# Buildict

> Buildict helps small teams stop overpaying for software. Stack Scan reads a card or bank statement in the browser (nothing is uploaded), finds every SaaS subscription and recommends what to cut, consolidate, switch, downgrade or build. Each tool has a dated, sourced verdict: BUILD, HYBRID, SWITCH or BUY.

Prices were checked by hand on 2026-10-26. Cite the tool page you use.

## Main pages
- [Stack Scan](https://buildict.com/scan/): free, private SaaS spend audit from a statement
- [All verdicts](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/): build, buy or switch, by tool
- [Build Blueprints](https://buildict.com/blueprints/): step-by-step guides to replace a tool with your own app
- [Build Kit](https://buildict.com/build-kit/): turn an app idea into a free stack, open-source starters, AI skills, MCP servers and a plan
- [Stack guides](https://buildict.com/stack/): free tiers, catches and prices of databases, hosting, login, email, payments, AI APIs, AI coding tools and starters
- [How we score](https://buildict.com/methodology/): the cost formula and verdict rules
- [Developers](https://buildict.com/developers/): MCP server at https://buildict.com/mcp and JSON API at https://buildict.com/api/tools.json

## Verdicts
- [1Password](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/1password/): BUY. Buy it. You should not build a password manager, and the Teams Starter Pack is $24.95 a month for 10 people. (Passwords & security)
- [Adobe Creative Cloud](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/adobe-creative-cloud/): SWITCH. Switch to Affinity. It is free for photo, vector and layout work, against $69.99 a month for Creative Cloud Pro. (Design & creative)
- [Ahrefs](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/ahrefs/): SWITCH. Switch to Mangools, and use Ahrefs Free for audits. You’d pay $26 a month instead of $108. (SEO, social & analytics)
- [Airtable](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/airtable/): BUILD. Build it for one stable workflow. Five editors on Team cost about $3,600 over 3 years. (Automation & databases)
- [Asana](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/asana/): SWITCH. Switch to ClickUp or Trello. ClickUp’s free plan has no member cap, and Trello costs $5 a user against Asana’s $10.99. (Project management)
- [beehiiv](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/beehiiv/): BUY. Buy it, but stay on the free plan until you need paid subscriptions or automations. (Email marketing)
- [Buffer](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/buffer/): BUY. Buy it. At $25 a month for five channels, Buffer costs less than the API breakage you’d chase. (SEO, social & analytics)
- [Calendly](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/calendly/): BUY. Buy it. At $10 a month, Calendly costs less than fixing the bugs you’d ship. (Scheduling)
- [Canny](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/canny/): BUILD. Build it. Posts, votes and a status column are basic database work, and Pro starts at $79 a month. (Customer support & feedback)
- [Canva](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/canva/): BUY. Buy it. Canva Pro is $12 a month, and a homemade design tool costs nearly 9 times that over 3 years. (Design & creative)
- [ChatGPT](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/chatgpt/): BUY. Buy it. At $20 a seat, ChatGPT Business costs less than running your own chat app on the API. (AI tools)
- [Claude](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/claude/): BUY. Buy it. A $20 Team seat includes Claude Code, and a homemade setup on the API costs more. (AI tools)
- [ClickUp](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/clickup/): BUY. Buy it, or start on the free plan. At $7 a user, ClickUp costs far less than building even a slice of it. (Project management)
- [Cursor](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/cursor/): SWITCH. Switch to GitHub Copilot Business. At $19 a seat it costs 37% less than Cursor Teams at $30. (AI tools)
- [DocuSign](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/docusign/): SWITCH. Switch to SignWell or Dropbox Sign. Both do the signing for about $10 a month, against $25 for DocuSign Standard. Do not build your own. (Documents & e-signatures)
- [Dropbox](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/dropbox/): SWITCH. Switch to Google Drive or OneDrive. Both come in a suite that costs less than Dropbox alone. (Files & storage)
- [Figma](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/figma/): BUY. Buy it. A shared design canvas is one of the hardest things to build, and the Starter plan is free to try. (Design & creative)
- [GitHub](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/github/): BUY. Buy it, or stay on Free. GitHub costs $4 a user, and hosting your own code server costs more in your time. (Developer tools & hosting)
- [GitHub Copilot](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/github-copilot/): BUY. Buy it. Copilot Business is $19 a seat, and a homemade assistant costs about twice that once you pay for the API. (AI tools)
- [Google Workspace](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/google-workspace/): BUY. Buy it. Email, docs, storage and video calls for $14 a user is hard to beat, and none of it is worth building. (Docs & productivity)
- [Grammarly](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/grammarly/): SWITCH. Switch to LanguageTool if spelling and grammar are what you use. It costs about half as much as Grammarly Pro. (Docs & productivity)
- [Hootsuite](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/hootsuite/): SWITCH. Switch to Buffer. Ten channels cost $50 a month there, against $99 for Hootsuite Standard. (SEO, social & analytics)
- [Hotjar](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/hotjar/): SWITCH. Switch to Microsoft Clarity. It records sessions and draws heatmaps for $0, with no traffic cap. (SEO, social & analytics)
- [HubSpot](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/hubspot/): BUY. Buy it. At $20 a seat, HubSpot Starter costs about the same as keeping a homemade CRM running. (Sales & CRM)
