The SaaS Idea Scorecard: 12 Metrics to Evaluate Any Opportunity

You've found a promising SaaS idea. Maybe it came from a Reddit thread, a conversation with a colleague, or your own workflow frustrations. But how do you know if it's actually worth building?

Most founders rely on gut feeling to evaluate saas ideas. They spend months building something, only to discover there's no market, the competition is too fierce, or the economics don't work. This article gives you a systematic framework to score any SaaS opportunity objectively before you write a single line of code.

The scorecard below is based on analyzing hundreds of successful micro-SaaS launches and interviews with founders who've reached $10K+ MRR. Each metric gets a score from 0-10, giving you a total score out of 120. Ideas scoring above 80 deserve serious consideration. Anything below 60 should probably be abandoned.

Why Most SaaS Idea Evaluation Methods Fail

Before we dive into the scorecard, let's address why traditional evaluation methods fall short.

The "would you pay for this?" question is notoriously unreliable. People say yes to be polite, then never actually buy. The "competitor analysis" approach often leads to either paralysis (too much competition) or false confidence (no competition must mean no market).

What successful founders actually do is evaluate multiple dimensions simultaneously. They look at market signals, technical feasibility, business model viability, and personal fit. Our SaaS idea validation playbook covers the testing phase, but first you need to know which ideas are worth testing.

The scorecard method forces you to think critically about every aspect of an opportunity. It's not perfect—no framework is—but it dramatically improves your odds of picking winners.

The 12 Metrics That Matter

Metric 1: Problem Severity (0-10)

How painful is the problem you're solving? This is the single most important metric.

Score 8-10: People are actively searching for solutions right now. They're using painful workarounds. They're complaining about it publicly. Example: Developers manually copying code between tools every day.

Score 5-7: The problem exists and annoys people, but they've adapted. They might pay to solve it if the solution is easy. Example: Manually formatting data in spreadsheets monthly.

Score 0-4: Nice-to-have improvement or theoretical problem. People aren't actively seeking solutions. Example: A slightly better way to organize browser bookmarks.

To score this accurately, look for evidence of pain in places where real users share their struggles. Are people complaining about this problem weekly? Daily? Is it costing them time, money, or opportunities?

Metric 2: Market Size (0-10)

How many potential customers exist who have this problem?

Score 8-10: Hundreds of thousands or millions of potential users. Broad horizontal market or large vertical. Example: Project management for remote teams.

Score 5-7: Tens of thousands of potential users. Specific vertical or subset of larger market. Example: Invoicing software for freelance designers.

Score 0-4: Fewer than 10,000 potential users. Very narrow niche. Example: Workflow tools specifically for left-handed ceramic artists.

Don't confuse "niche" with "small." Some niches are highly profitable despite smaller numbers. Check our analysis of SaaS niches that make money to see how market size interacts with other factors.

Metric 3: Willingness to Pay (0-10)

Will your target market actually pay for a solution?

Score 8-10: B2B users solving a revenue-generating or cost-saving problem. Clear ROI. Example: Tools that help sales teams close deals faster.

Score 5-7: B2B users solving operational problems, or prosumers solving professional needs. Example: Social media scheduling tools for small businesses.

Score 0-4: Consumer users seeking convenience or entertainment. Difficult monetization. Example: A prettier way to view your Twitter feed.

Businesses pay for problems that directly impact their bottom line. If you're targeting consumers, you need massive scale or a very specific, painful problem.

Metric 4: Competition Intensity (0-10)

This metric is inverse—lower competition scores higher.

Score 8-10: No direct competitors or only legacy/outdated solutions. Clear opportunity gap. Example: Modern tools for emerging workflows that didn't exist five years ago.

Score 5-7: Few competitors (2-5), but none dominating the space. Room for differentiation. Example: Specialized tools for a particular industry vertical.

Score 0-4: Saturated market with established players and strong network effects. Example: General project management or CRM tools.

