Minimum viable product (MVP)

Minimum, and viable

Minimum means leaving out everything that is not needed to test the main idea: settings, integrations, polish, the second and third use case. Viable means it must still work and solve the problem for someone. A landing page with a sign-up form tests interest; an MVP tests whether people use the thing once they have it.

The term was popularised by Eric Ries in The Lean Startup, as the fastest way through the loop of building, measuring and learning.

Should you launch an MVP?

Yes, on the platforms where early adopters look for new things. Launch platforms and communities such as Hacker News, indie maker directories and weekly launch boards are full of people who expect rough edges and will tell you what is missing. A big public launch to a general audience is better saved for later, when the product is ready to keep the people it attracts.

What to measure

The point of an MVP is what you learn, so decide in advance what would count as success: how many people sign up, how many come back the next week, how many would be disappointed if it went away. Talk to the first users one by one. Their behaviour after the first visit says more than any number of upvotes on launch day.

Example

A founder wants to build a tool that turns meeting notes into tasks. Instead of building integrations with five apps, the MVP is a page where you paste notes and get a task list by email. Two hundred people try it in the first week and forty use it again, so she builds the first integration next.

Questions people ask

What is the difference between an MVP and a prototype?

A prototype shows how a product might work and is often not usable for real work. An MVP is used by real people to solve a real problem.

How long should an MVP take to build?

Weeks, not months. If it takes longer, it probably includes more than the minimum.