Cheap MVPs are the most expensive mistake you can make

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The startup graveyard is full of $5K MVPs that solved nothing. The cheaper the dev team, the more expensive the rebuild. Founders don’t need code fast. They need code that proves something. Cheap MVPs just make your mistakes permanent.

Everyone wants a cheap MVP.

Nobody wants to pay for a second one.

But that’s what happens.

You ship quick. You cut corners. You save cash.

And then… it doesn’t work.

Not because the product failed.

But because the thinking did.

You scoped what looked good on paper, not what exposed risk.

You let a dev shop build without asking why.

You launched noise — not signal.

Now you’re back at square one.

Only this time, you’ve burned time, cash, and confidence.

I’ve seen this pattern too many times.

A founder gets quoted £5K and thinks it’s a steal.

Six weeks later, the UI’s pretty, but nobody’s using it.

No behaviour validated. No funnel sharpened. No traction.

An MVP isn’t about saving money.

It’s about proving a thing that matters. Fast.

Don’t think “cheap.”

Think “disqualify fast.”

Think “force insight.”

Think “make it real.”

Because rebuilding is more expensive than doing it right.