Competition isn't automatically bad. Sometimes it validates the market. Learn how to reverse engineer winning products and find your differentiation angle.

Metric 5: Differentiation Potential (0-10)

Can you build something meaningfully different?

Score 8-10: Clear way to be 10x better on one dimension. Unique approach, technology, or positioning. Example: Using AI to automate what currently requires manual work.

Score 5-7: Incremental improvements or better execution of existing concept. Example: Faster, cheaper, or better UX than competitors.

Score 0-4: Me-too product with no clear differentiation. Example: "It's like Slack but slightly different."

With modern AI tools, you can now build sophisticated features that would have required a team of engineers two years ago. Explore AI SaaS ideas you can build with Claude and Cursor to understand what's possible.

Metric 6: Technical Feasibility (0-10)

Can you actually build this with your current skills and resources?

Score 8-10: Straightforward implementation using existing tools and frameworks. No novel technical challenges. Example: CRUD app with API integrations.

Score 5-7: Requires learning new technologies but achievable. Some complex features but mostly standard. Example: Real-time collaboration features or basic ML integration.

Score 0-4: Requires breakthrough technology, specialized expertise, or years of development. Example: Building a new database engine or advanced AI from scratch.

For solo developers, technical feasibility is crucial. Focus on ideas that leverage your existing skills. Our guide on SaaS ideas for developers who want to work solo emphasizes this principle.

Metric 7: Time to First Version (0-10)

How quickly can you ship a minimal viable product?

Score 8-10: Can ship a useful MVP in 2-4 weeks. Core value prop is simple to implement. Example: A specialized calculator or simple automation tool.

Score 5-7: Requires 1-3 months to build something users will pay for. Multiple features needed for viability. Example: A dashboard with data integrations.

Score 0-4: Needs 6+ months before it's remotely useful. Complex features required for minimum viability. Example: A full-featured design tool or complex platform.

Speed to market is a competitive advantage. The faster you can validate, the faster you can iterate or pivot. Check out our 90-day SaaS launch blueprint for realistic timelines.

Metric 8: Recurring Revenue Potential (0-10)

How naturally does this fit a subscription model?

Score 8-10: Clear ongoing value that justifies monthly/annual subscription. Continuous usage. Example: Monitoring tools, analytics platforms, automation services.

Score 5-7: Can work as subscription but might face resistance. Usage is periodic. Example: Tools used quarterly or seasonally.

Score 0-4: One-time use case or very infrequent usage. Hard to justify recurring payment. Example: One-time migration tools or setup utilities.

Recurring revenue is what makes SaaS businesses valuable. One-time sales require constant customer acquisition. Monthly recurring revenue (MRR) compounds over time.

Metric 9: Acquisition Channel Clarity (0-10)

Do you know how you'll reach your first 100 customers?

Score 8-10: Target users congregate in specific, accessible places. Clear content or community strategy. Example: DevOps engineers on specific subreddits, Slack groups, and Twitter.

Score 5-7: Some idea of where users are, but requires experimentation. Multiple possible channels. Example: Small business owners across various platforms.

Score 0-4: No clear path to reaching users. Diffuse, hard-to-target audience. Example: "Everyone who uses computers."

Knowing where your users hang out is half the battle. We've documented strategies for finding users in Discord servers, LinkedIn networks, and Facebook groups.

Metric 10: Personal Advantage (0-10)

Do you have unfair advantages for building this?

Score 8-10: You are the target user. You have domain expertise. You have an existing audience or network in this space. Example: Building tools for a profession you worked in for years.

Score 5-7: You understand the problem space reasonably well. You can access target users. Example: Building for adjacent industries or roles you've worked with.

Score 0-4: No connection to the problem space. You'd be learning everything from scratch. Example: Building healthcare software with no healthcare experience.

The best SaaS ideas often come from your own workflow frustrations. You understand the problem deeply and can validate quickly.

