The $3,000/month SaaS bill I'd replace tomorrow
I've audited the software stacks of over 50 online businesses in the last two years. The pattern is so consistent I could write it in my sleep.
Every single business doing between $1M and $10M ARR is wasting at least 30% of their monthly SaaS spend.
The usual suspects
The three most common categories of waste:
- **Duplicate tools** — Three analytics platforms, two CRMs, four project management tools. Each one was tried, adopted by one person, and never cancelled.
- **Enterprise plans on starter usage** — You're paying for 10,000 contacts in your email tool but only have 800 subscribers.
- **"Set and forget" subscriptions** — Tools that were essential for a three-month project two years ago and are still billing you.
The exercise I run with every client
Export your last 12 months of SaaS spending. Group every tool by category. Ask one question per tool: "If this went away tomorrow, would anyone notice?"
The answer is almost always no for about a third of them.
The real cost
It's not just the $3,000/month. It's the cognitive load. Every tool your team has to context-switch between is a tax on productivity. Every login they can't find is a friction point.
Replace the cruft with fewer, better tools — or build exactly what you need. You'll save money and time.