diff ~/p/julia-evans ~/p/patrick-mckenzie

Julia Evans vs Patrick McKenzie

Products, revenue & stack compared side by side.

Julia Evans

Montreal developer behind Wizard Zines, illustrated guides to computing fundamentals

@b0rk Canada

Patrick McKenzie

patio11: Bingo Card Creator, Appointment Reminder, Stripe Atlas and Bits about Money

@patio11 United States

Julia Evans vs Patrick McKenzie at a glance

Both Julia Evans and Patrick McKenzie are bootstrapped solo founders. They overlap in Educators & Course Creators and Creators & Writers. Julia is based in Montreal, Canada, Patrick in Chicago, United States. Julia started in 2018 and Patrick in 2006. Julia Evans has 5 products listed on IndieMakerList vs Patrick McKenzie's 5. Patrick has sold 2 products. On revenue, Julia self-reports $101,558 in 2018 (zine business) and Patrick ~$275K/yr sales, ~$200K profit (excl. Appointment Reminder) (as of 2012). On X, Julia has about 192K followers and Patrick about 201K.

Side-by-side comparison

Based in: Julia Evans: Montreal, Canada; Patrick McKenzie: Chicago, United States
Started: Julia Evans: 2018 (8 yrs indie); Patrick McKenzie: 2006 (20 yrs indie)
Revenue (self-reported): Julia Evans: $101,558 in 2018 (zine business)self-reported, as of 2018 · source for Julia Evans's revenue; Patrick McKenzie: ~$275K/yr sales, ~$200K profit (excl. Appointment Reminder)self-reported, as of 2012 · source for Patrick McKenzie's revenue
Products listed: Julia Evans: 5; Patrick McKenzie: 5
Product status: Julia Evans: 5 active; Patrick McKenzie: 2 active · 2 acquired · 1 shut down
X followers: Julia Evans: 192K; Patrick McKenzie: 201K
Categories: Julia Evans: Educators & Course Creators Creators & Writers Developer Tools; Patrick McKenzie: SaaS Founders Creators & Writers Fintech & Payments Educators & Course Creators
Style: Julia Evans: solobootstrapped; Patrick McKenzie: solobootstrappedbuilds in publicexited
Courses & resources: Julia Evans: 9; Patrick McKenzie: 5

Revenue figures are self-reported by each maker and not audited; dates and scope differ. Highlighted categories are shared by both.

Tech stack

No tools in common in their publicly listed stacks. See the indie maker tech stack.

Julia Evans

No stack shared publicly.

Patrick McKenzie

Ruby on RailsTwilioStripe

How they build

Julia Evans

Focus on fundamentals that will still be true in ten years.
It is normal not to know something basic yet; avoid gatekeeping.
Explain only the most important ideas, in short pages and plain language.
Deeply understanding the systems underneath you makes hard problems solvable.
Teaching computer things directly to developers can be a real business without ads or sponsors.

Patrick McKenzie

Charge more — most software businesses dramatically underprice.
SaaS is the best business model ever invented for software.
Being a better marketer than most engineers (and vice versa) is a superpower.
Write prolifically and in public; generous writing compounds into opportunity.
Keep a low personal burn rate so a small business can sustain you indefinitely.

Learn from Julia and Patrick

Julia Evans

[book] The Secret Rules of the Terminal
[book] How Git Works
[book] How DNS Works
[book] Bite Size zine pack · $38
[book] HTTP: Learn your browser's language!
[book] Your Linux Toolbox · $29.95
+3 more on Julia's profile

Patrick McKenzie

[newsletter] Bits about Money
[podcast] Complex Systems with Patrick McKenzie
[template] Salary Negotiation: Make More Money, Be More Valued
[course] Lifecycle Emails course
[template] Start here if you're new

Julia Evans vs Patrick McKenzie FAQ

Who makes more money, Julia Evans or Patrick McKenzie?

Julia Evans self-reports $101,558 in 2018 (zine business) and Patrick McKenzie self-reports ~$275K/yr sales, ~$200K profit (excl. Appointment Reminder) (as of 2012). By these self-reported figures, Patrick McKenzie's reported monthly revenue is higher. Figures are unaudited and may cover different periods or businesses, so treat them as rough indicators.

Who has built more products, Julia Evans or Patrick McKenzie?

Julia Evans has 5 products listed (including Wizard Zines, Mess With DNS and Memory Spy); Patrick McKenzie has 5 products listed (including Bingo Card Creator, Appointment Reminder and Starfighter).