What it costs me to test an idea
My usual costs
Most of my ideas cost me about $16 to try. That's the domain. Everything else is free or close to it, and the bills below are my real ones.
The short version
A new idea costs me a domain and an afternoon. Ongoing, everything I run costs about $48 a month, and the part that's really for the sites is closer to $8: Amplify and Gemini. Claude, Google Workspace and Calendly would be there even without the side projects.
What I use, and what I pay
These are my real numbers as of October 2026.
| What | What it does for me | What I pay |
|---|---|---|
| Route 53 | Domains | $16 a year per .com |
| AWS Amplify | Hosts the sites, deploys from GitHub, free SSL certificates | About $4 a month |
| Gemini Flash Lite | The AI behind most tools, with tight prompts | About $4 a month |
| AWS Lambda | Runs the small bits of code behind the tools | Next to nothing; it only runs when someone uses a tool |
| Claude Pro | Thinking ideas through and writing the code | $20 a month, spread across everything I build |
| Google Workspace | Email on my own domains | $8 a month |
| Calendly and Google Meet | Mentoring calls | $12 a month |
| GitHub | Where the code lives | Free |
| Google Analytics, Search Console, Keyword Planner, Ahrefs' free tools | Seeing who comes and what they searched | Free |
| Notepad | Where I edit most of the HTML | Free |
| Surface Pro | The laptop it all happens on | $1,000, once |
What a test site actually needs
A domain, one page, a way to collect an email address, and a way to see whether anyone came. Everything else can wait until somebody wants what you're selling.
If you're not technical
You don't need any of my setup. The same test works with a domain from Porkbun, a one-page site written by SideFrog's “Build the page” prompt (or any simple page builder), and a free Google Form for sign-ups. Same idea, much less setup.
What I don't pay for yet
Email marketing software, a logo, ads, and a separate company for each idea. I'd start paying for those once an idea has customers, not before.
Got an idea? SideFrog gives you a straight verdict, who'd pay, a first test to run and names with an open .com, in about ten seconds.
Check your ideaWant help building it? Mark helps people vibe code their first site with AI. Pick a time with Mark or message him on LinkedIn.