I love to reverse-engineer stuff, so I started looking into tech stacks of different websites. I thought to myself - which country has the most advanced tech people? Sweden!
Well... I actually said Nordic countries, but I just chose Sweden later on because I like them as a whole.

I researched the current technology stack of three major Swedish price comparison websites: Prisjakt.nu, PriceRunner.se, and Hunted.se. Below I break down each site's front-end and back-end technologies, programming languages, and infrastructure (hosting, CDNs, analytics, third-party services), focusing only on their current stack.

Prisjakt.nu

Prisjakt has a modern, microservices-driven architecture behind its consumer-facing site. The front-end appears to be built as a single-page application using modern JavaScript (likely React or a similar framework), and it pulls data via APIs. Notably, Prisjakt is part of the Schibsted group, and it integrates some shared services (like single sign-on). Some fun findings: they use a headless CMS and even run their own analytics pipeline. Key tech highlights for Prisjakt include:

  • Front-End: A dynamic JavaScript front-end, likely built with a component-based framework (the Prisjakt documentation site uses Docusaurus, a React-based generator​, hinting that React/TypeScript may be used on the main site as well). The interface is highly dynamic and SPA-like, suggesting heavy use of AJAX/JSON APIs rather than server-rendered pages.
  • Back-End: A microservice back-end on cloud infrastructure. Prisjakt's team uses Elasticsearch for powering product search​. They ingest product data into Elasticsearch and expose it via a Search API. The backend services are written in a mix of languages -- job postings mention Java, TypeScript/JavaScript, and Python, with data streaming via Kafka and Apache Flink. This implies an event-driven architecture (for real-time price updates, etc.). They prefer Google Cloud Platform (GCP) for hosting​, so their services likely run on GCP (potentially using Kubernetes or App Engine).
  • Infrastructure & DevOps: Content is delivered efficiently using a CDN (Fastly) to speed up assets​. The site is part of Schibsted, so user login goes through Schibsted's central OAuth system. They also use Okta on certain subdomains for authentication flows. Deployment is likely containerized (given the microservice approach), and the tech team practices agile DevOps (frequent iterations, as noted in their engineering culture).
  • Analytics & Third-Party: Prisjakt utilizes both standard analytics and custom solutions. It has Google Analytics for web metrics and Facebook Pixel for ad/retargeting analytics​, but interestingly also runs Snowplow -- an open-source event analytics pipeline - on a dedicated subdomain. This indicates a sophisticated in-house analytics setup beyond just Google's tools. They employ tracking for conversions (e.g., Google Ads conversion tags) and likely use Tag Manager to manage scripts. For error monitoring, the presence of Sentry was noted by tracker data (suggesting they log front-end errors). Their tech stack also includes Sanity.io as a headless CMS for managing content​ (e.g., editorial content or product guides). Payment integration isn't core to a comparison site, but BuiltWith data shows Stripe is detected​, possibly used for some internal billing or premium listings. Overall, Prisjakt's stack is quite cutting-edge, leveraging cloud, big data search, and custom analytics to deliver a fast comparison service.

PriceRunner.se

PriceRunner (recently acquired by Klarna) runs a robust stack built on cloud services and a headless CMS. The site is designed for high performance and ad monetization. Notably, PriceRunner's front-end is React-based with modern tooling, and it uses a headless CMS for content. Some interesting tech choices here: they use Contentful for content management and a CSS-in-JS library (Emotion) in their front-end. Key points for PriceRunner's stack:

