They said it couldn't be done
Inkdrop
What they said
“I tried InkDrop and couldn't justify the steep price point for something so trivial. I backup everything on my own and watch Boostnote grow as a competitor, but free...”
What actually happened
Pricing / churn
Price doubled ($4.90→$9.98/mo); ~20% subscriber churn, then stabilized at ~3%
by January 2024
The Founder
The Numbers
Apr 2017
Nov 2018
Jan 2022
Jan 2024
The Journey
November 2018
Milestone~$3,747 MRR (424,600 JPY). Matsuyama documents growth publicly.
June 2019
PressHN thread: critics say the price is too steep and free alternatives (Boostnote) are growing.
September 2020
LaunchInkdrop v5 released: 3x faster sync, plugin manager, 100+ community plugins. Noted as 4 years of solo development.
January 2021
Milestone@devaslife YouTube channel begins meaningful traction. Aesthetic lo-fi coding videos featuring Inkdrop go viral.
October 2024
MilestoneFirst MRR growth recorded since price doubling. YouTube channel at 212K+ subscribers driving 70–80% of new users.
The Pattern
“Dismissed early. Dominant later.”
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