How a Solo Dev Priced His SaaS at $9 and Hit 5K MRR

Episode notes

Episode 42 of The Indie Hacker Podcast dives into the counterintuitive pricing strategy of Marcus Chen, a solo developer who launched a simple time-tracking SaaS called Minute. Inspired by a barista's tip jar, Marcus set the price at $9 per month — a number he chose because it felt psychologically 'under ten bucks.' Lucas and Luna break down how that anchoring worked, the math behind converting free users at that price point, and why Marcus refused to raise prices for 18 months even as costs crept up. They also explore the hidden risk of ultra-low pricing: churn from customers who don't value what they don't pay for. If you've ever agonized over your own SaaS pricing, this episode offers a concrete, data-backed case study with a twist ending — Marcus eventually doubled his price and lost only 6% of customers. Tune in for a story that proves sometimes the best first price is the one that feels almost too cheap.