Starting Up

The resources founders actually use.

Every essay, video, podcast, book and tool behind 1,327 answered founder questions, in one place, each with a note on why it is here.

What founders use most, ranked by how many answers lean on it.

The department's own guide to which return form fits whom, including ITR-3 for individuals with business income and ITR-4... incometax.gov.in Article · Help page Which ITR form applies to me? (ITR-1 to ITR-4) Income Tax Department, Government of India
The government's own portal where GST returns are filed and paid, free. Most businesses prepare the data in their billing or... gst.gov.in Tool · Portal GST Portal Goods and Services Tax Network
Clear's page for CA-assisted income tax filing. For a freelancer, proprietor or professional who wants a CA to prepare and file... cleartax.in Tool · Pricing page ClearTax expert-assisted ITR filing plans Clear (Defmacro Software)
Intuit's page for US business returns, for a US sole proprietor, S-corp or partnership only; it does not file Indian returns.... turbotax.intuit.com Tool · Pricing page TurboTax small business tax filing Intuit
The IRS's own free filing program for US individuals, which covers a sole proprietor's Schedule C. Guided software is free with... irs.gov Tool · Program page IRS Free File: do your federal taxes for free Internal Revenue Service
HMRC's own page saying every VAT-registered business must keep VAT records and file VAT Returns with compatible software,... gov.uk Article · Guidance Find software that's compatible with Making Tax Digital for VAT HM Revenue & Customs
HMRC's searchable list of every recognised MTD for VAT product, record-keeping and bridging, filterable by what you need. Every... tax.service.gov.uk Tool · Search tool Find software for Making Tax Digital for VAT (HMRC search service) HM Revenue & Customs
HMRC's own timetable for MTD for Income Tax, which reaches sole traders and landlords in stages by qualifying income: over... gov.uk Article · Guidance Find out if and when you need to use Making Tax Digital for Income Tax HM Revenue & Customs
HMRC's checklist for picking MTD for Income Tax software: what it must do, what to look for, and the note that free products... gov.uk Article · Guidance Choose the right software for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax HM Revenue & Customs
Xero's UK prices, for a UK small business that wants HMRC-recognised accounting that files VAT and is MTD for Income Tax ready.... xero.com Tool · Pricing page Xero UK pricing plans Xero
FreeAgent's UK prices, for freelancers, sole traders and small limited companies: £19 a month for a sole trader, £27 for a... freeagent.com Tool · Pricing page FreeAgent pricing FreeAgent
Intuit's UK plans. Simple Start, Essentials, Plus and Advanced all manage and submit VAT to HMRC and are MTD for Income Tax... quickbooks.intuit.com Tool · Pricing page QuickBooks UK pricing Intuit
Airtable's own plans. It looks like a spreadsheet but links records like a database, for a small team tracking orders, clients... airtable.com Tool · Pricing page Airtable pricing Airtable
Google's no-code tool that turns a Google Sheet into a phone or web app, for field teams and shops already living in Sheets.... appsheet.com Tool · Pricing page AppSheet pricing Google
Supabase is a hosted Postgres database with auth and storage, for when a developer is building an app or internal tool on your... supabase.com Tool · Pricing page Supabase pricing Supabase
Google's own limits for Docs, Sheets and Slides: a Google Sheet holds up to 20 million cells or 100 MB. Useful for knowing that... support.google.com Article · Help page Files you can store in Google Drive (Google Sheets limits) Google
An August 2026 guide on the signs a team has outgrown spreadsheets and how to migrate without a big project. Written by a... basedash.com Article · ~10 min read Spreadsheets vs databases: when to make the switch Max Musing, Basedash
Marg's overview, which states who it is built for: retailers, distributors, pharma and FMCG businesses across India, with batch... margcompusoft.com Tool · Product page Marg ERP: billing, inventory and GST software for distributors Marg ERP
Tally's own help page on running job work orders, either as the principal manufacturer sending material out or as the job... help.tallysolutions.com Article · 4 min read Job Work in TallyPrime Tally Solutions
Frappe's hosting prices for ERPNext, the free and open source ERP. A single site on shared servers starts at Rs 410 a month, a... frappe.io Tool · Pricing page ERPNext pricing on Frappe Cloud Frappe
The official ERPNext manual for its manufacturing module: bills of materials, workstations and routing, work orders, production... docs.frappe.io Article · Docs ERPNext manufacturing documentation Frappe
Odoo's rupee prices. One app is free for unlimited users; Standard, with every app including Manufacturing (MRP), Inventory and... odoo.com Tool · Pricing page Odoo pricing (India) Odoo
Katana's own plans for product makers. The Free plan costs $0 with no card, covers up to 30 SKUs with unlimited users and... katanamrp.com Tool · Pricing page Katana pricing Katana
Fleetx is a Gurugram-based fleet software company, and this is its ERP for transporters: trip-level profit and loss across... fleetx.ai Tool · Product page Fleetx Transport ERP Fleetx

