Alternatives
Products that do what Side project passed $2.5k/mo revenue after 2 years (Phoenix and Vue) does
Several years ago, I had a client whose salespeople were using Excel to generate sales proposals. This was inefficient and the resulting documents looked awful, so I developed a new process for them using a no-code platform. It featured a web form that was tied to a workflow engine, and a fancy PDF got emailed to the customer to sign. When the client loved the solution, I knew I was on to something. However, the no-code platform wasn't very customizable, so I decided to rebuild the process as a SaaS product. The client's CTO wanted in and we became cofounders. Today, we passed the…
- 1MN
Hi guys, I've created an open source web builder framework (https://grapesjs.com) years ago, which I'm still maintaining, and now I'm excited to publish a side project based on it, Grapedrop (https://grapedrop.com). It's a simple web page builder which allows you to design and publish your web pages very quickly. The project is still in beta with a lot of stuff to improve but I'd really like to share it and hear what people think about it and maybe also get some constructive feedback.
2018
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Have been working on this for months, hope you guys will like it. Feel free to share your own side project in the comments.
2012 · sideprojects.com
- 7IM
2013 · letsworkshop.com
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- 10ND
Greetings HN, I'm Nikita. I created a platform https://welovenocode.com where, at 1/10th of the cost, you can employ a no-code developer to create an MVP for your startup. The idea came from my experience four years ago with outsourcing firms. I tried to order a few designs, but they still took far more time and money than I had ever expected. Possibly because benefits have been messed up and agencies make more money for longer to suck up my project. No-code tools such as Airtable, Webflow, and Bubble began showing up at that time. I played with them, but since both…
2021
- 11AC
TLDR: I made a community where you can find builders or product owners to collab on sideprojects together with <3 A year ago i completed my first sideproject, a digital course on how to "cold email a chief information security officer". I thought and think its a great course, but of course I fell into all the traps (didnt verify a need, i thought id make it and everyone would buy automatically), i tested google ads but hated nerding on that, so i decided to find a marketing person to partner up with! But i knew no one! That got me thinking how many people with relevant knowledge that isnt…
2025 · relentlessly.no
- 12MT
Do you have side projects you created in the past, but no longer working on? We are creating a simple marketplace for developers to sell and buy side projects. Currently, we are finalizing the last minute details and we will be launching quite soon. We would love to have you signed up for the early access to get feedback. Link is here http://www.sideprojectors.com/project/hello Thank you.
2013
- 13IM
Inspired by a good friend who did Unstick.me, as well as the recent MVP for 1k project, I've decided to give consulting a shot by offering my services as a developer and product guy to non-technical folks and early-stage web startups who are looking to brainstorm on both the technology and product side, and possibly looking to have an MVP built based on their idea. I started accepting requests the other day solely with a Wufoo form, and just launched a proper one-page site here: http://youshouldworkwith.me/ Curious to hear feedback on the offer and idea in general. It's the first time I've…
2011
- 14A9
After analyzing 9 years of HN side project posts, I found some counter-intuitive patterns about what makes projects profitable. Three things that stood out: 1. B2B dominates: 73% of $500+/month projects target businesses, not consumers 2. Speed matters more than polish: Average 47 days from launch to first sale. Most started charging with 3-5 core features. 3. Pricing cluster: 87% price between $20-49. Low enough for impulse purchase, high enough to be sustainable. I compiled this into a dataset of nearly 700 projects with tech stack, pricing, and timeline data. Built it because I was…
Feb 2026
- 15NC
I wanted to share a project I've been working on : Styrate, a social rating and review platform for products. I built a landing page for it using a no-code platform, which allowed me to create a professional and functional website without writing any code. As someone who is not very tech-savvy, I was able to easily build a landing page that looks and functions like it was built by a professional. This really showcases the power of no-code platforms, as they allow people with limited technical knowledge(me) to create websites, apps, and other digital products without having to learn how to…
2023 · yep.so
- 16IB
Hey HN, This weekend I built an excel spreadsheet so that you can come up with your next (scalable) service idea. If you are a consultant / agency and are looking to move from to build a scalable business / valuable asset, this is for you! WHY I built this: - Many people want to start their business but can't find an idea - Many people build stuff / services that nobody want - Ideas are great but execution is what matters: See what others have done successfully, get inspired, and do your own thing! The framework is called the Productized Service Matrix. --- It features in…
2019
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From side project to $100K ARR - Actionable insights weekly
Jun 2026 · superframeworks.com
- 18HI
I’m Michał, and I’d like to share with you the journey I went through with my wife and how, thanks to her, we built our first SaaS, PDFBolt (https://pdfbolt.com). I’ve been a developer for over 10 years. In 2020, I decided to build a side project to learn all aspects of app development—deployment, authentication, payments, frontend, landing pages, etc. While looking for project ideas, I came across the Indie Hackers community, where I found a simple HTML to PDF API project. The creator mentioned a lot of interest in it and that it was generating revenue. I thought I’d build…
2025 · pdfbolt.com
- 19IM
orignally shared this on startup school... i thought id' share it here. i'm using a `nocode communication tool` (a web-based interface... a single browser tab!) for all of these things: 1. landing page — the landing page is the product and i wanted for folks to feel "transported" right into the app without having to walk through a shitty b2b marketing-style content. this is akin to my experience back in the `BBS` days of the mid-90's where you were immediately into the app, community, and tool. no terms of service, no privacy policy. just pure, immediate value. 2. building community — we…
2021
- 20IB
Hey everyone! I wanted to share a side project I've been working on that I think could be really useful for a lot of people, especially those in the web development and no-code space. As a developer with over five years of experience, I've done my fair share of freelance web development projects. Initially, I always coded everything from scratch, but as I took on more projects simultaneously, I started using Webflow to save time. While Webflow was helpful, I often found myself wishing for a faster way to set up a website – something that would allow me to start with a template and then…
2024 · instwebai.com
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Tried all SaaS Sales and GTM tools; ended up vibe-coding a simple tool that just works. Uses Claude Code as a backend (funny, I know). Helps enrich, qualify, and prepare high-quality reach-outs
Jan 2026 · github.com
- 22WB
Hey HN: Kaveh here, founder of https://www.usage.ai/ We help companies drive down AWS, GCP, and Azure spend. Why? Because the way it's done now is a pain. DevOps and Software Engineers end up spending time managing costs rather than focusing on business problems. I have been building Usage AI for almost 4 years now (4 year anniversary in 1 month from now!) with an incredible group of founding people. We started as a product just to help lower AWS EC2 costs, and now we do all major AWS services (such as RDS, OpenSearch, ElastiCache, and Redshift with more on the way) and other…
2024
- 23IM
I'm gauging interest for a service that would help connect devs/designers/copywriters with folks who have short term projects (a few days or weeks of work). The projects would range in value, but should ideally be at least a few $100. Through Forrst, there are already thousands of such people available to work, it's just a matter of if this is interesting to the other side. If it is, would you leave your info? Thanks a ton. Form: https://kylebragger.wufoo.com/forms/short-term-project-matchmaking/
2011
- 24IE
Hi HN! I spent the last year traveling and feeling purposeless after shutting down my last startup (Zage YC S’21) in Dec 2022. There were some obstacles I couldn’t overcome and decided to return investors 50% of their capital. To afford (and justify to myself) traveling, I started consulting as an engineer and product designer. I started (https://backspace.nyc) and it was a good time. I (and some friends) built a handful of AI experiences and learned a lot along the way. The hardest thing about running a services business shipping and selling AI experiences powered by LLMs was…
2024 · loom.com
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