How to make a payment for testing a pet project?

[Yez16]

There are ideas for new startups, and for this you need to get some money from users to understand whether there is a demand for the startup idea and its functionality or it is worth skipping and moving on to a new one. The question here is that I will not open a company for ideas that will not work out in most cases, maybe there are some services that allow you to get money without opening a company for a couple of months? Or how do you do it when testing ideas?

 

[Edward Fox]

It depends on your use case, but for small test projects, you could try using platforms like PayPal, Stripe, or even Payoneer if it's international.
If it’s just a basic MVP you're testing, keeping the setup simple will help you move fast without overcomplicating payments.

 

[Norah Do]

Many small businesses today use pre-orders very effectively, you can ask your customers to pay 50-100% in advance for the payment, you can generate revenue and can directly measure the interest of users in the products you provide.

 

[Yez16]

It depends on your use case, but for small test projects, you could try using platforms like PayPal, Stripe, or even Payoneer if it's international.
If it’s just a basic MVP you're testing, keeping the setup simple will help you move fast without overcomplicating payments.

I didn't talk about that, in all these services you need to specify a company or individual entrepreneur. The problem is not in setting up payments, but that you need a company for tests.

 

[Yez16]

Many small businesses today use pre-orders very effectively, you can ask your customers to pay 50-100% in advance for the payment, you can generate revenue and can directly measure the interest of users in the products you provide.

Maybe I explained it wrong. How can I get paid by a user for a couple of months for a test, but not register a company or individual entrepreneur?

 

[911Proxy support]

Recommended for Developers)

 

[Yez16]

Any other thoughts?

 

[Spicy Chromosomes]

I didn't talk about that, in all these services you need to specify a company or individual entrepreneur. The problem is not in setting up payments, but that you need a company for tests.

You do not need to have a company to accept payments with Stripe, Payoneer and PayPal
Those 3 services are open to individuals, you can use your own ID (or buy a stealth account) to start accepting payments, it's not necessary to open a whole company to take payments in those payment processors.

 

[stevemarkovick]

When testing startup ideas without wanting to officially register a company right away, it is always a balance between simplicity and legality. From what I have seen, using PayPal, Stripe, or Payoneer as an individual can work for small-scale validation without forming a legal entity immediately. Another option some people use is setting up a lightweight crowdfunding-style campaign or using no-code payment forms like Gumroad or Buy Me a Coffee, which also allow individuals to accept payments. Of course, if the idea takes off, setting up a proper company later is the safer long-term path.