MVP vs Production: The Line Founders Get Wrong

"It's just an MVP. It doesn't need to be perfect."

This is true. MVPs should be minimal.

But somewhere along the way, "minimal" became an excuse for "broken." For "I'll add payments later." For "the signup flow is janky but it'll do."

And then founders wonder why nobody converts.

The MVP Misunderstanding

"Minimum Viable Product" has two keywords:

• Minimum — The smallest version that tests your hypothesis
• Viable — Actually works. Actually usable. Actually converts.

Most founders optimize for minimum and forget about viable.

What "Viable" Actually Requires

For a SaaS to be viable—not polished, just viable—it needs:

• ✅ Signup that works (not "works sometimes")
• ✅ Core functionality that solves the problem
• ✅ A way to pay (if you're charging)
• ✅ Basic onboarding so users aren't lost
• ✅ Support contact (even if it's just your email)

Notice: no fancy animations. No complex features. No enterprise tier. Just the basics, done right.

Where Founders Draw the Line Wrong

Too Little (Not Viable)

• "Users can sign up but there's no payment flow yet"
• "It works but you have to manually create accounts"
• "The email templates are broken but I'll fix them"

This isn't an MVP. This is a demo with a landing page.

Too Much (Not Minimum)

• "We need three pricing tiers with annual discounts"
• "The admin dashboard needs real-time analytics"
• "Users should be able to customize their email notifications"

This isn't an MVP. This is a product roadmap disguised as a launch plan.

The Right Line

A production-ready SaaS MVP should have:

• Auth — Magic links or OAuth
• Payments — One pricing tier, working checkout
• Core feature — The one thing that solves the problem
• Lead capture — For visitors who aren't ready to buy
• Basic CRM — So you know who your leads are

Everything else is post-launch iteration.

Production-Ready MVP

LaunchKit is a Next.js SaaS starter with built-in CRM and payments. The viable foundation for your minimum product.

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