Lately, many companies are shifting to SaaS solutions to offload operational burdens, while others prefer building their own infrastructure for full control and customization. Which approach do you prefer? What factors—cost, flexibility, security—do you prioritize when making this decision? I’d love to hear about your experiences!
Which is better: opting for SaaS solutions or building your own infrastructure?
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Just last month, I caught my intern Googling "What is SaaS?" while I was manually making a list in Excel 😅. For now, my preference is a SaaS that's "cheap but good enough" for me 🤷♀️💻
I'm actually stuck in this dilemma myself. When developing my MVP, I initially used SaaS tools—popular services like Firebase, Stripe, and Auth0. I got up and running quickly without worrying about maintenance, but over time, the costs started to add up. For example, when I saw how fast Firebase's pricing scaled with user growth, I thought, "Wow, this really adds up fast." My customization needs also increased—standard packages didn’t fit my specific use case.
Now I'm in the process of transitioning to my own infrastructure, but I'm taking careful steps. First, I'm keeping critical functions (payments, auth, main database) on SaaS while gradually moving toward customization. When it comes to security, I’m especially mindful of where my data is stored. For me, the biggest factor is the balance between time, money, and cost. While SaaS was a lifesaver during the MVP phase, when scaling up, you’re forced to DIY to reduce infrastructure costs. Where are you in this journey? Are you still between MVP and scale-up?