The Indie Hacker Stack I’m Using in 2025 (Under $50/Month)

As a solo indie hacker, my priorities are simple:

• Ship fast

• Spend less

• Stay in control

That means using tools that are lightweight, affordable, and actually helpful — not just hyped. Here’s the full stack I’m using to build my SaaS in 2025, all while keeping my monthly burn comfortably under $50.

🧠 1. Idea Capture & Planning

Tool: Notion (Free)
Still unbeatable for solo founders. I use it to:

• Brain dump product ideas

• Track validation experiments

• Organize launch plans

It’s my startup HQ, CRM, and roadmap all in one.
Cost: $0/month

🖥️ 2. Website & Landing Pages

Tools: Vercel + Tailwind UI

• Vercel handles frontend hosting (fast + free on the Hobby plan)

• Tailwind UI for beautiful, prebuilt components (paid once, saves hours)

I keep things simple with React or Next.js. No bloat.
Cost: $0/month (Tailwind UI was a $100 one-time purchase)

🗃️ 3. Backend + Auth

Tool: Supabase (Free Tier)

• PostgreSQL DB

• Auth with role-based access

• Real-time updates

• File storage

It works great for early-stage apps. And scaling beyond the free tier means I have bigger problems (a good thing).
Cost: $0/month

📩 4. Emails & User Communication

Tools: Resend + Gmail

• Resend: Free transactional email API (3,000 emails/month)

• Gmail: Just one inbox for replies, support, or feedback

No Help Scout. No shared inbox tools. Just keeping it scrappy.
Cost: $0/month

🤖 5. AI for Content & Code

Tool: ChatGPT Plus ($20/month)
GPT-4 helps me with:

• Copywriting (landing pages, headlines, cold emails)

• Debugging

• Summarizing user feedback

• Even writing this blog post

It’s my cofounder, assistant, and writing coach all in one.
Cost: $20/month

💳 6. Payments

Tool: Stripe (and sometimes Paddle)

• Stripe is free to start and handles most of my payments

• Paddle for projects needing global VAT compliance

Just transaction fees. No monthly costs.
Cost: $0/month (+ fees)

📈 7. Analytics

Tool: Umami (Self-hosted) or Plausible

• Lightweight

• Cookie-free

• Privacy-friendly

I host Umami on a shared VPS with other side projects.
Cost: ~$2–5/month

🔔 8. Alerts & Monitoring

Tool: Cron Jobs + Webhooks + Slack

• Custom scripts ping me about uptime, Stripe disputes, or API issues

• Supabase functions + Resend handle alerts via Slack/email

It’s basic, but reliable.
Cost: $0/month

🎨 9. Design & Mockups

Tool: Figma (Free Tier)

• Great for quick UI mockups and idea sketches

• Paired with ChatGPT prompts for faster prototyping

Who needs a designer when your MVP just needs to work?
Cost: $0/month

⚙️ 10. Automations

Tools: Pipedream + Zapier

• Pipedream handles background tasks and custom scripts

• Zapier connects tools like Stripe → Slack

If I need more power, I’ll switch to n8n.
Cost: $0–10/month

💰 Monthly Stack Cost (July 2025)

Tool Monthly Cost Notion $0 Vercel $0 Supabase $0 Resend + Gmail $0 ChatGPT Plus $20 Umami (Self-hosted) ~$5 Zapier / Pipedream $5–10 Stripe / Paddle $0 (+fees) Domain (yearly) ~$1.50/month

✅ Total: ~$30–35/month
(Plus a few one-time costs like Tailwind UI and yearly domain fees.)

Final Thoughts

You don’t need a $500/month tool stack to build something real.

You need:

• A problem worth solving

• A way to test it fast

• Tools that don’t get in your way

This is my indie hacker stack in 2025 — lean, fast, and good enough to go from zero to $10K MRR.

What’s in yours?