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Playbooks

A goal, and the route through it a step at a time.

Find an idea worth pursuing Spot problems worth solving and find the one that actually fits you. 4 steps Validate before you build Get real evidence people want it before you write a line of code. 4 steps Understand your customers Talk to real users, define who you're for, and read the market clearly. 4 steps From idea to first customers The idea-stage spine: find a problem, prove it, talk to customers, and land the first ten. 4 steps Build an MVP without code Ship a first version with no-code tools before you hire anyone. 4 steps Build and launch your first product Turn a validated idea into something real people can use. 6 steps Find and work with developers Hire, brief, and work with builders without getting burned. 4 steps Name and brand your startup Name it, design an identity, and say what it does in a line. 3 steps Build a landing page that converts A page that loads fast, earns trust, and turns visitors into signups. 4 steps Get your first customers The scrappy, unscalable work of going from zero to your first paying users. 5 steps Sell it yourself, founder-led Reach out, run the conversation, and close before you have a sales team. 4 steps Grow with content and SEO Compound reach with content, search, and a founder audience. 3 steps Grow with paid ads Spend that returns: the channels, metrics, and loops behind it. 4 steps Price and package your product Charge for value, package it right, and check the numbers work. 3 steps Bootstrap instead of raising Fund growth from revenue, and keep control of your company. 4 steps Raise your first round Understand the game before you pitch: whether to raise, from whom, and on what terms. 5 steps Find a co-founder, split equity Find the right partner and split equity without regret. 3 steps Set up the company right Incorporate, split equity, protect your IP, and make your first hires. 4 steps Survive founder life Mindset, burnout, the leap, and the parts nobody warns you about. 5 steps Build in India The India-specific playbook: schemes, government, enterprise, and the local market. 5 steps

The questions founders start with

What are good startup ideas in India right now? The ideas Indian investors are backing in 2026 sit in a few places: AI built into one industry's daily work (vertical AI for B2B, where software fu... Beginner 5 resources → How do I find product-market fit? Narrow until a small group cannot do without you, then widen. Pick the segment where usage is strongest, talk to those people every week, and chang... Intermediate 9 resources → Do I actually need a co-founder, or can I go solo? You don't strictly need one, but the data says teams outlast solos: complementary skills, shared load, and someone to argue you out of bad calls al... Beginner 3 resources → How do I build an MVP for my startup, step by step? Write down the one assumption that kills the idea if it is wrong, then build the cheapest thing that tests it and get it to real users within weeks... Beginner 9 resources → Which tool should I use to analyse qualitative data like interview notes? For a founder with a dozen interviews, Gemini Notebook, which is free, or Claude, free or $20 a month on Pro: load the transcripts, ask for the rec... Beginner 6 resources → How do I get my first client as a freelancer? Your first client is most likely someone who already knows you or someone they know, so start there before marketplaces. 1) Pick one service for on... Beginner 6 resources → How do I decide how much to charge for my product? Stop guessing and stop pricing off your costs, price off the value the customer gets and their willingness to pay. Talk to customers about pricing,... Beginner 3 resources → Should I raise venture capital or bootstrap my startup? Raise VC only if your business needs a big pile of cash to reach escape velocity before someone else does, and if a 10x-in-a-few-years outcome is g... Beginner 3 resources →

Questions for your situation

The Aspiring Founder The Idea-Stage Founder The Builder The Launcher The Grower The Student Founder The Indie Hacker The Technical Solo Founder The Non-Technical Founder The Domain Expert The Women Founder The Anywhere Founder The Corporate Switcher The Repeat Founder

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