Book · 2011
The Lean Startup
by Eric Ries
A cash-strapped founder ships an unfinished product on purpose, watches strangers misuse it, and rewrites the business plan around what they actually did.
What does Reddit think of The Lean Startup?
Eric Ries's book is still the default answer when someone asks r/Entrepreneur or r/startups what to read before quitting a job. The clearest example is a 169-upvote r/startups comment that reduces the whole method to a checklist: build the cheapest MVP possible, use no-code or a landing page instead of hiring devs, ship it, and let user feedback wreck your assumptions. That comment gets treated like scripture. r/Entrepreneur files the book next to Zero to One and Hacking Growth as the safe, conventional pick in "what should I read" threads. Not everyone buys the MVP gospel. One reply flatly rejects "putting out a shit MVP," arguing a pizza store doesn't need customer interviews to open and that there's no universal formula for a business. r/smallbusiness barely engages with the book directly; it shows up more as citation than topic. Thirty-seven distinct account identifiers, three subreddits doing the actual talking, seven years of drive-by references. No verdict, just a live argument.
Community feedback & reader fit
Themes
- · Minimum viable product as reflex advice
- · Build-measure-learn cited more than argued
- · The anti-MVP backlash
- · Startup-reading-list staple
Common praise
- + One r/startups commenter turns the whole book into a three-step MVP checklist and racks up 169 upvotes doing it.
- + r/Entrepreneur keeps slotting it into "what should I read" threads next to Zero to One without much pushback.
- + The no-code / landing-page-first advice gets repeated as a literal how-to, not a paraphrase.
Common criticism
- − A reply flatly rejects "putting out a shit MVP" as advice, saying it doesn't fit every business.
- − r/smallbusiness treats it as a citation, not a book anyone actually argues about.
- − The pizza-store rebuttal points out the framework assumes every business needs validation before it needs customers.
Who it's for
If you're staring at a business idea and looking for permission to ship something ugly, this is the book that gives it to you loudly. Founders mid-pivot get more out of it than founders pre-launch, going by how r/startups actually uses it, as a build-measure-learn checklist rather than a philosophy text. Already know your market cold? The pizza-store rebuttal in these threads exists for exactly that reader. Pair it with real user interviews instead of replacing them, and it holds up; used as a substitute for talking to customers, it draws the same objections these threads keep raising.
Mentions over time
Top subreddits
Which Reddit comments matter for The Lean Startup?
The most relevant excerpts across the subreddits where this book is mentioned — opinionated, argued takes first, then top-upvoted mentions. Click through to read the full thread.
“Most of these books can be summarised pretty quickly without reading them: * **E-myth:** If you're running a small business, everything you do should be about developing systemised processes ("checklists") so that you can remove yourself from the business. You can't expect employees to know how you…
“**Never Split the Difference – Chris Voss** The most important book on this list. It outlines and reinforces the fact that business, negotiation and any human interaction is inherently very emotional. It’s centered around negotiation but this book has so many solid management and leadership princip…
“Read the Lean Startup. Build the most basic MVP as cheaply as you can, don’t have to hire devs try use low code / no code or landing pages with manual backends. Get it in front of users as fast as you can. Get their feedback and iterate. All your assumptions will likely be shattered. Keep slowly bui…
“I’ve been in your shoes—full of ideas but stuck in the ‘thinking’ phase. For me, the turning point was when I realized that perfectionism was just a form of procrastination. I had to let go of the idea that everything had to be flawless before I started. One thing that helped was setting small, mana…
“Conventional answers, 1. "Zero to One" by Peter Thiel 2. "Hacking Growth" by Morgan Brown & Sean Ellis 3. "The Lean Startup" by Eric Ries 4. "The Cold Start Problem" by Andrew Chen Unconventional answers, 1. "How To Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy" by Jenny Odell 2. "The Extended Mind…
“This is such confusing advice for a lot of people. I disagree completely. I just don’t agree with putting out a s*** MVP. I agree this will work with a really well done MVP, but there is no perfect formula for entrepreneurship. If you’re gonna open a pizza store, do you really need to bug 20 peopl…
“I challenge the other guy. Being an efficient programmer is more than just staring at code all day, and audio can be a great enrichment tool to get you to that point. ​ For example: * A lot of code quality at higher levels comes down to style and structure. That can be verbally discussed, …
“This is a good example of why I regularly recommend the book The Lean Startup by Ries to people looking to start out. It encourages people to allow the business to grow naturally, flexibly, and pay for its own expenses. There is clearly a lot of context and nuances to your story but (forgive me if…
“51 here. One piece of advice that really helped me was from the book "The Lean Startup" by Eric Ries. He talks about how businesses need to always be in learning mode. It's not about getting it perfect the first time. It's about experimenting, learning from your mistakes, and pivoting when needed. …
“Before you get too far along, start looking into the Lean Startup method. It's evolved since the original books, but the key idea is to validate ideas, theories, etc. fast so you avoid throwing money away on bad assumptions. * [
“Unlike most other suggestions, I would recommend you start by reading The Lean Startup by Eric Reis, Running Lean by Ash Maurya and The Mom Test by Rob Fitzpatrick before you spend a dollar on starting to build an MVP. You should validate the problem (not just your problem, but many other ppl as wel…
“The Millionaire Fastlane - M.J. deMarco Title is kind of cringy but it has many valuable lessons cramped in one book and explained very clearly with formulas. The Lean Startup - Eric Ries Must reead about how to start and improve on your product.
“Hey bro, two books: Lean Startup by Eric Ries and The Mom Test. You’ll find your answer
“I would also like to add The Lean Startup by Eric Ries to the list. It introduces a philosophy and set of principles around applying the scientific method to validating your business ventures.
“Alright, here are a few books that I’ve read (and actually liked) when it comes to entrepreneurship. No fluff, just solid advice: 1. **The Lean Startup by Eric Ries** * Teaches you how to test ideas fast without wasting time or money. It’s all about learning as you go. 2. **Atomic Habits by Jame…
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Readers also mention
Books that share discussion threads with The Lean Startup — counted from the comments, not curated.
Guides featuring The Lean Startup
Ranked best-of lists and editorial guides where this book's tracked mentions place it.
The Lean Startup — frequently asked
Is The Lean Startup still relevant advice on Reddit in 2026?+
Mostly yes, with caveats. It's still the go-to answer in r/Entrepreneur "what should I read" threads, usually grouped with Zero to One and Hacking Growth rather than debated on its own. The 169-upvote r/startups comment treating build-MVP-and-iterate as standard practice suggests the core method is still assumed, not argued for.
Does Reddit agree with The Lean Startup's MVP advice?+
No, not uniformly. The 169-upvote r/startups comment endorses cheap MVPs and fast iteration outright. A separate 101-upvote reply disagrees completely, rejecting "putting out a shit MVP" and arguing a pizza store doesn't need customer interviews to open. Both sit in the data with real upvotes behind them.
Is The Lean Startup just a rehash of ideas in Zero to One?+
The two get bundled, not equated. A 110-upvote r/Entrepreneur comment lists The Lean Startup as a "conventional answer" alongside Zero to One and Hacking Growth, implying overlap in the reading-list sense, but no displayed excerpt argues the books make the same case.
Who actually recommends The Lean Startup on Reddit?+
r/Entrepreneur and r/startups, mostly to people about to build something. r/smallbusiness mentions it seven times in seven years but without the direct endorsement seen in the other two subs, more background reference than active recommendation.