Social media is full of people who claim they “vibe coded” an internal tooling in an afternoon. But you might not want to cancel your SaaS subscriptions just yet.
The Debate: SaaS vs Custom Internal Solutions
The subscription-based software model has dominated business operations for over a decade. But with rising SaaS costs and new AI-powered development tools, many companies are questioning if they should keep paying monthly fees or build their own internal systems instead.
For a small agency, the math looks compelling. Paying $400 monthly for Calendly, $299 for Trainual, and $150 for Typeform adds up to over $10,000 annually. Could these single-feature tools be built internally for a fraction of that cost?
How AI Is Changing the Build vs Buy Equation
AI-assisted development tools like Lovable and Cursor are transforming what’s possible for companies with limited technical resources. These tools can dramatically accelerate development time and make custom internal tooling accessible to companies that previously couldn’t consider it.
Alan Edgett, a tech CEO, reported that AI-driven development tools cut his production time from “months to weeks (days in some cases)” for new applications. The efficiency gains mean even small teams can now consider building rather than buying.
The Financial Appeal of Going Custom
The financial argument for building rather than buying looks compelling:
- One-time development costs vs perpetual subscription fees
- No per-seat pricing that scales with your team
- Features tailored to your exact workflow
- No payment for unused features in bloated platforms
Ryan Frederick points out that many businesses have become over-reliant on numerous narrow SaaS tools, paying high perpetual fees and often feeling locked in. As subscription costs mount, the idea of investing in custom solutions becomes more attractive.
The Hidden Challenges of Custom Development
Before scrapping your SaaS subscriptions, consider the less obvious costs of building and maintaining internal tools:
Ongoing Maintenance Requirements
Custom software isn’t a “build it and forget it” solution. It requires:
- Regular security updates
- Bug fixes
- Feature improvements to match changing business needs
- Technology updates as platforms evolve
Jason Lemkin of SaaStr notes that internal projects frequently fail to keep up: companies struggle to maintain custom tools over years, especially compared to dedicated product teams at SaaS vendors who continuously improve their offerings.
Integration Complexity
Modern business tools rarely exist in isolation. They need to connect with:
- Accounting systems
- CRM platforms
- Marketing tools
- Payment processors
- Authentication systems
Each integration adds complexity and potential failure points that your team must support.
Security Concerns
Building secure software requires specialized knowledge. Vulnerabilities in internal tools can lead to:
- Data breaches
- Compliance violations
- Customer trust issues
- Liability exposure
When SaaS Still Makes More Sense
For many businesses, especially smaller operations, SaaS solutions continue to offer compelling benefits:
- Immediate availability without development time
- Professional support teams
- Regular updates and improvements
- Security managed by specialists
- Proven reliability and uptime
- No internal technical debt
Tomasz Tunguz warns of the risks in going custom: maintaining complex systems requires talent, and many firms have failed at building internally only to revert to vendor solutions later.
The No-Code Middle Ground
Between full custom development and off-the-shelf SaaS lies a third option that’s gaining traction: no-code and low-code platforms.
Tools like Airtable, Smartsuite, Make (formerly Integromat), and n8n allow businesses to create custom workflows without traditional coding. These platforms offer:
- Visual interface for building applications
- Pre-built components and templates
- Integration capabilities with existing tools
- Lower learning curve than programming
- Faster implementation than custom code
Vadim Kravcenko, CTO advisor, suggests using no-code tools for early-stage needs or prototypes. “Extend it as much as the no-code allows, and once you have product-market fit and face scalability issues, invest in building a custom solution,” he advises.
Making the Right Choice for Your Business
The decision between SaaS, custom, and no-code depends on several factors:
Business Size and Resources
- Enterprise: May benefit from custom solutions due to scale economies
- Mid-size: Often best served by a hybrid approach
- Small businesses: Typically benefit most from SaaS and no-code options
Technical Capability
Consider your access to:
- In-house developers
- Budget for contractors
- Technical leadership to guide projects
Criticality and Uniqueness
Ask yourself:
- Is this function critical to your business operations?
- Does your process require unique features not available in SaaS options?
- Would custom features give you a competitive advantage?
Conclusion: Finding the Right Balance
Custom internal tooling certainly has its place in the modern business software landscape. The emergence of AI development assistants has made it more accessible than ever before.
However, for small agencies, replacing established SaaS tools with custom alternatives isn’t always practical. Security flaws, lack of stability, and limited integrations would likely create more problems than they solve. While AI tooling is great for quickly prototyping solutions, business-critical software will eventually require a dedicated development team for maintenance and growth.
No-code platforms offer a compelling middle ground. They’re simpler to maintain without a technical team, but still need someone internally or externally responsible for the system’s health. For many small to mid-sized organizations, this approach provides the best balance of customization and sustainability.
The most pragmatic approach for most companies is selective replacement: identify which tools deliver the most value as SaaS and which might benefit from custom or no-code alternatives. This balanced strategy lets you control costs without sacrificing the reliability your business depends on.
FAQ
How much can AI tools really speed up custom development?
Current AI coding assistants can reduce development time by 30-70% for many standard business applications, though complex or unusual features still require significant human expertise.
What hidden costs should I consider when building internal tools?
Beyond initial development, consider ongoing maintenance, security updates, integration management, hosting costs, and the opportunity cost of directing resources away from your core business.
Can no-code tools handle complex business logic?
Modern no-code platforms support increasingly complex workflows, though they still have limitations for highly specialized processes or heavy computational tasks.
How do I decide which SaaS tools to replace first?
Start with tools that have high subscription costs relative to their functionality, address non-unique business processes, and have straightforward requirements that could be replicated without specialized expertise.
What’s the minimum technical team needed to maintain custom tools?
Even with simple custom tools, you’ll need at least one person with development skills for maintenance and troubleshooting, plus ideally someone with security knowledge to ensure ongoing protection.
