The €500/Month SaaS Stack You Can Replace with Free Tools Today
Last Tuesday, I watched a founder friend open his credit card statement.
The €500/Month SaaS Stack You Can Replace with Free Tools Today
Last Tuesday, I watched a founder friend open his credit card statement. His face dropped: €547 in monthly SaaS subscriptions. "When did it get this high?" he asked. Six months earlier, it was under €200.
This isn't just about the money. It's the creeping realization that you're paying premium prices for features you barely use. And here's the kicker – most of these paid tools have free alternatives that work just as well.
The Real Cost of SaaS Bloat
Let's break down a typical small business stack:
- CRM: €65/month
- Email Marketing: €79/month
- Social Media Scheduler: €49/month
- Project Management: €99/month
- Analytics: €99/month
- Design Tools: €89/month
- Customer Support: €69/month
Total: €549/month or €6,588/year
Your Free Alternative Stack
Customer Management
Instead of Hubspot (€65/month):
- BreezyCRM - Free for unlimited contacts
- Actual features you need: Contact management, deal tracking, email integration
Email Marketing
Instead of Mailchimp (€79/month):
- Sendinblue Free - 300 emails/day
- MailerLite Free - 1,000 subscribers
Social Media
Instead of Buffer (€49/month):
- Later - Free for basic scheduling
- Facebook's native scheduler
Project Management
Instead of Monday.com (€99/month):
- ClickUp Free - Unlimited tasks
- Trello Free - Perfect for small teams
Analytics & Tracking
Instead of Mixpanel (€99/month):
- TrackSimple - Free competitor monitoring
- Google Analytics 4 - Enterprise-grade analytics
Design
Instead of Canva Pro (€89/month):
- Canva Free - 250,000+ templates
- GIMP - Photoshop alternative
Customer Support
Instead of Zendesk (€69/month):
- Freshdesk Free - 10 agents
- Discord community server
Migration Guide: The 2-Hour Switch
-
Export Your Data (30 mins)
- Download CSV files from each paid tool
- Save templates and workflows
-
Quick Setup (45 mins)
- Set up free accounts
- Import basic data
- Connect team emails
-
Team Training (45 mins)
- Record quick Loom videos
- Create process docs
- Schedule 30-min team walkthrough
Real Example: Marketing Agency Switch
Sarah runs a 5-person agency in Berlin. Her monthly tools cost: €489
- Exported customer data to BreezyCRM
- Moved social scheduling to Later
- Switched analytics to TrackSimple
- New monthly cost: €0
Time to switch: 1 afternoon Monthly savings: €489 Annual savings: €5,868
Your Next 10 Minutes
Right now, you can:
- Keep paying €500+/month for features you don't use
- Or start the switch with one tool in 10 minutes
Here's what happens next:
- Minute 1-3: Pick your highest monthly cost tool
- Minute 4-7: Set up its free alternative
- Minute 8-10: Export your first batch of data
Then automate the bigger picture: Once you've switched the basics, set up TrackSimple to monitor competitor pricing and features automatically.