How Notion scaled with a simple nocode-first MVP

A couple of weeks ago, a friend asked me: "How can I build something valuable without investing months into complex development?"

My immediate response was, "Start with a no-code MVP, just like Notion did."

A lot of indie founders I talk to feel pressured right out of the gate to build a perfect, fully-polished SaaS product. And honestly, I’ve felt the same pressure myself countless times. We latch onto a "big idea," rush to hire developers, burn months (or even years) building and polishing a product, and then finally launch—often to discover the market isn't there, or we built the wrong thing entirely.

Notion founders Ivan Zhao and Simon Last took a completely different approach (thankfully for all of us!). They famously scaled Notion to a billion-dollar business, but they didn't start by hiring expensive engineers or spending years perfecting the tech.

Instead, they followed a straightforward philosophy: ship fast, iterate with users, THEN scale.

Here's how that approach unfolded:

Understanding Notion's "Humbling" Beginnings:

When Notion first launched, Ivan Zhao openly admitted that he couldn’t write great production-quality code. In fact, their initial prototype was barely more than a few connected notes and tables cobbled together using no-code or low-code tools. Zhao even called their early MVP a "humbling" experience—because it was that basic.

But that early simplicity wasn't a weakness—it was precisely their strength!

Using basic no-code tools allowed them to rapidly test and validate the core assumptions they had about their users and their market. Within weeks, rather than years, they collected real, actionable user insight and feedback.

Build Quickly, Validate Early, Iterate Daily

Every founder's fear: what if no one actually wants our solution?

Notion addressed this problem by building rapidly and validating continuously.

Their earliest MVP leveraged publicly available productivity, spreadsheet, and database building blocks, combined in simple new ways. They didn't try to engineer an overly complex product upfront. Instead, they focused on launching within days—not months—thus dramatically accelerating user feedback loops.

This helped them to quickly discover:

• Which features really resonated with users.
• Which assumptions were completely invalid or misunderstood.
• How the actual product experience differed from their original vision.

Let Users Guide the Evolution

A crucial takeaway from Notion's early days was their humility and willingness to adapt. Every day, based on user feedback and usage data, they would tweak, pivot, or discard features.

For example, initially, they assumed advanced database features would appeal most to teams and power-users. But the MVP revealed a much bigger market among individuals who loved simple yet customizable spaces. Notion learned quickly that they had underestimated personal productivity and overestimated team collaboration initially. That early insight shaped Notion's entire roadmap.

Scaling Only When Validated

Once Notion got genuine and enthusiastic signals from their users, indicating clear product-market fit, only THEN did they begin scaling:

• They raised capital confidently because they had demonstrable traction and real data.
• They expanded their engineering team, knowing exactly what features would win customers.
• They invested heavily in UX and product polish AFTER validating the core value proposition.

What This Means for Indie Hackers & SaaS Builders Like Us:

Notion's path is a powerful reminder:

• You don't have to be a technical wizard or invest thousands in development from day one.
• No-code platforms like Notion itself, Airtable, Fuzen.io, and a whole host of others now empower indie founders to ship fast, iterate rapidly, and quickly identify product-market fit.
• Simplicity, rapid iteration, and humility win over complexity, arrogance, and perfectionism every single time.

I personally emulate this approach whenever I'm building something new. Fuzen.io, a no-code platform itself, enabled me to create quick prototypes and internal SaaS apps in days—not months. Leveraging no-code platforms speeds up product validation dramatically, reduces early-stage risk, and lets me build only what users actually want.

Key Lessons Learned from Notion's No-Code-First MVP:

Start embarrassingly small: Your MVP should feel too basic or limited. If you're not embarrassed, you've probably waited too long.
Focus intensely on delivering measurable value rather than technical polish initially.
Keep testing assumptions continuously: Talk directly to your users every day, not once per quarter.
Scale AFTER validation: Spending development hours or investment dollars too soon is the fastest route to burnout.

Your Turn: Build Something Simple and Ship Today

"But will people judge me for releasing such a simple product?" is a common fear I hear. My answer: Embrace it!

Notion started ridiculously simple and won billions of hearts along the way. You can start ridiculously simple too.

So here's my challenge to you this week: build your first or next MVP on a no-code platform like Fuzen.io or Notion itself. Ship fast, test fast, learn from your users, and scale later.

Don’t overthink it. Just start small, keep it real, and keep building.

That's exactly how Notion did it, and that's exactly how you can too.