How to launch your dream SaaS with $0 investments

<span class="blog_big-paragraph">Being an independent founder, you may be in the know that when launching a new SaaS, a person's purpose is to make it the cheapest way possible. Given the many options that are now on the market, it is very difficult to select the service that will suit your budget perfectly well.</span>

In this article, we will look at all the services offered by a founder, which can give you certain assistance in saving a big sum of money when launching SaaS.

When you create a SaaS, It is important to break its components into easily manageable parts that are less in size. This includes front-end hosting, server infrastructure, authentication and database, analytics, customer support, and some security measures such as Captcha.

We will take a detailed look at each of these components and analyze the services that will help you run SaaS without any even the slightest money investment.

TL/DR

1. For front-end hosting, apply Cloudflare Pages to use its unlimited bandwidth and a free plan for the best of your work.
2. For back-end infrastructure, try Digital Ocean and take advantage of a free 2-month $200 credit in order to begin your work.
3. For databases and authentication, select Supabase, but be aware of the free tier restriction period.
4. For customer support, apply Crisp to ensure the best experience process for those who will use it.
5. For more convenient analytics, choose Plausible over Google Analytics.
6. For a free and easy integration of a security solution, turn to hCaptcha.
7. For a more flexible solution with a good price, use Self-host with Coolify.
8. For creating your brand and identity, apply Namelix in order to save both money and time resources.

Front-end Hosting: Cloudflare Pages

It's quite practical for any developer to know that Cloudflare Pages is the perfect platform if you want to host a certain client-side application.

Since there is a free plan with an unlimited bandwidth, which will undoubtedly save you a considerable sum of money when time for monthly bills comes. This platform for front-end is secure and provides good scalability, which, in turn, gives unlimited space for creativity of indie makers. 

Cloudflare Pages offers a free plan which contains such features as custom domains, deployment (CI/CD) pipelines, continuous integration and SSL encryption.

Back-end Infrastructure: Digital Ocean

A platform with the name that speaks for itself – Digital Ocean – seems to be a widely spread choice with independent server infrastructure developers everywhere.

Frankly speaking, you save a lot if you rent a Linux VM (virtual machine) or "dropper" with them. No other cloud providers make an offer that is even half as good.

At first sight it may look like setting up a droplet is an unachievable task, but you may choose between a plenty of guides available online to give you a hand in the process. What is even more attractive, there is a free two-month loan of $200, which gives you a chance to see how DigitalOcean works and make your own conclusions without paying money.

Database and Authentication: Supabase

The next platform, Supabase, is a PostgreSQL-based database that operates as a service and provides a free tier, which makes it an ideal solution for running SaaS.

Supabase can easily be integrated into an app as it has a user-friendly interface that is quite simple for using. Such features as authentication and authorization, as well as real-time data synchronization are a part of the free tier, making it truly useful for you.

But bear in mind that in case you need a NoSQL database, you'd better search for a different, more suitable solution.

Customer Support: Crisp

Speaking of customer support platforms, I`d call Crisp a reasonable solution since there is a free tier right for timing and launching a SaaS.

This platform offers a smooth support service for the users of your app and the integration process is rather simple as it needs only one line of code to get it into.

Such features as website analytics, a message box and a dashboard that be adjusted to your requirements are a few of its advantages.

Analytics: Google Analytics vs. Plausible

The platform that is the first option that comes to mind when we deal with analytics, is, surely, Google Analytics. But try to widen your horizons and have a closer look at Plausible. It features a really user-friendly interface that has won the hearts of many indie developers.

The price is just $10, but the range of features includes referrers, bounce rates and page views. So, this platform is an ideal version for those who search for a simple solution that is easy to use.

Captcha: hCaptcha

Can you imagine creating your app without a captcha? Hardly.

A captcha data verification solution that provides reliable protection, is free and can easily be integrated into your app is hCaptcha.

You may have heard of reCaptcha, which is well-known nowadays, but hCaptcha is no way worse in terms of security as well as the price options. Spam and abuse are effectively prevented when you integrate it into your app.

Self-hosting: Coolify

In case self-hosting is your favorite option, go for Coolify.

If you do, all your projects and resources will effectively be managed from just one dashboard on this free platform with an open source. Besides, such tasks as CI/CDwill be automated, which is one more advantage.

Coolify copies the capabilities of Vercel/Heroku in a much less expensive way, providing you with an opportunity to be as flexible as you wish and customize your solutions.

One of Coolify`s big pluses is that you can scale up your projects, starting with the simplest and going up to more complex solutions, even load-balancing.

Name, Brand, Colors: Namelix

I have no doubt you`ve already heard of Namelix as a cool resource for branding, but be sure to give it a try.

It`s advantages include such options as finding a name, creating your brand identity, as well as choosing your SaaS colors.

So, judge for yourself: it saves your time as it takes minutes to get started, and it saves your money as it has everything you need for branding without a need to search for additional features. With Namelix, the branding process has turned into an enjoyable experience!

The Bottom Line: Keep Pushing Forward

Studying the alternatives and careful planning lie at the heart of launching your SaaS without any investment.

Not many people realize that you can really save a considerable amount of time and a lot of money if you select your app components wisely.

The platforms and services I`ve presented to you are reliable solutions that will make your app solid and won't empty your wallet. But certain requirements may still need some money, that can't be avoided, but still saving is obvious.

There's one more thing, Gartner has brought good news: the number of successful solo founders has increased significantly while launching and developing SaaS projects. As its report shows, the global SaaS market will get as big as $232 billion by 2025, growing at a CAGR of 18.3%. In addition, Statista has shown that 78% of small businesses apply SaaS solutions to their work, making it about 10-15 SaaS tools per business.

Let's have a closer look at the numbers:

• The expectations are that by 2025, the SaaS market will account for 45% of the total software market (Source: IDC)
• As reports show, 92% of SaaS companies use cloud infrastructure, with 61% using AWS and 45% using Azure (Source: Datadog)

Thus, it can clearly be seen that solo founders earn millions of dollars and I`d like to present some of the most prominent of them:

• Airtable, which was founded by Howie Liu, raised $735 million in funding in 2022 (Source: Crunchbase)
• Notion,which was  founded by Ivan Zhao, raised $275 million in funding in 2022 (Source: Crunchbase)

So, these examples of successful stories show that it's not only a reality to launch a Saas solution as a solo founder, but it's also quite profitable. Your idea will turn into a great business if you possess such success components as good resources, certain support and the right mindset.

Overall, it can be concluded that when launching a Saas, a solo founder should be smart, flexible and open to new solutions. Making use of some solutions that are either free, or are offered at a low cost, can help you set your idea on solid feet and then scale it up. Remember: the most important thing is to convey your value to your users, be flexible and stay at reasonable costs.