How to be a successful indie developer*

* Not a guarantee

There has been a lot of words written lately about how hard it is to make a decent living as an independent software developer. While I agree that it has become harder every year to stay on top of things and keep making it in a crowded space, it is possible if you apply these rules:

  1. Find a real problem to solve
  2. Make sure that those that have that problem are willing to pay a fair price for your app in order to solve it
  3. Make a great app

That is what I did with Screens and I’m making a pretty good living out of it. Of course, the app was released back in 2010 when there weren’t as many apps out there and it was easier to get noticed but it is still a proof that a $19.99 iOS app ($29.99 on the Mac) is possible.

Yes, it takes a lot more time, money and personal investment nowadays to make it as an indie but that’s what we call doing business. This isn’t 2008 anymore and it is not enough to just release a $1.99 app out there and hope to make it. Solve a problem and ask good money for it and you’ll have more chances to become successful.