Ask HN: Is anybody running a successful non-subscription business?

I earn affiliate income on https://allaboutberlin.com. It allows me to help far more people by keeping everything free. It's been my main source of income for a few years now.

AI is changing the game - it halved my traffic - but so far it's still survivable. I intend to keep going until it's no longer tenable.

Use it as a way to differentiate yourself. One methodology I've seen used with installed apps is major upgrades require a financial renewal but those can be spaced out every couple years. I love it when I find an iOS app that is paid, without ads, without in-app purchases.

You just need to plan how that business model works and know that you won't have recurring revenue. Maybe that means you build companion apps, offer an optional subscription tier (often its cloud storage/device sharing based) or something like that.

I've thought of doing a subscription like service but its use case is more of a once-in-a-while style so an option there would be pay-per use instead of a subscription.

Define successful.

I run a SaaS that relies on one time payment. The income currently covers all the expenses, and leaves me some nice pocket money.

Is this model for everyone? No. The unique proposition of my service is actually the one time payment aspect. Does everything should be subscription? No. I avoid subscriptions as much as possible, unless there is a cost involved in running the service.

So YMMV. I wouldn’t pay a subscription for a MacOS app, unless there is an ongoing operational cost for the developer.

Feel free to email me (profile -> website) if you want to chat.

The primary alternative to monthly subscription plans is a usage-based pricing plan. In other words, your customers are still paying more than once, but when is based on how much they use it, rather than per month/year.

You could also copy many WordPress plugins, which charge a fee for the first year (which includes support and updates) but then expires afterward. So they can continue using the plugin but won’t get any new updates/support.

I dislike monthly subscriptions myself, and always look for alternatives which I then happily spend my money on.

However the business is as it is

For software I really like the patreon model (like in some game communities) monthly subscription you could cancel after downloading and if you want updates you just get another month. Big portion will just pay monthly while they wait anyway. Best for all worlds.

Otherwise I would maybe recommend a yearly price instead of monthly. Especially if the monthly would be something small anyway. Easy to forget so most people will at least pay 2 years and you save a lot in transaction costs.

On the contrary. Subscription-based pricing model is dying, and fast. People are tired of it. Just look up articles about how SaaS are slowly disappearing and how entrepreneurs should avoid creating SaaS if possible. People usually prefer one-time payments over monthly payments. There are exceptions, usually when the program/service is very valuable and expensive, it makes more sense to just pay for what you use, but in general single payment will always win. Also it depends whether we're talking local or remote service as remote service has inherent cost and having a single payment is not compatible with it.

Additionally, there is a distinction between single and ongoing payment in the context of usability. Specifically, it makes little sense to sell a calculator program via a subscription fee but you also reach a limit of the possible customer base. Just like mobile applications. With subscription, you can keep milking the same customer for money indefinitely, but in such case you have to keep providing some services that is worth the payment.

> Is there no point in having a one-time fee product?

You can have one-time licenses but updates require another license (ie: discounted). It is the same model of SaaS but with a different payment plan.

Unlimited/lifetime licenses are a way to either deliver a really bad product or create an unsustainable company.

I have never built a smartphone app myself but I know one thing, if the app is useful I'll buy it again and again to get it on my new device.

Another thought, maybe your app has the potential to be extended, you can make extensions available as addons for a fee.

Yes, lots. I personally refuse to use subscription-based software, but have no trouble finding software that doesn't use that model.

What are you going to do when you reach all of your addressable market?

One time payments are fine when you are in a growing market like iOS in 2009. The only long time successful Mac Indy app that I can think of without a subscription is BBedit which has been around since 1990 and made every transition along with Apple.

Welp. Now I’m regretting shutting down a similar business - because I felt like single product businesses were a dead end.

Sheesh.