[Ask HN]Is there a ballpark on how much $ to allocate to build an MVP?

4 points·AshwinRamasamy··6 comments

Ideally you can launch your "absolute minimum" while spending nothing except your own time. Put up a free landing page with some enticing copy, and/or set up a free blog and start writing about your subject. You'll end up learning how viable your product is before you even have to build it.

Once you're ready to get a "functional minimum" developed, check out a firm like Prontotype http://prontotype.us/ that specializes in MVP development. You'll probably spend 5-10K at this stage, depending on how simple your idea is. You can also try the outsourcing or freelancing route, but the cost and quality can often vary quite wildly.

Agile sprints are 2-4 wks long. Work for 2-4 wks then put it in front of customers. Collect your list of changes/new features. Repeat. You don't have to release it but people other than the people working on it need to see it.

Yes.. As little as possible. Read the Lean Startup for some examples of MVPs without even writing code.. As far as ballpark examples of cost, the standard can be expressed by this formula: Target Cost = how much you think you need/2; the corollary being Actual Cost = budget*4

I ran a survey on some FB Startup groups giving a few number ranges. People gravitate towards <1000 $ (indicating as less as possible) and when I ask them what they ended up spending, they pick (5000 - 10000 $). People spend their way to realize that they could have done a lot better by defining 'minimum' and 'viability' in the context of solving customer pain!

What does mvp mean in this context?

Minimum Viable Product

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