BillaBear
Web and SaaS
subscription billing
SHOW HN2023
107points
46comments
#599of 3,109 in 2023
Top 20%of 2023 by points
How HN took it
CuriousMostly questions and neutral comments
5 positive, 13 neutral or asking, 0 mixed, 7 critical, out of 25 comments about the project. Thread score -0.08.
Idea: 0 for, 4 againstDesign: 2 for, 2 againstDocs: 1 for, 0 againstExecution: 0 for, 1 against
The thread, comment by comment
Each row is a top-level comment and its replies, in HN's order. Select a cell to open that comment on HN.
positive neutral or mixed critical about another commenter or something else the maker
What HN said
What people liked
Useful alternative to commercial billing tools
From 1 comment
Thanks for this, have been looking for an alternative to the commercial solutions that we have been using for the past decade and a half. This seems to fit the bill
jasongill on HN
Logo and UI seen as appealing by some
From 2 comments
I usually don't really like that style - maybe it's because of the name or the matching colors between the character and the text but I think it works in this instance.
pc86 on HNIt is eye candy to me: I just know a UI like that will be intuitive
quickthrower2 on HN
Objections
Source-available license rather than open source
From 2 comments
They should have put that in the README, I'm quite sympathetic towards the delayed-FOSS model, but the source-available had me write it off.
f_devd on HNBSL is still much better than AGPL, which is used by the really slimy companies like Lago (YC funded too, many new YC open core companies are doing this now).…
KRAKRISMOTT on HN
Missing webhooks makes integration hard
From 2 comments
I mean: how do you integrate a billing system like BillBear into your own development, when there are no hooks available for situations like a payment success/failure or a new…
gregoriol on HNHow is it supposed to work if "Webhooks to listen for billing events" is on the roadmap? This is a strict requirement for any billing system...
gregoriol on HN
UI looks poor
From 1 comment
Another one of these open source projects which are such an eyesore that I want to pluck out my eyes. Please for the love of God, make them look nice or just have it run in the…
ilrwbwrkhv on HN
Unclear how it differs from Stripe
From 2 comments
Stripe already has great subscription management. We use it for our SaaS billing. It seems like BillaBear is just a bad UI on top of what Stripe already offers?
fourseventy on HNTo put it another way: how is billabear better or different?
esafak on HN
Requests
Add webhooks
From 1 comment
For many systems at the start they don't need it. But obivously for more complex systems they will which is why it's super high on the todo list. For more complex and mature…
that_guy_iain on HN
Add PayPal support
From 1 comment
Great job. Add Paypal. Stripe is toxic.
stevefromIT on HN
Clearer license explanation in README
From 2 comments
They should have put that in the README, I'm quite sympathetic towards the delayed-FOSS model, but the source-available had me write it off.
f_devd on HNAh I see now it's at the end of the QA on OSS, the main confusion is with the initial "No. ... Source-available" Although it is more honest it also made me stop reading,…
f_devd on HN
Questions
Is it standalone or a Stripe front-end?
From 1 comment
> BillaBear is a standalone Subscription Management and Billing System that integrates with Stripe This confused me -- is it standalone, or is it a front-end for Stripe? FYI, the…
montroser on HN
Why is pricing not transparent?
From 1 comment
What's the reasoning behind the lack of transparent pricing? > "How much does BillaBear cost? To get pricing email sales@billabear.com."
joewils on HN
Can it handle thousands of custom plans?
From 1 comment
I was just talking to a friend last night about how I didn’t know of any good off the shelf solutions for this sort of thing in the Node ecosystem like Laravel Spark. But it…
dimmke on HN
Alternatives named
Kill Bill
From 1 comment
Great to see another tool for helping folks manage their SaaS. BillaBear does remind me of Kill Bill – Open-Source Subscription Billing and Payments Platform discussed here last…
hbcondo714 on HN
Chargebee
From 1 comment
Is this something like an alternative to Chargebee?
GordonS on HN
Laravel Spark
From 1 comment
I was just talking to a friend last night about how I didn’t know of any good off the shelf solutions for this sort of thing in the Node ecosystem like Laravel Spark. But it…
dimmke on HN
Lago
From 1 comment
BSL is still much better than AGPL, which is used by the really slimy companies like Lago (YC funded too, many new YC open core companies are doing this now).…
KRAKRISMOTT on HN