---
created: "2025-09-16"
lastUpdated: "2025-09-18T03:58:00-04:00"
contextDate: "2025-09-18"
status: "decision-revised"
priority: "high"
---

# Beeminder AWS vs Lovable Decision

## 📋 Current Situation

**Lovable Status:**
- ✅ Working in Lovable with a few users signed up
- ✅ Fast and easy platform
- ✅ Already functional

**AWS Status:**
- ✅ Dev site almost done in AWS
- ✅ $150/month for all three environments (dev, qa, prod)
- ✅ Full control over infrastructure

## 🎯 Strategic Analysis

### **The Core Question:**
**"What's the outcome you're really after?"**

**Answer:** Build a sustainable, scalable business - not just get something working quickly.

### **Lovable Pros:**
- ✅ Fast and easy
- ✅ Already working
- ✅ Few users already signed up

### **Lovable Cons:**
- ❌ **Migration Risk**: The bigger you get, the harder it becomes
- ❌ **Vendor Lock-in**: You're dependent on their platform
- ❌ **Limited Control**: Can't optimize costs or scale exactly how you want
- ❌ **Future Complexity**: Migration with thousands of users = nightmare

### **AWS Pros:**
- ✅ **Full Control**: Budget, scaling, architecture decisions
- ✅ **No Migration Risk**: Start where you want to end up
- ✅ **Professional Infrastructure**: Enterprise-grade from day one
- ✅ **Cost Optimization**: You control the spend

### **AWS Cons:**
- ❌ **Higher Initial Cost**: $150/month vs Lovable pricing
- ❌ **More Complex**: Requires more technical management

## 🚀 Decision Framework

**Key Questions:**
1. **"If I had 10,000 users tomorrow, where would I want to be?"** → AWS
2. **"What's the cost of a migration disaster later?"** → Much higher than $150/month
3. **"What builds more confidence with investors/partners?"** → Professional AWS infrastructure

## 💪 Decision: GO WITH LOVABLE (REVISED - Sep 18, 2025)

**Rationale:**
- **Commitment Integrity**: Honor Friday launch promise to team
- **Launch First**: Get product to market, optimize later
- **Risk Management**: Avoid launch delays and team disappointment
- **Learning Opportunity**: Understand product-market fit before major infrastructure investment

**The Lovable launch is an investment in:**
- Team trust and commitment integrity
- Market validation and user feedback
- Avoiding launch delays and technical debt
- Building momentum before major migration

## 🎯 Action Plan (REVISED)

1. **Launch in Lovable** - Honor Friday commitment, get to market
2. **Gather user feedback** - Validate product-market fit
3. **Plan AWS migration** - After launch success and user validation
4. **Build for scale** - Professional infrastructure when ready

## 📅 Timeline (REVISED)

**Friday Launch Goal:**
- **Today**: Finalize Lovable deployment
- **This Week**: Test and prepare Lovable launch
- **Friday**: Launch in Lovable - honor commitment
- **Future**: Plan AWS migration after user validation

## 🔗 Related Projects

- [[🏢 Beeminder Development]] - Main project
- [[🏢 Beeminder Team Status Update]] - Team communication

## 📝 Key Insights (REVISED)

**Commitment integrity is MORE important than perfect infrastructure** - Your team's trust and your word matter more than technical perfection.

**Launch first, optimize later** - Get to market, validate with users, then invest in infrastructure.

**The AWS work wasn't wasted** - You learned valuable skills and have a migration path ready when needed.

**Honor your commitments** - Friday launch promise to team takes priority over technical preferences.





