About SoloForge

Who I Am

My name is Marcus Reed. SoloForge is an index of software comparisons for one-person businesses — the tools a solo operator needs to sell digital products, run client work, invoice, and get paid without overpaying for software they barely touch.

SoloForge exists because the same question kept coming up in the same form: which invoicing tool, which email platform, and what does it actually cost at the size I'm at? Those answers are checkable, they change every few months, and almost nobody writes them down in one place. So this site does.

What that means in practice: every figure here comes from a vendor's public pricing page or documentation, with the date it was last checked printed on the article. It is desk research, not a long-term trial — where a judgement would require running the product in production, the text says so rather than implying otherwise.

I'm not backed by any platform and I don't take sponsored posts. The only money this site makes is through affiliate commissions. Where a tool has an affiliate programme and a better rival doesn't, the better rival still wins the recommendation — and where that happens, the article says which one pays. The commission never drives the verdict.

What SoloForge Covers

Everything on this site is about tools for one-person businesses. That means:

• Digital product platforms — Lemon Squeezy, Gumroad, Payhip, and alternatives
• Email marketing — Kit (ConvertKit), Mailerlite, and what actually converts
• Project management — tools that don't require an onboarding session to use
• Invoicing and payments — getting paid without paying too much in fees
• Hosting and infrastructure — what a non-developer solopreneur actually needs

I don't cover enterprise tools. I don't cover tools that require a team to operate. Everything here is built around the constraint that you are probably the only person running your business, and your time and budget are finite.

How I Review Tools

Every review on SoloForge is based on hands-on testing. I sign up for the actual free plan or pay for a trial, I put real products or workflows through the tool, and I track what matters: fees, friction points, support quality, and whether it's still something I'd recommend six months later.

When I update an article, I note what changed and when. The internet is full of reviews written in 2021 that still rank in 2026. I try not to contribute to that problem.

Affiliate Commissions

Some links on this site are affiliate links. That means if you click through and make a purchase, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. This is how SoloForge stays independent — no advertisers, no sponsored content, no platform deals.

I disclose affiliate relationships on every article and maintain a full Affiliate Disclosure page. If a tool I'm reviewing doesn't have an affiliate program, I'll still cover it honestly. The review comes first.

Get in Touch

If you have a tool suggestion, spotted something out of date, or just want to say hello, I'd genuinely like to hear from you. Head over to the contact page for details.

Author

Why there is no photograph on this site

SoloForge is written under a byline rather than a face. There is no headshot on the about page and no author portrait on the articles, because the alternative — a generated or stock portrait standing in for a real person — would be the one genuinely dishonest thing on the site. The byline is consistent, the contact address is real, and corrections are published against the entry they affect.

What this site does not claim

It does not claim long-term hands-on operation of every product it lists. Most entries are desk research: pricing pages, documentation, changelogs and terms, read and dated. Where a judgement would require running the product in production, the entry says so instead of implying otherwise. If you find a line that overstates this, write in and it will be corrected against the entry.