The SaaS MVP Checklist: What to Build, What to Cut, and How to Launch

The biggest trap in SaaS is "just one more feature" syndrome. Founders convince themselves that customers won't buy until the app has team invites, PDF exports, Google OAuth, Discord webhooks, and dark mode. In reality, customers buy solutions to burning problems—not secondary settings menus.

What to Ruthlessly Cut from v1

If any of these items are currently on your MVP roadmap, remove them immediately:

• ❌ Complex User Roles & Permissions: Give everyone admin access in v1. Build RBAC only when enterprise customers demand it on a sales call.
• ❌ Custom Billing Portals: Use pre-built hosted checkouts from Dodo Payments or Stripe Checkout rather than coding custom invoice UIs.
• ❌ Multi-Language Internationalization: Launch in English first. Add i18n when international traction justifies the engineering debt.
• ❌ Microservices Architecture: Stick to a single Next.js monolith with Supabase or Neon Postgres.

The Non-Negotiable MVP Checklist

1. [ ] Core Value Loop: Does the user get their desired output within 60 seconds of signing up?
2. [ ] Zero-Friction Auth: Magic link or Google login (Supabase Auth / Clerk).
3. [ ] Immediate Payment Gate: Working payment link that provisions access automatically.
4. [ ] Direct Feedback Channel: A simple floating support widget or founder email link.

The 14-Day Launch Sequence

Days 1–4: Build core feature logic. Days 5–7: Hook up auth and payments. Days 8–10: Run smoke tests with 10 beta users. Days 11–14: Submit to LaunchXact fast-track directory and initiate automated distribution.