A founder account of the startup programmes and credits one small team used to cut its software bill, with the steps to copy.
What this is
A post on the SaaSBoomi site by Ankit Pansari, published 12 February 2024. He describes how a six-person company ran more than 40 software tools for little or nothing, and says the saving was about $406,000 over two years (his own figure).
Programmes he used
Microsoft Startup Program: Azure credits, Visual Studio and Office 365 seats, GitHub Enterprise seats. For funded startups.
AWS Activate: up to $100,000 in the first year for startups in a recognised accelerator or backed by a VC.
YC Startup School: credits for AWS, Heroku and DigitalOcean, no accelerator needed.
Segment Startup Program: two years free, for companies under two years old or under $5M raised.
Google Cloud for Startups: needs an accelerator or venture backing.
SaaSBoomi: credits for AWS, Azure and Segment.
The Founder Club (Product Hunt): paid membership with discounts and credits.
The Secret: a free application-based programme, which he used for Airtable credits.Steps he recommends
List every tool you need and compare cost, credits, billing flexibility, ease of use and lock-in risk.
Apply to every startup programme you qualify for.
Email vendors directly and ask for a startup or early-stage discount.
Use self-hosted versions where they exist.
Stagger when you start cloud accounts, so you can test several without overspending.
Watch your cash closely, because small unnoticed charges add up.Read this with care
The post is from February 2024. Offers, credit amounts and eligibility change often, and some programmes are open only to startups with a VC or accelerator behind them. Check each programme's own page before you apply. See also our startup credits page.
Source: saasboomi.org. Summarised by Startup Monk in our own words.
