Base44 Grows to 10K Users via Word-of-Mouth

How Base44 Achieved 10,000 Users in Just Three Weeks—Powered by Word of Mouth 🎯

When Maor Shlomo launched Base44 in January 2025, it started as a personal side project. But within just three weeks, users flocked to the platform—reaching 10,000 sign-ups organically. By six months, that number had ballooned to 250,000 users, all before the startup raised any outside funding .

So, how did Base44 pull off this rapid ascent by pure word-of-mouth? Let’s break it down:

1. “Building in public” created trust and transparency

Shlomo chronicled every step—from initial idea and development challenges to real profit metrics—on platforms like LinkedIn and X. Candid posts revealed:

• Monthly profits of $189K, even with significant LLM costs

• Detailed performance figures, tech stack insights, and cloud spending

This open approach fostered authenticity and built a community that trusted the product before it even existed.

2. A genuinely strong product-market fit: “Vibe coding” for non‑tech founders

Base44’s core promise was compelling: users could “describe” the app they wanted, and the system—a vibe-coding LLM—would generate a complete, deployable app end-to-end. This breakthrough resonated especially with non-technical founders and innovators, making it highly shareable .

3. Community buzz and enthusiastic sharing

The initial adopters, impressed by Base44’s capabilities, became its best advocates. One Reddit user praised the simplicity and speed:

“In 6 months: $3.5 M ARR, 300 K+ users, no employees, fully bootstrapped.”

These early champions spread the word across social media, SaaS forums, and within their professional networks.

4. Strategic early partnerships building credibility

Despite no fundraising, Base44 secured ties with notable companies like eToro and SimilarWeb, showing the platform worked robustly for real businesses .

5. Rapid Viral Loop: usability drove growth

The product’s conversational design—people could literally tweet about their experience with Base44—created natural triggers for new sign-ups. In essence, every resulting app became a showcase, prompting curiosity and exploration.

Results That Speak volumes

• 250,000 users in six months, with $189K/month profit before acquisition

• Acquisition by Wix for $80 million in cash

• Founder Shlomo remained the sole shareholder and shared $25 million in retention bonuses with his team

Why this matters for founders & marketers

Base44’s story underscores that even in competitive markets, organic, community-first strategiescan spark explosive growth—without big ad budgets or venture backing. By:

1. Sharing honestly

2. Building truly helpful tools

3. Encouraging real users to tell their own stories

…founders can ignite viral loops that fuel rapid adoption.

As AI and no-code tools continue to proliferate, Base44 is now a vivid blueprint: word-of-mouth remains one of the most powerful engines for growth.