The Indie Hacker Podcast with Fexingo: Solo Developers, SaaS Side Projects, and Independent Tech

Fexingo

Lucas and Luna explore the world of solo developers and indie hackers building SaaS side projects into sustainable businesses. Each episode examines a specific founder's journey — from the first line of code to first paying customer, through product-market fit and the grind of customer support alone. Lucas brings the numbers: revenue splits, churn rates, customer acquisition costs, and the real economics of a one-person tech company. Luna pushes on the human side: burnout, motivation, the loneliness of building in public, and the moment when a side project starts earning more than a day job. Together they dissect case studies like Pieter Levels' Nomad List, Marc Köhlbrugge's Bouncy Ball, and TinySeed-funded startups, always with concrete data and honest talk about failure. This is for the developer who has a domain name but hasn't launched, the bootstrapper hitting a growth plateau, and anyone who believes a single person can still build a million-dollar business. No hype, no funding rounds, no 'growth hacking' — just the real work of making software that people pay for. What does it really take to replace your salary with a side project? #IndieHacker #SaaS #SideProjects #SoloDeveloper #Bootstrapping #RevenueGraphs #Churn #CustomerAcquisition #ProductMarketFit #TinySeed #PieterLevels #MarcKohlbrugge #OnePersonBusiness #BuildInPublic #Technology #Business #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

  1. 22h ago

    How a Solo Dev Hit 10K MRR With a Product Sold Only at Retail Stores

    Episode 129 of The Indie Hacker Podcast explores a counterintuitive distribution strategy: selling a SaaS product exclusively through physical retail stores. Lucas and Luna examine the story of Matt Forester, a solo developer who built a simple inventory management tool for independent bookstores and achieved $10K monthly recurring revenue by partnering with brick-and-mortar shops. They discuss the offline sales playbook, the economics of demo-based selling, and why limiting distribution can actually build trust and reduce churn. Matt's approach is a fascinating case study for indie hackers tired of competing in noisy online channels. #SoloDev #10KMRR #IndieHacker #SaaS #RetailSales #OfflineDistribution #BrickAndMortar #InventoryManagement #Bookstores #MattForester #CounterintuitiveStrategy #PhysicalRetail #DemoBasedSelling #AdFree #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #Technology #IndieTech Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

    How a Solo Dev Hit 10K MRR With a Product Sold Only at Retail Stores

  2. 1d ago

    How a Solo Dev Hit 10K MRR Selling Only via SMS

    In this episode of The Indie Hacker Podcast, Lucas and Luna unpack the story of a solo developer who built a $10K MRR SaaS product with zero web presence—selling entirely through SMS. They break down the unconventional sales funnel: how he collected phone numbers from niche communities, sent personalized voice-note demos, handled billing via Stripe invoices, and managed support over text without a ticket system. The hosts discuss why this channel works for high-trust B2B tools, the surprising retention numbers from text-only onboarding, and the risks of being a single channel from a single phone number. If you're tired of building landing pages no one visits, this episode might change how you think about distribution. #SoloDeveloper #SaaS #IndieHacker #SMSMarketing #Bootstrapping #10KMRR #NoLandingPage #TextMessageSales #ProductDistribution #B2BSaaS #NicheMarketing #Stripe #StripeInvoicing #VoiceNotes #CustomerSupport #Technology #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

    How a Solo Dev Hit 10K MRR Selling Only via SMS

  3. 1d ago

    How a Solo Dev Hit 10K MRR by Selling Only on Gumroad

    In this episode of The Indie Hacker Podcast, Lucas and Luna dive into the story of a solo developer who reached $10,000 monthly recurring revenue with a product sold exclusively on Gumroad—no website, no social media, no email list. They break down how the founder used Gumroad's built-in discoverability, affiliate network, and simple checkout to bootstrap from zero to 10K MRR in 18 months. The hosts discuss the trade-offs of relying on a single platform, the key metrics that mattered (conversion rate, average order value, refund rate), and why Gumroad's 10% fee was worth it for the exposure. They also explore how the founder transitioned from one-time sales to subscriptions, and why Gumroad's 'pay what you want' feature actually boosted revenue. If you're an indie hacker looking for a low-effort distribution channel, this episode offers a concrete blueprint—plus a critical look at the risks of platform dependency. Recorded July 23, 2026. #IndieHacker #SoloDeveloper #Gumroad #SaaS #10KMRR #Bootstrapping #ProductDistribution #PlatformDependency #SubscriptionModel #PayWhatYouWant #AffiliateMarketing #ConversionRate #AverageOrderValue #NoCode #Technology #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #IndieTech Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