- [Intercom](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/intercom/): HYBRID. Hybrid. Build your help center and AI answers, and keep a small inbox for live chat. (Customer support & feedback)
- [Jira](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/jira/): BUY. Buy it, and start free. Jira costs nothing for up to 10 users, and Standard runs about $8 a user beyond that. (Project management)
- [Jotform](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/jotform/): SWITCH. Switch to Tally. Its free plan covers what most small teams use Jotform’s $34 plan for. (Forms & surveys)
- [Kit](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/kit/): SWITCH. Switch to MailerLite. At 1,000 subscribers it costs $17.10 a month against Kit’s $33. (Email marketing)
- [Linear](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/linear/): SWITCH. Switch to Plane. It imports Linear issues and cycles, is free for up to 12 people, and Pro costs $6 a user against Linear’s $10. (Project management)
- [Linktree](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/linktree/): BUILD. Build it. It’s one static page, and the real win is your own domain, not the $12. (Websites & link pages)
- [Loom](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/loom/): SWITCH. Switch to Cap or ScreenPal. Both cost about half of Loom Business for the same screen recordings and share links. (Chat & meetings)
- [Lovable](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/lovable/): BUY. Buy it, one month at a time. Lovable Pro starts at $25, and you can cancel when the build is done. (AI tools)
- [Mailchimp](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/mailchimp/): BUY. Buy it. Sending email is easy. Getting it into the inbox isn’t. (Email marketing)
- [Make](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/make/): BUY. Buy it. At $9 a month for 10,000 credits, Make is the cheap end of automation. (Automation & databases)
- [Microsoft 365](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/microsoft-365/): BUY. Buy it. At $14 a user you get email, Teams, desktop Office apps and 1 TB each, and nothing home-built comes close. (Docs & productivity)
- [Miro](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/miro/): SWITCH. Switch to Microsoft Whiteboard, FigJam or Excalidraw. Each is free or a fraction of Miro’s price for everyday whiteboarding. (Design & creative)
- [monday.com](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/monday/): SWITCH. Switch to Trello or ClickUp. Five seats on monday.com Standard cost $60 a month; Trello is $25 and ClickUp has a free plan. (Project management)
- [Notion](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/notion/): BUY. Buy it. A shared editor with databases is hard to build, and Notion Plus is only $10 a user. (Docs & productivity)
- [Otter.ai](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/otter/): SWITCH. Switch to Fathom. Its free plan records and transcribes without a cap, which saves about $1,500 over 3 years for five people. (AI tools)
- [PandaDoc](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/pandadoc/): BUY. Buy it. Starter is $19 a seat, and the legally valid signature is the part you should not build. (Documents & e-signatures)
- [Pipedrive](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/pipedrive/): SWITCH. Switch to HubSpot Starter. At $20 a seat it costs about half of Pipedrive Growth’s $39. (Sales & CRM)
- [Semrush](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/semrush/): SWITCH. Switch to Mangools. It costs $26 a month against Semrush’s $117, and Google Search Console is free. (SEO, social & analytics)
- [Slack](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/slack/): BUY. Buy it, unless you already pay for Google Workspace or Microsoft 365. Then Google Chat or Teams is included. (Chat & meetings)
- [Squarespace](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/squarespace/): SWITCH. Switch to Framer or WordPress.com. For a site without a store they cost $8 to $10 a month, not $29. (Websites & link pages)
- [SurveyMonkey](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/surveymonkey/): SWITCH. Switch to Google Forms or Tally. Both are free, and both handle a typical team survey. (Forms & surveys)
- [Tally](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/tally/): BUY. Buy it, or stay on the free plan. Tally Pro costs $24 a month and mostly removes branding and adds a custom domain. (Forms & surveys)
- [Trello](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/trello/): BUY. Buy it. The free plan covers up to 10 collaborators, and building costs more time than it saves. (Project management)
- [Typeform](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/typeform/): BUILD. Build it if your forms rarely change. A form plus a database is a weekend job. (Forms & surveys)
- [Vercel](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/vercel/): SWITCH. Switch to Cloudflare Pages or Netlify. Cloudflare has a free plan and Netlify Pro is $20 flat for the whole team, against $20 per developer on Vercel. (Developer tools & hosting)
- [Webflow](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/webflow/): SWITCH. Switch to Framer or WordPress.com. A plain site costs $8 to $10 a month there, against $25 on Webflow Premium. (Websites & link pages)
- [Wix](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/wix/): SWITCH. Switch to WordPress.com or Framer. A plain business site costs $8 to $10 a month there, against $29 on Wix Core. (Websites & link pages)
- [Zapier](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/zapier/): HYBRID. Hybrid. Move your two or three busiest Zaps into code and keep Zapier for the rest. (Automation & databases)
- [Zendesk](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/zendesk/): SWITCH. Switch to Freshdesk. Growth is $19 an agent against $55 for Zendesk Suite Team. (Customer support & feedback)
- [Zoom](https://buildict.com/build-or-buy/zoom/): SWITCH. Switch to Google Meet or Microsoft Teams. Both come with the suite most small teams already pay for. (Chat & meetings)

