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Tell HN: I made $1000 with my app and now making $500/mo

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Re: Tell HN: I made $1000 with my app and now making $500/mo

#51

Post by moosedev »

bgroat wrote: post #27

$500/mth is $6,000/yr At a 4% safe withdrawal rate what you've built is the equivilent of saving $150,000. You should be EXTREMELY proud of yourself, and never underestimate the power and value of the asset you've built

Without taking anything away from OP's achievement, I'd caution against this kind of exuberant comparison without some qualification around it. The risks to that app's continuing to yield $500/month in perpetuity are quite different (and, I dare say, worse) than the risks faced by the kind of balanced portfolio that "safe withdrawal rate" implies (to me). I acknowledge that you didn't directly compare with such a portfolio, but you did say the app is "the equivalent of saving $150,000" - again, if this is true it's in a very limited sense only: the app and the cash face a very different set of risks.

Re: Tell HN: I made $1000 with my app and now making $500/mo

#52

Post by CPLX »

jdasdf wrote: post #40
POiNTx wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can you breakdown this calculation? I'm familiar with FIRE and SWR but how do you get to the $150,000 number? [EDIT] Thanks got it!

6000/0.04 = 150 000 Essentially, those 6K a year is the equivalent of a 150K portfolio

No it’s not it’s the equivalent of a $6,000 a year part time job.

$150k in 20 years is still exactly $150k and produces returns.

A 20 year old mobile application has no value whatsoever.

Difference is apples and hand grenades.

Re: Tell HN: I made $1000 with my app and now making $500/mo

#53

Post by strongpigeon »

ronyeh wrote: post #48

Congrats! Downloaded. Relevant to today's discussion, did you use SwiftUI or the ol reliable UIKit? Here's the url for those who are looking: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/five-three-one/id1560266240

The app is built using Flutter, but I'm using SwiftUI for the home screen widget.

Re: Tell HN: I made $1000 with my app and now making $500/mo

#54

Post by jjice »

acover wrote: post #47
bgroat wrote: post #27

$500/mth is $6,000/yr At a 4% safe withdrawal rate what you've built is the equivilent of saving $150,000. You should be EXTREMELY proud of yourself, and never underestimate the power and value of the asset you've built

Will this app pay 6000 a year for 25 years? It's an impressive creation but this is not a good way to value it.

I think the comment more so referred to the returns that $150,000 would yield at a 4% SWR, not necessarily that it'll generate that much eventually, just the equivalent SWR return amount.

Re: Tell HN: I made $1000 with my app and now making $500/mo

#55

Post by strongpigeon »

lwhi wrote: post #12

Great work! This is inspiring .. great to hear. What are you thinking next?

I'm almost done with the Android version and will start working on an Apple Watch companion app right after that (which I think I could charge $15-20 for). I was semi-hoping they'd announce Flutter for wearables at Google I/O alongside the Pixel watch, but looks like I'll have to learn a bit more iOS stuff.

Re: Tell HN: I made $1000 with my app and now making $500/mo

#57

Post by LocalPCGuy »

strongpigeon wrote: post #50
newbie578 wrote: post #10

Congrats! This is really no small achievement, being able to make a profit while making mobile apps is no little thing. I saw your comment that you made the app in Flutter, how come that you didn't release it then for Android? Also a separate question, I do wonder what was your thought process for coming up with the idea for the app? Do you keep somewhere a list of app ideas, or was this one you have been dreaming ab…

I'm using the Cupertino widget to have an iOS look and feel. I care a lot about the experience and I didn't want to release an Android app that feels like an iOS one. That being said I'm almost done making the app look great on Android. I'm just waiting for some Material 3 widgets to be done by the Flutter team. My thought process was simple : I don't like any of the apps on the App Store for 5/3/1, so I'm going to m…

I personally would argue that shipping (and being available) > than purely looking like it's 100% platform specific. But it's your app, and congrats on the success so far.

Re: Tell HN: I made $1000 with my app and now making $500/mo

#58

Post by strongpigeon »

Knufen wrote: post #56

Super cool project man, congrats. I was unable to figure it out in the app, but is it possible to build your own routine instead of 5/3/1? I have been looking for this kinda of app and am willing to pay for it.

Custom Templates is a feature I go back and forth on, mainly because it'd complicate the data model a lot, but also some parts of the product. I might get around to it, but I'm going to work on other things (Android version, Apple Watch companion) first.

Re: Tell HN: I made $1000 with my app and now making $500/mo

#59

Post by xbar »

moosedev wrote: post #51
bgroat wrote: post #27

$500/mth is $6,000/yr At a 4% safe withdrawal rate what you've built is the equivilent of saving $150,000. You should be EXTREMELY proud of yourself, and never underestimate the power and value of the asset you've built

Without taking anything away from OP's achievement, I'd caution against this kind of exuberant comparison without some qualification around it. The risks to that app's continuing to yield $500/month in perpetuity are quite different (and, I dare say, worse) than the risks faced by the kind of balanced portfolio that "safe withdrawal rate" implies (to me). I acknowledge that you didn't directly compare with such a por…

This is fair, but as a milestone in long-term self-sufficiency, creating a $500/mo app is significant achievement.

Saving $150,000 is, too.

Which is more likely to lead to true self-sufficiency? Barring other possibilities, the savings. But given human response to positive feedback loops, a successful dev often becomes a more successful dev overtime. Hence, I favor the "first app I wrote that made $500/mo" is more significant.

Re: Tell HN: I made $1000 with my app and now making $500/mo

#60

Post by jackblemming »

cinntaile wrote: post #49
jdasdf wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

6000/0.04 = 150 000 Essentially, those 6K a year is the equivalent of a 150K portfolio

I want to push back against this a little. He gets $500/month now, there is no guarantee he will keep receiving that number when he stops maintaining and improving his app. I would assume the number will go up if he keeps improving it, but if he stops it will eventually become 0$/month.

There's no guarantee $150k invested will have 4% returns either.
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