    How a Solo Dev Hit 10K MRR by Selling Only on Gumroad

  4. 2d ago

    How a Solo Dev Hit 10K MRR With a Product Selling Only at Conferences

    In this episode of The Indie Hacker Podcast, Lucas and Luna dive into the story of a solo developer who built a niche SaaS tool for conference organizers and hit $10,000 in monthly recurring revenue without ever selling online. Instead, he signed his first 50 customers face-to-face at industry events, using a portable demo setup. We break down his sales playbook: how he identified the perfect conference to attend, the one-sentence pitch that converted strangers, and why he priced his product at $29 per month to maximize impulse purchases. Plus, we discuss the surprising economics of conference selling — including why a $500 booth fee can yield a 10x return in two days. If you've ever wondered whether a solo developer can bootstrap a SaaS by shaking hands and scanning badges, this episode is for you. Also, a quick note on how our listener-supported model keeps this podcast ad-free. #SoloDev #IndieHacker #SaaS #ConferenceSelling #Bootstrapping #MRR #SalesStrategy #EventMarketing #NicheProduct #CustomerAcquisition #PricingStrategy #PortableDemo #BusinessDevelopment #Technology #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #IndieHackerPodcast #SoloDeveloper Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

    How a Solo Dev Hit 10K MRR With a Product Selling Only at Conferences

  5. 2d ago

    How a Solo Dev Hit 10K MRR With an API-First Product

    Lucas and Luna break down the story of a solo developer who built a small API-first SaaS that now generates $10,000 in monthly recurring revenue. The product? A simple email verification API that processes millions of requests per month. They walk through how the developer found the idea, why he chose API-first distribution, and the surprising marketing channel that drove 80% of his early customers: a single blog post on Hacker News. They also discuss the economics of API pricing, the challenges of scaling a single-purpose tool, and what happens when your product is invisible to most users. Plus, a candid moment about how listener support keeps the podcast ad-free. #API #SaaS #IndieHacker #SoloDev #EmailVerification #HackerNews #MRR #Revenue #Pricing #Distribution #Bootstrapping #Subscription #DeveloperTools #Technology #BusinessPodcast #FexingoBusiness #Podcast #TheIndieHackerPodcast Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

    How a Solo Dev Hit 10K MRR With an API-First Product

  6. 3d ago

    How a Solo Dev Hit 10K MRR With a Product That Sells Only on Hacker News

    In this episode, we break down the exact playbook of a solo developer who reached $10,000 monthly recurring revenue with a developer tool that was exclusively marketed through Hacker News. We analyze the specific launch strategy, how they crafted the Show HN post, the importance of timing (Tuesday morning, 9 AM ET), and how they maintained momentum by engaging in the comments. We also discuss the product's pricing model—a single $29 per month plan—and how the founder handled the inevitable HN criticism. Plus, Luna shares her own experience posting on HN and what she learned about the community's expectations. If you're building a SaaS for developers and wondering if HN is still a viable distribution channel, this episode gives you the concrete numbers and tactics you need. #HackerNews #IndieHackers #SaaS #SoloDeveloper #10KMRR #ProductLaunch #ShowHN #DeveloperTools #DistributionStrategy #Bootstrapping #TechStartup #Coding #CommunityBuilding #RevenueGrowth #BusinessPodcast #FexingoBusiness #IndieHackerPodcast #Technology Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

