Quick answer
A minimum viable product (MVP) is the version of a new product that delivers just enough value to real users to test the riskiest assumption about it, with the least effort, so the team can learn whether to continue, change direction or stop.
Formula: Build → measure → learn, with the smallest build that tests the riskiest assumption
What is a minimum viable product?
A minimum viable product (MVP) is the smallest version of a product that real users can get value from, built to test your riskiest assumption as cheaply as possible. The term was coined by Frank Robinson in 2001 and popularised by Eric Ries in The Lean Startup, where the MVP drives a build → measure → learn loop.
The key word is viable. An MVP is not a broken product; it does one job well enough that people choose to use it.
What an MVP is and is not
| An MVP is | An MVP is not |
|---|---|
| A tool for learning | A cheaper version of the final product |
| Used by real customers | A demo only the team clicks through |
| Focused on one core job | A list of every planned feature, half-built |
| Measured against criteria set in advance | Judged by how the team feels after launch |
Types of MVP, with examples
| Type | How it works | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Landing page | Describe the product, measure sign-ups | A waitlist page with a pricing section |
| Concierge | You deliver the service by hand | Writing each customer's weekly report manually |
| Wizard of Oz | Looks automated, people work behind it | "Automatic" categorisation done by a person |
| Single-feature | Ships one feature fully | A tool that only does one kind of export |
| Piecemeal | Combines existing tools | A form, a spreadsheet and email instead of an app |
Measuring an MVP
Decide what you will track and what counts as success before launch. Keep it to a handful of events:
- Acquisition: visit → sign-up (by source).
- Activation: the first action that delivers value (your aha moment).
- Retention: returning in week 2 and week 4.
- Willingness to pay: clicks on pricing, trial starts, pre-orders.
- Qualitative: a short interview with active and churned users.
A sample decision table:
| Measure | Threshold to continue | Actual (sample) |
|---|---|---|
| Sign-ups in 4 weeks | 200 | 214 |
| Activation rate | 30% | 34% |
| Week-4 retention | 15% | 11% |
Here activation passes but retention misses, which points at the product after first use, not at demand. With 200 users the margin of error on a 30% rate is about ±6 points, so treat near-misses as "unclear" rather than pass or fail.
Common mistakes
- Building too much before talking to users.
- No tracking at launch, so the first weeks of data are lost.
- Judging on sign-ups alone; interest is not use.
- Changing the success criteria after seeing the results.
Instrumenting an MVP with TapCub
Install the website script for traffic and sources, and send the four or five key events with track() (or from your server for sign-ups and payments). Write them into the tracking plan so names stay consistent as the product changes. Then a funnel from visit to activation and a retention table from sign-up give you most of the decision table above. See also north star metric.
See also: Product hypothesis.
See also
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Product Adoption Consultant
Explores customer onboarding, live conversations, and self-service, turning common usage questions into practical guidance and improvements.