Make your SaaS free = get 1000 users in 4 months = make them paid users 🙌
When we launched https://www.slashit.app/, we made one simple decision:
Give part of the app for free.
No limits. No tricks. Just free.
And this changed everything.
Here’s what happened:
- users signed up every day
- they explored the product without pressure
- they understood the value on their own
- they upgraded only when they needed more
No chasing.
No forcing.
Just a clean product path.
Here’s how it works:
- remove friction
- let users try the core feature
- let them decide when to pay
That one decision brought our first 1000 users faster than anything else.
Trending on Indie Hackers
The free tier works when the core value is unmistakable on first use. What stood out here is that you didn’t push them toward upgrading. They upgraded when the workflow demanded it. Would love to hear which feature became the natural breakpoint where free users turned into paying users.
How did you get your first 1000 users? Curious.
Can i ask the real question? how did market and sell, like actually make the customer buy your stuff.
really helpful for info. its always a tough to decide how to monetize at first and also driver users
Love this. Free with real value is such an underrated growth lever. When people can explore without pressure, they don’t just try the product — they trust it.
Your approach reflects what actually works: reduce friction, showcase the core, and let users upgrade on their own terms.
Super smart move, and the results speak for themselves. 🚀
Nothing worse than app that asks for payment before I can try the feature I'm looking for. Trials are also good options for premium features.
This is such a clean approach. Let people try the real thing, not a watered-down demo, and they’ll figure out fast whether it actually helps them. When someone can use a tool without limits, they don’t feel tricked or pushed, and they end up upgrading because they want to, not because they got cornered.
A lot of apps make things harder than they need to be. Your setup keeps it simple: let folks in, let them play with the good stuff, and let them decide when it’s worth paying. The growth you got from that makes total sense.
This is such an underrated growth move. Giving real value away—without limits, gimmicks, or pressure—builds trust faster than any onboarding trick. When users can explore the core product at their own pace, they don’t need to be convinced; they feel the value. That’s why the conversion path becomes so clean. It’s not ‘free’ as a tactic—it’s free as alignment with how people actually want to adopt tools. Huge respect for committing to that model, and clearly the momentum shows it works. nos this one
super practical takeaway for anyone starting out!
I like the approach, I will do the same with my service Zenith send which lets upload there data and send it to their clients branded professionally.
Absolutely love this approach, Mahmudul! 🙌 Giving users real value upfront without any pressure is such a smart move—it builds trust and naturally drives conversions. Removing friction and letting the product speak for itself is something many startups underestimate, but your results show how powerful it can be. Congrats on hitting your first 1000 users so quickly! 🚀
Making a free product makes it very frictionless to start using it, but isn't that also going to hurt the bills on infra and other maintenance costs? Personally I am experimenting with with 7d free trial, but with payment details upfront/ no payment details, cause I want people to be mentally in the space to work with it, otherwise it has a high risk for churn + high token usage.
Nice, I like this approach... I'm doing the same with my service Spikelog which lets people log metrics of their apps.
With what tool did you create pitching video on the second screen of the product’s page?
How long did they stay with your product? Out of 1,000 sign-ups, how many churned in the first month?
Almost 90% using the app daily.
Great
Nice win, Mahmudul. Long back I shared a Reddit post on the psychology of “free” in SaaS — not anti-freemium, but why it often backfires if the upgrade path isn’t designed well.
Sharing here in case it helps others: https://www.reddit.com/r/SaaS/comments/1m6cwmi/saas_pricing_psychology_why_your_users_act_weird/
3 quick points from that post that connect with your experience:
Zero Price Effect: Free users stay stuck unless the value gap is clear—your unlimited core access let them hit natural limits and feel the pull to upgrade.
RelativRelativity Bias: Paid tiers must feel worth it; Slashit's clear progression from free exploration to advanced features makes the jump obvious.
Expectation Effects: Users upgrade when they notice transformation—your no-pressure path built that "aha" moment organically.
Freemium works when it’s intentional — and your 1,000-user result shows you designed it right.
We tried to design right, but then I will check your reddit post for sure. Is there any way I can chat with you?
Lets connect on linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sonu-goswami-6209a3146/
That sounds amazing!
Thank you. We are offering "Black Friday" special deal on lifetime package. Did you get chance to check that?
The math on freemium is always tricky for me. You can get loads of signups but if everybody's happy on free forever, what's the point?
Do you have a specific feature that acts as the natural upgrade trigger? Like something free users bump into where they go "yeah I need the full thing now"?