Metric 11: Scalability (0-10)

Can this grow without proportional cost increases?

Score 8-10: Pure software with minimal variable costs. Self-service model. Example: Analytics tools, form builders, automation platforms.

Score 5-7: Some manual work required but can be systematized. Example: Tools requiring onboarding calls or custom integrations.

Score 0-4: High touch service or human-in-the-loop required for each customer. Example: Consulting disguised as software.

Understand the difference between ideas that scale versus ideas that plateau. Some businesses are profitable but can't grow beyond a certain point without fundamentally changing the model.

Metric 12: Exit Risk (0-10)

How likely is this opportunity to disappear?

Score 8-10: Solves fundamental problems unlikely to change. Not dependent on specific platforms. Example: Data backup, time tracking, invoicing.

Score 5-7: Some platform risk but diversifiable. Addresses evolving needs. Example: Tools for specific social media platforms but adaptable.

Score 0-4: Completely dependent on a single platform or likely to be obsoleted. Example: Workarounds for specific software limitations that will likely be fixed.

Platform risk is real. Building exclusively for one platform's API means they control your destiny. Building for fundamental human needs (communication, organization, analysis) is safer.

How to Use the Scorecard

Here's the practical process:

Step 1: Score each metric honestly. Don't inflate scores because you're excited about an idea. Be brutally objective.

Step 2: Calculate your total score out of 120. This gives you a baseline comparison between different ideas.

Step 3: Identify fatal flaws. Any metric scoring 0-2 is a red flag. Can you address it, or is it fundamental to the idea?

Step 4: Look for standout strengths. Ideas with multiple 9-10 scores in critical areas (Problem Severity, Willingness to Pay, Personal Advantage) deserve attention even if the total is lower.

Step 5: Compare multiple ideas. Don't just score one idea. Score 5-10 ideas and compare them. The differences become obvious.

Interpreting Your Scores

90-120 points: Strong opportunity. These ideas check most boxes and deserve serious consideration. Move to validation testing immediately.

70-89 points: Promising but with challenges. Identify the weak areas. Can you improve them, or are they fundamental? Many successful SaaS products start here.

50-69 points: Risky. You'd need to be exceptional at execution to succeed. Usually better to find a higher-scoring opportunity unless you have massive personal advantages.

Below 50 points: Walk away. There are better ideas out there. Use our research toolkit to find them.

Real Examples Scored

Let's score three real ideas to see how this works in practice:

Example 1: Automated Invoice Reminder Tool for Freelancers

• Problem Severity: 7 (annoying but not critical)
• Market Size: 8 (millions of freelancers)
• Willingness to Pay: 7 (saves time and money)
• Competition Intensity: 5 (several competitors exist)
• Differentiation Potential: 6 (better UX, AI personalization)
• Technical Feasibility: 9 (straightforward to build)
• Time to First Version: 9 (2-3 weeks)
• Recurring Revenue Potential: 9 (clear monthly value)
• Acquisition Channel Clarity: 8 (freelancer communities everywhere)
• Personal Advantage: 8 (you are a freelancer)
• Scalability: 10 (pure software)
• Exit Risk: 9 (fundamental need)

Total: 95/120 - Strong opportunity, especially if you're the target user.

Example 2: AI-Powered Social Media Analytics for Fortune 500s

• Problem Severity: 8 (important for brand management)
• Market Size: 4 (only ~500 companies)
• Willingness to Pay: 10 (high budgets)
• Competition Intensity: 3 (established players)
• Differentiation Potential: 7 (AI angle)
• Technical Feasibility: 5 (complex AI/ML)
• Time to First Version: 3 (6+ months)
• Recurring Revenue Potential: 10 (clear ongoing value)
• Acquisition Channel Clarity: 4 (hard to reach decision makers)
• Personal Advantage: 3 (unless you have enterprise connections)
• Scalability: 8 (mostly software)
• Exit Risk: 8 (fundamental need)

Total: 73/120 - Challenging. High revenue potential but difficult execution and long sales cycles.

