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Discussion on: I deployed 108 MVPs in 2025. Here's the deployment platform data you actually need

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Oluwatobiloba Segun-Lean

Trying to lean more into backend but with many good BaaS services out there (e.g. Firebase), I found it hard to put in the effort. Was surprised to see this post. What would you say is the advantage of learning all these frameworks when there are almost ready made tools out there?

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Alex Chen

great question. i hit this exact decision point on project 34.

Firebase locked me into $187/month when client got 2k users. Firestore pricing = reads * writes * storage. unpredictable as hell.

here's what 108 MVPs taught me:

BaaS works when:

  • prototype < 500 users
  • standard CRUD with zero custom logic
  • client has Firebase budget

custom backend wins when:

  • need control over pricing (my sanity required this)
  • complex business logic (GraphQL resolvers, custom auth flows)
  • client wants to own their data migration path

the kicker? learned Go + Postgres + Docker in 6 weeks during projects 24-29. now deploy backends faster than configuring Firebase rules.

but real talk—Firebase auth + realtime still unbeatable for chat apps. i use hybrid approach now: Firebase auth, custom Go API for everything else. got best of both worlds on projects 67-108.