TL;DR — the cost ladder
- MVP (0 → 100 paying users): ₹4-8L build, 6-10 weeks. Stripe + Razorpay + PostgreSQL + Next.js.
- Product-market fit (100 → 1,000): ₹2-6L iteration. Add subscription billing, analytics, support inbox.
- Scale (1K → 10K): ₹3-15L. Multi-tenant DB, queue infra, SOC2 starter, customer success ops.
- ₹1cr ARR + Series A readiness: ₹15-50L total annual eng spend. SOC2 audit, India + US payments, compliance.
Stage 1 — MVP (₹4-8L, 6-10 weeks)
Build the lean MVP per our MVP cost guide. Specifically for SaaS, default stack:
- Next.js 14 + TypeScript frontend
- Postgres + Drizzle/Prisma backend (deployed on Neon or AWS RDS)
- Razorpay (domestic) + Stripe India (international)
- Auth.js or Clerk for auth (faster than rolling own)
- PostHog free tier for analytics
- Postmark / Resend for transactional email
- Vercel + Cloudflare for delivery
Stage 2 — Subscription billing & multi-tenancy
Every SaaS hits these decisions early. Don't over-engineer:
- Multi-tenancy: row-level (single DB, tenant_id column) for <1,000 customers; switch to schema-per-tenant only if regulated
- Billing: Razorpay Subscriptions for India; Stripe Billing for international; layer Chargebee on top once you cross 500 active subs with complex pricing
- Trial-to-paid: 14-day no-credit-card trial converts 2-3x better than 7-day with credit card for SMB SaaS
- Dunning: WhatsApp + email per our subscription playbook
Stage 3 — Customer success + support
At ~500 paying users, support volume crosses what founder can handle. Build:
- In-app support widget (Crisp / Intercom / custom)
- WhatsApp support inbox (BSP integration)
- Knowledge base + RAG chatbot for L1 queries
- Dedicated CS hire (₹5-12 LPA junior)
Stage 4 — Compliance for enterprise sales
Enterprise India + global buyers require:
- DPDP compliance (India) — already standard; we ship by default
- SOC2 Type 1 → Type 2 (US) — $30-60K + 6-12 months for first audit
- HIPAA if healthcare
- GDPR if EU users
- VAPT annual pentest (₹50K-2L per cycle)
Hiring milestones
| Stage | Headcount | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| 0-100 users | 1-2 | Founder + agency partner (Big Helpers) |
| 100-1K | 3-5 | + in-house dev #1, designer, CS |
| 1K-10K | 8-15 | + engineering team (3-5), sales, marketing |
| 10K+ / ₹1cr ARR | 15-40 | + infra/devops, security, account exec |
For Indian SaaS founders: we run as your "fractional engineering team" through MVP and PMF. Build, iterate, hand over when you're ready to hire in-house. Most clients are with us 18-30 months. Startup playbook →
FAQ
Should I incorporate in Singapore / Delaware for SaaS?
Indian-incorporated is fine for revenue under ₹50cr. Above that or planning Series A from US VCs, Delaware C-Corp via flip-up gets considered. Talk to a startup-specialist CA — don't DIY.
How early to hire in-house?
After PMF (clear ₹2L+/month MRR with retention). Hire your first dev when you have 12+ months runway and recurring revenue you can't ignore. Detailed guide.
Last reviewed: 27 April 2026.
Want this built for you?
Talk to Kashvi — 30-min call, honest assessment, no pitch deck.