Community and expert-led classes for small-time entrepreneurs; sold to Gumroad in 2025.
Sold for $3.6M
diff ~/p/daniel-vassallo ~/p/nicolas-cole
Daniel Vassallo vs Nicolas Cole
Products, revenue & stack compared side by side.
Writer and co-founder of Ship 30 for 30, author of The Art & Business of Online Writing
@Nicolascole77 United States
Daniel Vassallo vs Nicolas Cole at a glance
Both Daniel Vassallo and Nicolas Cole are bootstrapped. They overlap in Educators & Course Creators and Creators & Writers. Daniel is based in Seattle, United States, Nicolas in Scottsdale, United States. Daniel Vassallo has 4 products listed on IndieMakerList vs Nicolas Cole's 5. Daniel has sold 1 product. Daniel self-reports $210K profit in 9 months (info products) (as of 2020); Nicolas hasn't shared a revenue figure publicly. On X, Daniel has about 205K followers and Nicolas about 228K.
Side-by-side comparison
- Based in
- Daniel Vassallo: Seattle, United States
- Nicolas Cole: Scottsdale, United States
- Started
- Daniel Vassallo: 2019 (7 yrs indie)
- Nicolas Cole: —
- Revenue (self-reported)
- Daniel Vassallo: $210K profit in 9 months (info products)self-reported, as of 2020 · source for Daniel Vassallo's revenue
- Nicolas Cole: Not public
- Products listed
- Daniel Vassallo: 4
- Nicolas Cole: 5
- Product status
- Daniel Vassallo: 3 active · 1 acquired
- Nicolas Cole: 5 active
- X followers
- Daniel Vassallo: 205K
- Nicolas Cole: 228K
- Categories
- Daniel Vassallo: Educators & Course CreatorsCommunity BuildersCreators & WritersDeveloper Tools
- Nicolas Cole: Educators & Course CreatorsCreators & Writers
- Style
- Daniel Vassallo: solobootstrappedbuilds in publicexited
- Nicolas Cole: duobootstrapped
- Courses & resources
- Daniel Vassallo: 3
- Nicolas Cole: 4
Revenue figures are self-reported by each maker and not audited; dates and scope differ. Highlighted categories are shared by both.
Top products
Userbase
userbase.com
Open-source, end-to-end encrypted backend for building secure web apps without a server.
Single Server
singleserver.com
Wires up Cloudflare, Tailscale, Docker, Kamal and GitHub so every git push deploys all your projects to one server.
Full Send
fullsend.game
Top-down 2D browser racing game with time trials, multiplayer races and a global leaderboard.
Ship 30 for 30
ship30for30.com
Cohort writing program to publish 30 Atomic Essays in 30 days.
Premium Ghostwriting Academy
premiumghostwritingacademy.com
Training program for building a premium ghostwriting business.
Typeshare
typeshare.co
Writing app with templates for social posts and Atomic Essays.
Category Pirates
categorypirates.news
Paid newsletter and book series on category design, co-created with Christopher Lochhead and Eddie Yoon.
Tech stack
No tools in common in their publicly listed stacks. See the indie maker tech stack.
No stack shared publicly.
No stack shared publicly.
How they build
- Place many small bets instead of one big bet; outcomes are hard to predict.
- Keep things simple and avoid leaving your fate to a single employer or product.
- Build an audience by sharing what you know openly.
- Optimize for independence and optionality over prestige.
- Writing online is a skill and a business; treat it like both.
- Volume and consistency come before quality and virality.
- Package what you know into a clear category you can own.
Learn from Daniel and Nicolas
- [book] The Good Parts of AWS
- [course] Everyone Can Build a Twitter Audience
- [community] Small Bets
- [book] The Art & Business of Online Writing · $9.99
- [book] The Art & Business of Ghostwriting · $9.99
- [course] Ship 30 for 30 · $99/mo
- [course] Premium Ghostwriting Academy
Daniel Vassallo vs Nicolas Cole FAQ
Who makes more money, Daniel Vassallo or Nicolas Cole?
Daniel Vassallo self-reports $210K profit in 9 months (info products) (as of 2020). Nicolas Cole's revenue is not public, so a direct comparison isn't possible.
Who has built more products, Daniel Vassallo or Nicolas Cole?
Daniel Vassallo has 4 products listed (including Small Bets, Userbase and Single Server); Nicolas Cole has 5 products listed (including Ship 30 for 30, Premium Ghostwriting Academy and Typeshare).
Where are Daniel Vassallo and Nicolas Cole based?
Daniel Vassallo: Seattle, United States. Nicolas Cole: Scottsdale, United States.
Who has been an indie maker longer, Daniel Vassallo or Nicolas Cole?
Daniel Vassallo started in 2019 (7 years indie); Nicolas Cole's start year isn't listed.
Are Daniel Vassallo and Nicolas Cole bootstrapped?
Yes, both are listed as bootstrapped founders on IndieMakerList.
Full profiles
Read the full story, timeline and links on Daniel Vassallo's profile and Nicolas Cole's profile.
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