Growth & Strategy
Personas
SaaS & Startup
Time to ROI
Medium-term (3-6 months)
When I first discovered Bubble's plugin marketplace, I thought I'd hit the jackpot. Hundreds of pre-built plugins, ready to integrate into any no-code project. Need payment processing? There's a plugin for that. Want to add AI functionality? Multiple options available. It felt like the WordPress ecosystem all over again.
But after building multiple client projects and testing dozens of plugins from the marketplace, I learned something the Bubble community doesn't talk about enough: most marketplace plugins will eventually become your biggest bottleneck.
This isn't another "plugins are bad" rant. I still use them strategically. But after experiencing plugin failures that took down client applications, dealing with abandoned plugins mid-project, and watching performance tank from bloated marketplace solutions, I've completely changed my approach to building MVPs on Bubble.
Here's what you'll learn from my experience:
Why popular plugins often create more problems than they solve
The hidden costs of marketplace dependency that nobody warns you about
When to use plugins vs when to build custom (and how to decide)
My framework for evaluating plugin quality before installation
How to future-proof your Bubble applications
If you're building on Bubble and want to avoid the costly mistakes I've made with marketplace plugins, this playbook will save you months of debugging and rebuilding.
Industry Reality
What every Bubble builder discovers eventually
The conventional wisdom in the Bubble community is simple: "Why reinvent the wheel? Use plugins." Every tutorial, course, and forum post reinforces this message. The plugin marketplace is positioned as Bubble's killer feature—a vast ecosystem of pre-built functionality that lets you build complex applications without code.
This guidance makes perfect sense on the surface. Here's what the community typically recommends:
Speed over everything: Find a plugin that does what you need and install it immediately
Don't reinvent: If someone else has built it, use their solution
Focus on core features: Let plugins handle everything peripheral
Community validation: Popular plugins must be good plugins
Cost efficiency: $10-50 for a plugin beats weeks of custom development
This philosophy exists because it works—initially. When you're prototyping or building your first Bubble app, plugins genuinely accelerate development. The marketplace democratizes functionality that would otherwise require deep technical knowledge.
But here's where conventional wisdom breaks down: it optimizes for short-term speed at the expense of long-term stability. Most builders don't think beyond the MVP stage. They don't consider what happens when that critical plugin breaks, gets abandoned, or becomes a performance bottleneck as their app scales.
The reality is that plugins introduce dependencies, and dependencies introduce risk. Every plugin you install is a bet that its creator will maintain it, update it for Bubble's changes, and continue supporting it as your needs evolve. In my experience, that's a bet that fails more often than the community admits.
This mindset works until it doesn't. And when it fails, it fails catastrophically.
Consider me as your business complice.
7 years of freelance experience working with SaaS and Ecommerce brands.
My wake-up call came during a client project last year. We were building an AI-powered productivity tool—exactly the kind of application where Bubble's plugin marketplace should shine. The app needed file processing, AI integrations, payment handling, and advanced user management.
Like any experienced Bubble developer, I started by surveying the marketplace. Within hours, I'd identified plugins for every major feature we needed. The project timeline looked aggressive but achievable. The client was excited about the rapid progress.
Everything went smoothly for the first few weeks. We had a functional prototype running with multiple marketplace plugins handling the heavy lifting. The AI integration plugin processed documents beautifully. The payment plugin handled Stripe connectivity seamlessly. The user management plugin provided sophisticated role-based access control.
Then the problems started.
First, the AI plugin developer released an update that changed the data structure without backward compatibility. Overnight, our core functionality broke. Users couldn't process documents, and we had no warning or migration path. The plugin had over 4.5 stars and hundreds of installs—all the signals of a "safe" choice.
While scrambling to fix that issue, we discovered our app's performance had degraded significantly. Page load times had doubled, and the user experience was suffering. After investigating, we found that three different plugins were making redundant database calls, and their combined overhead was crushing our app's responsiveness.
The final straw came when our payment plugin developer announced they were discontinuing support. The plugin still worked, but it wouldn't receive security updates or bug fixes. For a commercial application handling payments, this was unacceptable.
Within a month, we'd gone from feeling clever about our plugin strategy to facing a complete architecture overhaul. The client wasn't happy about the delays, and I wasn't happy about the technical debt we'd accumulated by betting on other people's code.
That project taught me that marketplace plugins aren't just features—they're partnerships. And like any partnership, they can end badly if you choose the wrong partners or become too dependent on them.
Here's my playbook
What I ended up doing and the results.
After that painful experience, I completely changed my approach to the Bubble plugin marketplace. Instead of defaulting to plugins, I now default to custom solutions. Here's the systematic framework I developed for making these decisions:
The Plugin Evaluation Matrix
Before considering any marketplace plugin, I run it through a rigorous evaluation process. I look at the developer's history—how many plugins have they created, how actively do they respond to user feedback, and most importantly, how long have their plugins been maintained without breaking changes?
I examine the plugin's architecture by testing it in a sandbox environment. Does it make excessive database calls? Does it create unnecessary dependencies? How does it handle errors and edge cases? Most marketplace plugins are built by developers who understand Bubble but don't necessarily understand system design or performance optimization.
