
Secure download links (token-based, expiry 24h),
download limit per order, downloads page for users,
email with download link after payment.
P26: Add coupon/discount system:
coupon codes (% off, flat amount, free shipping),
apply at checkout, validate (expiry, usage limit, min order),
admin coupon management.
P27: Build the order management admin:
Order list with filters (status, date, customer),
order detail view, change status (pending/processing/delivered/refunded),
print invoice.
P28: Add invoice PDF generation:
PDF using mPDF or FPDF, company logo, order details,
download button in order history and admin.
P29: Build refund processing:
Razorpay refund API integration,
refund request form for users,
admin approve/reject/process refund.
P30: Add affiliate/referral system:
Unique referral links for users,
track referred purchases, credit commission to referrer,
affiliate dashboard showing earnings/payouts.Phase 4: Accounts (P31-P40)
P31-P40 (condensed)
P31: Build complete user authentication:
Register, login, logout, remember me,
Google OAuth (optional), email verification.
P32: Build password reset flow:
Forgot password form, secure token email,
reset password form, invalidate token on use.
P33: Build user dashboard:
Overview (orders, downloads, wishlist counts),
Recent orders table, quick links.
P34: Build user profile settings:
Edit name/email/phone/avatar,
change password (with current password verification),
notification preferences.
P35: Build order history page:
All user orders with status, filter by status/date,
re-download purchased products.
P36: Build user notification system:
In-app bell icon notifications,
email notifications (order status, new products),
notification preferences in settings.
P37: Add social login (Google):
Google OAuth 2.0, create or link account,
profile photo from Google, handle email conflicts.
P38: Build subscription / membership system:
Monthly/yearly plans,
Razorpay subscriptions, plan benefits (discount, early access),
upgrade/downgrade/cancel.
P39: Add two-factor authentication (2FA):
TOTP app-based (Google Authenticator),
QR code setup, backup codes,
enforce 2FA for admin users.
P40: Build user admin panel:
List all users, filter/search,
view user profile and orders,
ban/unban user, manually assign role/plan.Phase 5: Production (P41-P50)
P41-P50 (condensed)
P41: SEO meta tags + sitemap:
Dynamic meta per page, Open Graph, Twitter Card,
XML sitemap for all pages/products, robots.txt.
P42: Performance optimization:
Image lazy loading, CSS/JS minification,
DB query caching with file cache or Redis,
proper HTTP cache headers.
P43: Security hardening:
CSRF on all forms, rate limiting on login/contact,
.htaccess deny access to sensitive dirs,
Content Security Policy headers.
P44: Add blog/content marketing:
Blog index + single post pages,
categories, tags, related posts,
admin blog editor with image upload.
P45: Add live search (AJAX):
Instant search results as user types,
results show product name/image/price,
keyboard navigation, click to go to product.
P46: Add email marketing integration:
Mailchimp or SendGrid,
newsletter signup with double opt-in,
automated welcome email,
abandoned cart email.
P47: Build analytics dashboard (admin):
Daily/weekly/monthly revenue chart,
top selling products, conversion rate,
user registrations over time.
P48: Add error handling and logging:
Custom 404 and 500 pages,
log all PHP errors to /storage/logs/error.log,
email admin on critical errors.
P49: Write all tests:
PHPUnit for all models and services,
test DB transactions, test email sending (mock),
test payment flow (mock Razorpay).
P50: Deployment checklist prompt:
"Create a deployment checklist and script for deploying
to a Linux server: git pull, composer install,
DB migration, clear cache, set permissions,
enable maintenance mode during deploy."
Adapt to your project type
This series uses e-commerce as the example. For an agency site, replace Phase 3 (Commerce) with a portfolio/case studies section. For a SaaS app, replace it with subscription billing and feature gating. For a blog, replace it with content management. The structure (Foundation, Catalog, Core Feature, Accounts, Production) applies to every web project.