Am I Building SaaS, PaaS, or 'Oh No, Everything Costs Money'?

Let's put it this way, using an example everyone can understand: cooking.

SaaS (Software as a Service) This is like going directly to a restaurant to eat. You don't need to buy groceries, light the stove, wash dishes, or even wipe the table. You just sit down, order, and eat. After eating, you pay and leave.

Applied to software, it means you directly use the software's functions, such as using cloud storage to save files, online documents to write, or email to send messages. You don't have to worry about which server the software is on, how it's maintained, or if it has bugs. You just pay a monthly or annual membership fee and use it directly.

PaaS (Platform as a Service) This is like renting a fully equipped central kitchen. The kitchen has top-of-the-line stoves, ovens, pots, pans, range hoods, and even water, electricity, and gas connections are all set up for you. But what dishes to cook, what ingredients to buy, how to cook, and how many chefs to hire—that's all up to you.

Applied to software development, it means the service provider offers a development platform. This platform has already prepared complex and troublesome things like servers, databases, operating systems, and middleware. You and your team just need to put your code (your "recipes and ingredients") on it, and you can create your own software (dishes) for your customers to use. You don't have to worry about what to do if the server hardware breaks down or if the operating system needs upgrading.

The "Everything Costs Money" Model This isn't a standard classification; it's more like a user experience, or a "rip-off" pricing model.

Using the cooking example again, this is like:

• You go to a restaurant to eat (SaaS), and then find out napkins cost money, pouring a glass of water costs money, and using the vinegar on the table also costs money.
• You rent a central kitchen (PaaS), and then find out using the oven once is separately charged, lighting the stove once is separately charged, and even using an extra bowl costs money.

In short, the service provider breaks down a seemingly complete service into countless small pieces, and every little extra thing you use costs money. This model can be encountered in both SaaS and PaaS. It gives people the feeling of "walking on eggshells, full of pitfalls," with unexpected charges constantly popping up.

So, what you're actually doing depends on what you provide to your customers:

• Providing customers with a ready-to-use finished software product? That's SaaS.
• Providing customers with a platform/environment where they can develop their own software? That's PaaS.
• Regardless of what you provide, constantly trying to charge for every little detail? That's the "Everything Costs Money" model, which is a business strategy, not a technical model, and usually has a bad reputation.