Open Source

Software whose source code is freely available for anyone to read, use, modify, and distribute. Many of the tools that power the internet (Linux, React, PostgreSQL) are open source.

Open source software is often free, heavily tested, and maintained by global communities. Understanding which tools are open source helps you reduce licensing costs and avoid vendor lock-in.

A founder builds her app using only open-source tools: Next.js, PostgreSQL, and Supabase, no per-seat licensing fees regardless of how many users she has.