Build vs buy (and maintain)

Fri, 10 Apr 2026 08:43:42 +0000

Build vs buy was always a three-axis question, with maintain hidden inside both options. If you build, you’re maintaining your code. If you buy, you’re maintaining the integration into a vendor whose API will change, whose pricing will change, and whose roadmap will drift away from yours after a few years.

Buy mostly won because vendors amortize maintenance across thousands of customers. A small team can’t compete with a billing or auth vendor on that kind of math.

Software on dolftax

Build vs buy (and maintain)