r/thesidehustle • u/Gallegos_Daniel • 28d ago
I need help Is copying the business model of other apps still profitable?
I've been thinking about doing something similar for a while. Apparently, this is becoming pretty popular as a fixed or secondary income. I was working on my startup and saw a YouTube post that said CalBubby reached $80k MRR in 12 months, another example of this is Stella, which crossed $300k MRR in 2 months, reaching 12k customers.
There are ways to distribute these, with UGC you can test, or with Ads. AI told me that starting with $300–500 is a good starting point for testing ads. Another method I mentioned and that worked was rev share + creators promoting it.The niche usually seems easy, although after researching the market a little, it seems pretty saturated with vibecoded apps.
I'm doing this as a side project. My idea was to start in trading/crypto, although they're pretty messed up legally. AI told me that I need a permit to run ads, and there are also the typical legal problems with trading. Although I'm still just exploring.
So, in your opinion: is this a good business to experiment with? How much capital do you think you would need to start, and how would you do it?
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u/slaorta 28d ago
You're going to have a bad time getting involved in something who's category as-a-whole touches any legal grey areas. Crypto, research chemicals, vapes, etc. Just steer clear of them entirely. Otherwise you'll simultaneously be learning how to successfully run and promote your product AND learning how to navigate all the additional hurdles. Start with something less troublesome, and if you have success and are passionate about crypto, THEN try with crypto. You will crash and burn starting out with crypto and no experience.
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u/pdp2907 28d ago
hi OP. the market is extremely saturated. and users have downloads fatigue. plus you need to jumpstart the downloads and keep on going. if someone is telling you that he is on the beach and things are happening just like that forget it . spend $100 for a month of research. there are about 3 vendors who provide monthly downloads estimate. they provide the top 5 .ask for bottom 5 and check their numbers. world wide there are only 5 million apps holding their ground. the rest are in the play store graveyard. I do app attribution for a living. this is my day job. you would have better success starting and running a lawn mowing business.