Ok yes, we have that already. In free we have limited features but as a user they can use that for lifetime.
This is the only way to build long-term trust, honestly. Trying to force conversion with crazy pop-ups and arbitrary paywalls just makes people immediately bounce. If the core feature is strong enough to hook them, they will pay when they hit the real ceiling. Glad it worked for you guys, hitting 1000 users that fast is huge.
Thats a good point, Slashit App will not force you to go for paid. We just added 1 banner in the app. Thats it. Is that fine?
We are offering "Black Friday" special deal on lifetime package. Did you get chance to check that?
I like this concept as a user. As long as the product is not pushing me all the time to pay and I can enjoy it with no distractions. This make me respect the creators and actually want to pay them when I need the extras
Got you man 🙌, Slashit App will not force you to go for paid. We just added 1 banner in the app. Thats it. Is that fine?
We are offering "Black Friday" special deal on lifetime package. Did you get chance to check that?
Awesome work with the app
Thank you, did you get chance to explore the app? Any feedback?
Checked out the app — honestly looks really solid. One thing I’d suggest is adding a quick walkthrough after signup so new users understand what each feature does. I also couldn’t find a mobile version, which would be super helpful since a lot of quick replies happen on the phone. Overall though, great execution.
“Brilliant strategy! Free access attracts users quickly, then converting them to paid ensures sustainable growth.
Yes. Slashit App will not force you to go for paid. We just added 1 banner in the app. Thats it.
Smart strategy! Free trials attract users quickly, then converting them to paid ensures sustainable growth.
Yes. Slashit App will not force you to go for paid. We just added 1 banner in the app. Thats it.
I was thinking about making my app paid from start, thanx for the idea
Don't just take this advice, based on your app type think what will be the best for your app and then use that.
Don't just take this advice, based on your app type think what will be the best for your app and then use that.
it is impressive ,nice work
Thank you.
We are offering "Black Friday" special deal on lifetime package. Did you get chance to check that?
I'm constantly seeing the debate of free vows paid, and it seems to come down to the type of product and target market.
Any specific insights on how you guys (plan to)/are nudging free customers to convert to paid?
Ok thats a great question, as we built this app for B2C. So every user want to try first and then if needed they can purchase. So from our perspective as a user we feel the same and thats why we used to be free for user first.
Agree with it's better to have no paid users than none. However, I believe this is a common practice to offer a trial period or hide certain functionality for free users.
Yes, we already have planned for paid users and free user can use limited resource.
I checked you website ,it is impressive ,nice work there ,templates and everting ,keep update and add features .
Thank you man. We are offering "Black Friday" special deal on lifetime package. Did you get chance to check that?
Giving real value upfront is so underrated. Let users feel the product first, and upgrades happen naturally. Definitely a good reminder to build trust over tricks.
Exactly, we feel the same. at the end we are the user also 😉
This idea helps! If someone feels the product helping them, they’ll pay to go further. I built a SaaS and I think more users would sign up if i had a free trial period or a free start. Thanks for the reminder of building trust!
Great to hear that man. Share your saas link so that I can check also 🙌
great app
Thank you. We are offering "Black Friday" special deal on lifetime package. Did you get chance to check that?
Giving real value upfront is one of the fastest ways to accelerate SaaS growth.
Of course 🙌
Smart move. Letting users feel the core value first reduces friction and drives honest upgrades. Curious, what triggered most to pay after the 1000 in 4 months?
Thank you ❤️, for paid features user are paying now 🙌
YOU CAN RECOVER YOUR STOLEN FUNDS WITH THE HELP OF // THE HACK ANGELS RECOVERY EXPERT
The most reputable and trustworthy recovery experts available today. THE HACK ANGELS RECOVERY EXPERT. They can help you retrieve your stolen crypto funds. They have technical expertise resources to track down and recover lost crypto. I had lost £973,000 to fraud and at first I thought it was gone for good. I went online to search for recovery, I saw numerous testimonies regarding THE HACK ANGELS RECOVERY EXPERT and how they had assisted other people in getting their money back. I didn't hesitate to contact them, in just a few days the experts returned all my money. They said that they did an investigation and returned my money immediately. They can never ask you for any upfront payment. They can help you track your funds. They are cyber security experts doing great jobs out there. Be wise and do your research to avoid being scammed again. For anyone in a similar situation seeking to recover funds lost to online scams, contact THE HACK ANGELS RECOVERY EXPERT through
WhatsApp +1520200-2320