    How a Solo Dev Hit 10K MRR With a Product That Sells Only on Hacker News

  7. 3d ago

    How a Solo Dev Hit 10K MRR With a Product Built for Non-Techies

    In this episode of The Indie Hacker Podcast, Lucas and Luna dive into the story of a solo developer who built a SaaS product targeting non-technical users—specifically, small business owners and freelancers—and hit $10,000 in monthly recurring revenue within 18 months. They explore how the founder abandoned traditional developer tools and frameworks in favor of a no-code backend, focusing entirely on user experience and onboarding simplicity. The hosts break down the product's unique selling proposition: a drag-and-drop analytics dashboard that requires zero setup, no API keys, and no technical jargon. They analyze the founder's distribution strategy, which relied on local Facebook groups and community workshops rather than tech-heavy channels like Product Hunt or Hacker News. Key takeaways include the importance of empathy-driven design, the power of a single, beautifully simple feature over a bloated product, and how charging a premium price ($49/month) actually increased conversion rates among non-techies who equated price with reliability. Lucas and Luna also discuss the founder's biggest mistake—building a waitlist too early—and how they recovered by launching a 'pre-access' program. A must-listen for any indie hacker looking to build for underserved, non-technical audiences. #IndieHacker #SoloDeveloper #SaaS #NoCode #NonTechies #SmallBusiness #Freelancers #MRR #Analytics #DragAndDrop #UserExperience #Onboarding #Distribution #FacebookGroups #Community #Pricing #Waitlist #FexingoBusiness Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

    How a Solo Dev Hit 10K MRR With a Product Built for Non-Techies

  8. 4d ago

    How a Solo Dev Hit 10K MRR With a Product That Sells Only on GitHub

    In this episode of The Indie Hacker Podcast, Lucas and Luna dive into the story of Sarah Chen, a solo developer who built a developer tool called LintHub — a GitHub Action that automates code review rules — and grew it to over $10,000 MRR without spending a dime on marketing. They break down how she leveraged GitHub's own marketplace, open-source contributor goodwill, and a clever 'freemium for repos under 10 contributors' model to acquire users organically. No ads, no social media, no blog posts — just pure developer word-of-mouth on pull requests and issue threads. Lucas walks through the specific numbers: 1,200 paid teams after 18 months, a 4 percent free-to-paid conversion rate, and a churn rate under 3 percent because users are locked in via CI pipeline dependencies. Luna challenges whether the GitHub-only approach scales beyond developer tools, and they debate the 'build in public on the platform you sell on' strategy. A masterclass in distribution through infrastructure. #IndieHacker #SoloDeveloper #SaaS #GitHub #DeveloperTools #10KMRR #LintHub #SarahChen #Bootstrapping #DistributionStrategy #GitHubMarketplace #Freemium #CICD #PullRequest #OpenSource #Technology #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

    How a Solo Dev Hit 10K MRR With a Product That Sells Only on GitHub
See All (128)

About

Lucas and Luna explore the world of solo developers and indie hackers building SaaS side projects into sustainable businesses. Each episode examines a specific founder's journey — from the first line of code to first paying customer, through product-market fit and the grind of customer support alone. Lucas brings the numbers: revenue splits, churn rates, customer acquisition costs, and the real economics of a one-person tech company. Luna pushes on the human side: burnout, motivation, the loneliness of building in public, and the moment when a side project starts earning more than a day job. Together they dissect case studies like Pieter Levels' Nomad List, Marc Köhlbrugge's Bouncy Ball, and TinySeed-funded startups, always with concrete data and honest talk about failure. This is for the developer who has a domain name but hasn't launched, the bootstrapper hitting a growth plateau, and anyone who believes a single person can still build a million-dollar business. No hype, no funding rounds, no 'growth hacking' — just the real work of making software that people pay for. What does it really take to replace your salary with a side project? #IndieHacker #SaaS #SideProjects #SoloDeveloper #Bootstrapping #RevenueGraphs #Churn #CustomerAcquisition #ProductMarketFit #TinySeed #PieterLevels #MarcKohlbrugge #OnePersonBusiness #BuildInPublic #Technology #Business #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

Information