The MVP Budget Framework
Target MVP cost: 10-15% of your seed round. $1.5M seed → $150-225K MVP budget → 6-10 weeks → 2-3 engineers.
What to build: the core value proposition feature and nothing else. What to fake: admin panels (use Google Sheets), onboarding (do it manually), analytics (use free tools). What to skip: localization, accessibility (add later), performance optimization, mobile app (use responsive web).
The most expensive MVP mistake: building for scale before validating demand.