Example 3: Notion Template Marketplace

• Problem Severity: 5 (nice to have)
• Market Size: 7 (growing Notion user base)
• Willingness to Pay: 4 (templates are often free)
• Competition Intensity: 6 (few players but growing)
• Differentiation Potential: 5 (hard to differentiate)
• Technical Feasibility: 8 (relatively simple)
• Time to First Version: 8 (few weeks)
• Recurring Revenue Potential: 3 (one-time purchases)
• Acquisition Channel Clarity: 7 (Notion communities)
• Personal Advantage: 6 (if you use Notion)
• Scalability: 9 (pure marketplace)
• Exit Risk: 5 (dependent on Notion)

Total: 73/120 - Moderate opportunity. Low recurring revenue and platform risk are concerns.

Common Mistakes When Scoring

Overweighting novelty: A clever, unique idea isn't valuable if it doesn't solve a painful problem. Problem Severity should almost always be your highest-weighted factor.

Underweighting personal fit: Building something you don't understand or care about is a recipe for burnout. Personal Advantage matters more than most founders realize.

Ignoring acquisition: The "build it and they will come" fallacy kills more SaaS products than bad ideas. If you can't clearly articulate how you'll reach users, score Acquisition Channel Clarity low.

Confusing market size with opportunity: A huge market dominated by entrenched players is worse than a smaller market with no good solutions. Consider both Market Size and Competition Intensity together.

Optimistic technical estimates: If you've never built something similar, add 50-100% to your time estimates. Be honest about Technical Feasibility and Time to First Version.

What to Do After Scoring

Once you've identified high-scoring ideas, move to validation:

1. Talk to potential users: Find 10-20 people who have this problem. Understand their current solutions and willingness to pay.

2. Build a landing page: Create a simple page describing your solution. Drive traffic and measure interest.

3. Offer pre-sales: Try to get people to pay before you build. This is the ultimate validation.

4. Build a minimal MVP: Focus on the core value proposition. Cut everything else.

5. Get feedback fast: Ship to early users within weeks, not months. Iterate based on real usage.

Our weekly SaaS idea sprint walks through this validation process in detail.

Adjusting the Scorecard for Your Situation

This scorecard works for most solo founders and small teams building micro-SaaS products. You might want to adjust weights based on your situation:

If you're a solo developer: Weight Technical Feasibility and Time to First Version higher. You can't afford long development cycles.

If you're non-technical: Weight Technical Feasibility even higher, or focus on ideas you can build without coding.

If you have funding: You can afford to weight Market Size and Scalability higher, accepting lower scores on Time to First Version.

If you're bootstrapping: Weight Acquisition Channel Clarity and Recurring Revenue Potential higher. You need cash flow quickly.

If you have domain expertise: Your Personal Advantage score should be 8+ or you're wasting your unfair advantage.

Beyond the Numbers

The scorecard is a tool, not a crystal ball. Some of the most successful SaaS products would have scored mediocre on paper. Execution matters enormously.

That said, most failed SaaS products would have scored low on this framework. The scorecard helps you avoid obvious mistakes and focus your limited time on opportunities with genuine potential.

Use it as a filter, not a final decision maker. If an idea scores well and excites you, build it. If it scores poorly, think hard about why you're still considering it.

Your Next Steps

Start by scoring 5-10 ideas you're considering. Be honest with yourself. The process of scoring forces you to think critically about each dimension.

If you don't have ideas to score yet, explore our collection of validated opportunities or learn where successful founders find their best ideas.

The goal isn't to find the perfect idea—it's to find a good-enough idea and execute brilliantly. This scorecard helps you identify which ideas are worth that execution effort.

Remember: the best SaaS idea is one that scores well on this framework AND that you're genuinely excited to build. Both matter. Start scoring your ideas today, and you'll have clarity on which opportunity to pursue by tomorrow.