---
title: "SaaS – software as a service explained | Sweet Lava"
description: "SaaS runs in the cloud, is paid by subscription and needs no installation or servers of your own. See when the model fits and what to watch for."
url: https://sweetlava.eu/en/glossary/saas/
lang: en
alternate_pl: https://sweetlava.eu/pl/slownik/saas/
---

Technology 

# What is SaaS?

SaaS (software as a service) is a model in which software runs in the cloud and is paid for by subscription, with users accessing it through a browser – no installation, servers or maintenance of their own.

For the customer, SaaS means convenience: always the current version, access from any device, a predictable monthly cost. For the maker, it is a business model: one product serves many customers and revenue is recurring (hence the key metrics MRR, churn, LTV).

Building a SaaS product is more than building an app: you need accounts and permissions, subscription billing, user onboarding, and the security of many companies' data on shared infrastructure (multi-tenancy).

For service companies SaaS is often a natural evolution: a tool built for internal needs – as in our anonymised case study – becomes a product for the whole industry.

## Related services

- [ Web applications & SaaS development → ](https://sweetlava.eu/en/services/web-apps-saas/)

## Related articles

Product design · 7 April 2026

## [ Planning an app MVP – how to scope the first version without burning the budget ](https://sweetlava.eu/en/blog/how-to-plan-an-mvp/) 

Most app budgets burn on features nobody needs. Here is how to scope an MVP that genuinely validates the idea – hypotheses, prioritisation and the usual traps.

## Related terms

- [API](https://sweetlava.eu/en/glossary/api/)
- [Backend](https://sweetlava.eu/en/glossary/backend/)
- [MVP (minimum viable product)](https://sweetlava.eu/en/glossary/mvp/)

## Planning a web app or a SaaS product?

We take projects from idea through MVP to launch. Scope, timeline and quote within a few days.

[ Get in touch ](https://sweetlava.eu/en/contact/?source=glossary-saas)