  • Front-End: The front-end is built with React (indicated by their use of Emotion, a popular CSS-in-JS library for React​. The site likely uses a React framework (possibly Next.js for server-side rendering) to deliver an app-like experience. We saw that if you visit without JavaScript, the site prompts for enabling JS -- indicating a heavy client-side app. They probably pre-render critical parts for SEO, then hydrate on the client. All UI styling is handled in JavaScript (Emotion), which is a modern approach. This suggests the development team emphasizes a responsive, interactive UI.
  • Back-End: PriceRunner's backend runs on Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud infrastructure​. They use Contentful as a headless CMS​ to manage site content (e.g., buying guides, product descriptions beyond raw data). Business logic likely runs in microservices or serverless functions on AWS. The exact languages aren't publicly stated, but given the use of Node-friendly tools (like Contentful and Emotion), they likely use Node.js/TypeScript on the backend. (Historically some parts might be .NET or Java, but current stack leans towards Node/JS). The site's APIs aggregate product info, prices, and reviews from their databases for the React front-end.
  • Infrastructure: PriceRunner uses Amazon CloudFront as its CDN​ to accelerate content delivery globally. (This aligns with their AWS hosting - CloudFront caches their images, scripts, etc., for faster loads.) They also appear to have a web application firewall or bot protection -- when accessing without JS, a bot challenge appears, possibly via Cloudflare or a similar service (to filter scrapers). So they likely layer Cloudflare for security while using CloudFront for main CDN needs. Deployment is cloud-native, and being under Klarna's umbrella might involve integration with Klarna's infrastructure (for example, PriceRunner's user reviews or accounts might tie into Klarna services in the future).
  • Analytics & Third-Party: PriceRunner integrates a lot of marketing and analytics tech. They use Google Analytics for traffic stats and Google Conversion Tracking for measuring ads/SEM performance​. Advertising is a big part of their model: the site runs Google Ad Manager (formerly DFP) and Google AdSense to serve ads​. This means ad tags and bidding scripts are present. They also utilize affiliate marketing networks -- notably Tradedoubler -- to track outbound clicks to retailers (so that they earn commission on sales)​. For user acquisition and engagement, they have Facebook and Twitter integrations (likely the Facebook Pixel and maybe social login or share features)​. The presence of Contentful also implies they might run an image CDN or use Contentful's image processing for product photos. Overall, PriceRunner's stack is cloud-centric and marketing-friendly: a React front-end powered by AWS, with a focus on fast content delivery and monetization via ad/affiliate tech.

Hunted.se

Hunted.se is a newer Swedish price comparison site (a fresh competitor in the space), and detailed public data on its tech stack is limited. However, based on observations and industry best practices, Hunted appears to use a lean, modern web stack to quickly deliver price data to users. Being a new site, it likely embraces cloud services and out-of-the-box solutions to accelerate development. Here's what can be inferred about Hunted's tech setup:

  • Front-End: Hunted.se's front-end is presumably built with a modern JavaScript framework (likely React or possibly Vue). The site is snappy and dynamic, which suggests an SPA or heavily client-rendered pages. It uses the newer JS framework Astro as well, ensuring both good SEO and app-like interactivity. As a newer site, it probably uses TypeScript for type-safe development. The styling could be handled by a component library or styled-components (common in React projects). In short, the front-end is cutting-edge JavaScript, giving users a smooth experience.
  • Back-End: The backend likely consists of cloud-hosted services. Hunted probably aggregates product data via scheduled crawlers or merchant feeds. This logic could be written in Python or Node.js - popular choices for scraping and API development. The site might leverage a relational database or
  • Infrastructure & Services: Hunted likely hosts on the cloud with a CDN in front. It could be using Cloudflare for DNS/CDN and security (a very common choice for new sites to get HTTPS and caching easily), or it might use Vercel/Netlify if the site is deployed as a Jamstack app. Either way, a CDN ensures that content (images, scripts) loads quickly across Sweden. For email or user analytics, they might use services like Google Analytics to track visitors (almost a given for any public-facing site). As a new entrant, they might not run heavy third-party ad networks yet, but will use affiliate links to earn revenue - possibly integrating with the same affiliate networks (like Tradedoubler or Adtraction) to track clicks to retailers. They also likely include a cookie consent/CMP solution to comply with GDPR, as seen on most EU sites. In short, Hunted's infrastructure is cloud-first and scalable: host static assets on a CDN, run servers without managing hardware, and plug in third-party tools for any non-core functionality.

Each of these sites shows a slightly different approach: Prisjakt leverages custom infrastructure and in-house analytics (even running Snowplow) to maintain control, PriceRunner leans on big-cloud services and a polished React experience with heavy marketing integrations, and Hunted (as the newcomer) likely uses a nimble cloud-stack with modern JavaScript to get up and running quickly. It's fascinating to see technologies like headless CMS (Sanity, Contentful), CDNs (Fastly, CloudFront), and big-data search (Elasticsearch) in action across these competitors. Despite all tackling the same core task -- helping users compare prices - their tech stacks reflect their company sizes and philosophies, from Prisjakt's custom-built prowess to Hunted's startup agility.