diff ~/p/nathan-barry ~/p/patrick-mckenzie

Nathan Barry vs Patrick McKenzie

Products, revenue & stack compared side by side.

Nathan Barry

Founder of Kit (ConvertKit), bootstrapped from a failing side project to $1M+ MRR

@nathanbarry United States

Patrick McKenzie

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

@patio11 United States

Nathan Barry vs Patrick McKenzie at a glance

Both Nathan Barry and Patrick McKenzie are bootstrapped and build in public. They overlap in SaaS Founders, Creators & Writers and Educators & Course Creators. Nathan is based in Boise, United States, Patrick in Chicago, United States. Nathan started in 2012 and Patrick in 2006. Nathan Barry has 1 product listed on IndieMakerList vs Patrick McKenzie's 5. Patrick has sold 2 products. On revenue, Nathan self-reports $1.19M MRR (ConvertKit) (as of 2019) and Patrick ~$275K/yr sales, ~$200K profit (excl. Appointment Reminder) (as of 2012). On X, Nathan has about 152K followers and Patrick about 201K.

Side-by-side comparison

Based in: Nathan Barry: Boise, United States; Patrick McKenzie: Chicago, United States
Started: Nathan Barry: 2012 (14 yrs indie); Patrick McKenzie: 2006 (20 yrs indie)
Revenue (self-reported): Nathan Barry: $1.19M MRR (ConvertKit)self-reported, as of 2019 · source for Nathan Barry'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: Nathan Barry: 1; Patrick McKenzie: 5
Product status: Nathan Barry: 1 active; Patrick McKenzie: 2 active · 2 acquired · 1 shut down
X followers: Nathan Barry: 152K; Patrick McKenzie: 201K
Categories: Nathan Barry: SaaS Founders Marketing & SEO Tools Creators & Writers Educators & Course Creators; Patrick McKenzie: SaaS Founders Creators & Writers Fintech & Payments Educators & Course Creators
Style: Nathan Barry: bootstrappedbuilds in public; Patrick McKenzie: solobootstrappedbuilds in publicexited
Courses & resources: Nathan Barry: 4; 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.

Nathan Barry

No stack shared publicly.

Patrick McKenzie

Ruby on RailsTwilioStripe

How they build

Nathan Barry

Teach everything you know and work in public.
Pick a narrow niche first, then expand once you win it.
Direct sales and concierge onboarding can unlock early SaaS growth.
Stay independent so you answer only to customers.
Consistent creation compounds into authority over time.

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 Nathan and Patrick

Nathan Barry

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

Nathan Barry vs Patrick McKenzie FAQ

Who makes more money, Nathan Barry or Patrick McKenzie?

Nathan Barry self-reports $1.19M MRR (ConvertKit) (as of 2019) and Patrick McKenzie self-reports ~$275K/yr sales, ~$200K profit (excl. Appointment Reminder) (as of 2012). By these self-reported figures, Nathan Barry'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, Nathan Barry or Patrick McKenzie?

Nathan Barry has 1 product listed (Kit (formerly ConvertKit)); Patrick McKenzie has 5 products listed (including Bingo Card Creator, Appointment Reminder and Starfighter).