## Blueprints
- [Build your own team CRM (an Airtable replacement)](https://buildict.com/blueprints/airtable/): One stable Airtable workflow rebuilt as an internal app, with a lightweight CRM as the worked example: companies, contacts, deals and activities, plus roles, row-level security and CSV import from your base. Postgres on Supabase, built with Lovable or Claude Code.
- [Build your own feedback board (a Canny replacement)](https://buildict.com/blueprints/canny/): A public board where customers post ideas, vote and comment, with a roadmap and a changelog. Postgres on Supabase, built with Lovable or Claude Code.
- [Build your own help center with AI answers (a partial Intercom replacement)](https://buildict.com/blueprints/intercom/): A help center on your own domain, AI answers grounded only in your articles, and a talk-to-a-person hand-off to your shared inbox. Live chat stays on a small Intercom plan or a cheaper tool.
- [Build your own link-in-bio page (a Linktree replacement)](https://buildict.com/blueprints/linktree/): One fast page of links on your own domain, with privacy-friendly click counts and an optional tiny admin. A static page built with Lovable or Claude Code, plus Supabase only if you want the admin.
- [Build your own forms (a Typeform replacement)](https://buildict.com/blueprints/typeform/): The handful of forms your team actually uses, one question per screen if you like, with responses in your own Postgres, an email or Slack alert and CSV export. Built with Lovable or Claude Code on Supabase.
- [Move your busiest Zaps into code (a partial Zapier replacement)](https://buildict.com/blueprints/zapier/): Rebuild the two or three Zaps that drive your Zapier bill as Supabase Edge Functions with a job queue, retries, a run log and failure alerts. The long tail stays on Zapier, on a cheaper plan.