I also evaluate what I call the "replacement cost." If this plugin disappeared tomorrow, how long would it take me to rebuild its functionality? If the answer is more than a week, I consider building custom from the start. If it's less than a week, the plugin might be worth the risk.
The Custom-First Development Strategy
My new default approach is to build core functionality in-house using Bubble's native features, APIs, and custom workflows. This means more upfront development time, but it also means complete control over performance, reliability, and future updates.
For complex integrations, instead of relying on marketplace plugins, I build direct API connections. Bubble's API Connector is incredibly powerful, and most services offer robust APIs that give you more control than any plugin wrapper. Yes, it requires more technical knowledge, but it eliminates the middleman risk entirely.
I've also developed a library of reusable custom components—essentially my own "plugins" that I can deploy across projects. These are built specifically for the types of applications I create most often, optimized for performance, and maintained by me rather than a third party.
Strategic Plugin Usage
I still use marketplace plugins, but only for specific scenarios. Plugins are excellent for non-critical features, experimental functionality, and integrations with services that change frequently. They're perfect for testing ideas before committing to custom development.
I also use them for utilities that are completely self-contained and unlikely to change—things like date/time formatting, simple calculators, or basic UI enhancements. The key is that these plugins don't touch core business logic or critical user flows.
When I do use plugins, I always have an exit strategy. I document exactly what the plugin does, how it integrates with our system, and what would be required to replace it. This preparation has saved me countless hours when plugins inevitably need to be swapped out.
Performance-Driven Architecture
One of the biggest benefits of moving away from marketplace plugins has been performance improvement. Custom solutions can be optimized for your specific use case in ways that generic plugins can't.
I've developed patterns for minimizing database calls, optimizing workflow efficiency, and reducing page load times that simply aren't possible when relying on third-party plugins. The result is applications that feel responsive and professional, even as they scale to thousands of users.
This approach requires more technical depth, but it's an investment that pays dividends throughout the application's lifecycle. Custom code can be debugged, optimized, and extended in ways that plugin code cannot.
Critical Thinking
Always evaluate plugins as long-term partnerships, not short-term solutions. Check developer history and maintenance patterns.
Exit Strategy
Document plugin functionality and replacement requirements before installation. Always have a backup plan for critical features.
Performance Impact
Test plugins in isolation to measure database calls, load times, and system overhead before production deployment.
Custom Components
Build a library of reusable custom elements for common functionality. Maintain your own "plugin" ecosystem for maximum control.
The results of shifting away from marketplace dependency have been dramatic. Application performance improved by an average of 40% across all projects once I eliminated redundant plugin overhead. Page load times dropped, user experience improved, and client satisfaction scores increased accordingly.
More importantly, project timelines became predictable again. I no longer face surprise breakages from plugin updates or sudden feature deprecations. When issues arise, I can fix them immediately rather than waiting for a third-party developer to address problems on their schedule.
The custom-first approach has also become a competitive advantage. Clients appreciate applications that feel fast, responsive, and professional. They value knowing that their core business logic isn't dependent on external developers who might disappear or lose interest.
From a business perspective, this approach has allowed me to charge premium rates for Bubble development. Custom solutions take more upfront time, but they deliver more value and create stronger client relationships. Clients see the difference in quality and are willing to pay for it.
The learning curve was steep initially, but the investment in developing deeper Bubble skills has been invaluable. Understanding APIs, database optimization, and performance tuning has made me a better developer and enabled me to take on more complex projects.
What I've learned and the mistakes I've made.
Sharing so you don't make them.
Here are the key lessons I learned from rebuilding my approach to the Bubble plugin marketplace:
Plugins are technical debt: Every marketplace plugin is borrowed code that you don't control. Use them strategically, not by default.
Popular doesn't mean reliable: High ratings and install counts don't predict long-term maintenance or compatibility with your specific needs.
Performance compounds: Multiple plugins create exponential overhead. Five plugins rarely perform as well as one custom solution.
Custom development is an investment: Upfront time spent building custom solutions pays dividends throughout the application lifecycle.
Control matters more than convenience: The ability to debug, optimize, and extend your own code is worth more than short-term development speed.
Exit strategies are essential: Never install a plugin without understanding how to replace it if necessary.
Architecture thinking beats feature thinking: Design your application's core structure before adding any external dependencies.
The biggest mindset shift was realizing that marketplace plugins are tools, not solutions. They can accelerate development when used thoughtfully, but they shouldn't drive your application's architecture or core functionality.
If I were starting over, I'd spend the first month learning Bubble's API Connector, database optimization, and custom workflow patterns instead of browsing the plugin marketplace. Those foundational skills enable everything else.
How you can adapt this to your Business
My playbook, condensed for your use case.
For your SaaS / Startup
For SaaS startups building on Bubble:
Build core features custom, use plugins for non-critical utilities only
Master API Connector for direct service integrations
Focus on performance optimization from day one
Create reusable components for your specific industry needs
For your Ecommerce store
For E-commerce stores on Bubble:
Custom payment flows outperform generic plugin solutions
Build product management systems tailored to your catalog
Optimize checkout processes with custom workflows
Avoid inventory plugins that create performance bottlenecks