## Build Kits by type of app
- [How to build a SaaS app with accounts and subscriptions for free](https://buildict.com/build-kit/saas/): Software people log into and pay for monthly: a dashboard, the records it manages, settings and a paid plan.
- [How to build a two-sided marketplace for free](https://buildict.com/build-kit/marketplace/): Sellers list, buyers find and pay, and the platform keeps a fee: listings, search, split payments, messages and reviews.
- [How to build a booking and scheduling app for free](https://buildict.com/build-kit/booking/): Providers publish availability, clients book (and often pay), and everyone gets confirmations and reminders.
- [How to build an online store for free](https://buildict.com/build-kit/ecommerce/): A catalog, a cart and a checkout, plus order emails and an admin to add products and ship orders.
- [How to build a community or social app for free](https://buildict.com/build-kit/community/): Members with profiles post, comment and react, with a feed, notifications and moderation tools.
- [How to build a content site or blog for free](https://buildict.com/build-kit/content/): Fast pages people find through search and come back to: posts, tags, SEO basics and a newsletter sign-up.
- [How to build an internal tool or CRM for free](https://buildict.com/build-kit/internal-tool/): A private app for your team: tables to search and edit records, forms, roles and a simple dashboard.
- [How to build an AI-powered app for free](https://buildict.com/build-kit/ai-app/): An app built around a model: a chat or form that streams answers, often over the user's own documents, with usage limits and a paid plan.
- [How to build a directory or listings site for free](https://buildict.com/build-kit/directory/): A searchable list of things (tools, places, jobs) with a page for each, submissions, and paid featured spots.
- [How to build an online course or membership site for free](https://buildict.com/build-kit/course/): Lessons behind a paywall, with free previews, progress tracking, quizzes and email sequences.
- [How to build a landing page with a waitlist for free](https://buildict.com/build-kit/landing/): One page that explains the idea and collects emails, to test demand before you build the product.

## Stack guides
- [Free databases for web apps](https://buildict.com/stack/databases/): Where your app keeps its data. Most AI-built apps use Postgres through a service that also handles login and files, so you wire up fewer things.
- [Free login and auth services](https://buildict.com/stack/auth/): Sign-up, login, password resets and social logins. Never build these from scratch: use your database’s auth, a hosted service, or an open-source library.
- [Free hosting for web apps](https://buildict.com/stack/hosting/): Where your site and server code run. Watch the fine print: some free plans don’t allow commercial use, and some put your app to sleep when nobody visits.
- [Free file storage and image hosting](https://buildict.com/stack/file-storage/): Photos, documents and videos your users upload. The price that bites is usually egress (data downloaded), not storage.
- [Free email APIs for apps](https://buildict.com/stack/email/): Login links, receipts, reminders and newsletters. Send from your own domain with SPF and DKIM set up, or your emails land in spam.
- [Payment providers compared](https://buildict.com/stack/payments/): No monthly fees here, just a cut of each sale. The big choice: a payment processor (lowest fees, you handle sales tax and VAT) or a merchant of record (higher fees, they handle tax for you).
- [Free analytics tools](https://buildict.com/stack/analytics/): Know where visitors come from and whether they do the one thing that matters. Cookie-free tools may let you skip the cookie banner (check your local rules).
- [Free error tracking and uptime monitoring](https://buildict.com/stack/monitoring/): Hear about crashes and downtime before your users tell you.
- [Background jobs, queues and caching](https://buildict.com/stack/background-jobs/): Work that shouldn’t happen while the user waits: reminders, emails, imports, AI calls. Plus caching and rate limiting.
- [Search for your app](https://buildict.com/stack/search/): Start with your database’s built-in full-text search; add a search service when you need typo tolerance and instant results at scale.
- [Realtime and chat services](https://buildict.com/stack/realtime/): Live updates, chat, presence and collaborative editing.
- [AI model APIs and vector databases](https://buildict.com/stack/ai-apis/): For apps with AI features. Call models from your server only, cap usage per user, and keep embeddings next to your data when you can.
- [Maps for your app](https://buildict.com/stack/maps/): Map libraries are free; map tiles and geocoding are where the costs and usage rules are.
- [AI app builders and coding agents](https://buildict.com/stack/ai-app-builders/): AI app builders (Lovable, Bolt, v0) build from a prompt in the browser. AI coding agents (Claude Code, Cursor) work in a real codebase on your machine. Many people start in the first and move to the second.
- [AI skills, rules and MCP servers for building apps](https://buildict.com/stack/ai-skills/): Skills and rules teach your AI coding tool good habits (testing, planning, your framework’s best practices). MCP servers let it read your database, docs, browser and error logs.
- [Open-source starters and self-hostable apps](https://buildict.com/stack/starters/): Don’t start from an empty folder. Check the license badge first: MIT and Apache are fine for any business; AGPL means you must publish your changes if you run it as a service.
- [Free UI kits, icons and design tools](https://buildict.com/stack/ui/): Frameworks, component libraries, icons, fonts and the small libraries most apps end up needing. All free; most are MIT licensed.