Product-Market Fit
The stage at which a product satisfies a strong market demand so well that usage, retention, and word-of-mouth grow on their own.
Product-market fit (PMF) is the point where a product clearly serves a real, sizable demand — users adopt it, keep using it, and tell others, so growth starts to feel like it's being pulled rather than pushed. Before PMF, effort leaks away; after it, the problem shifts to scaling.
PMF is felt more than precisely measured, but the signals are concrete: strong retention curves, organic referral, and users who would be genuinely disappointed to lose the product. Reaching it is the real goal of an MVP — everything before it is a search for the fit.
In practice
Two startups both claim PMF. The first shows a retention curve that flattens at a healthy level, a growing share of signups from word of mouth, and users who answer “very disappointed” when asked about losing the product. The second shows a big launch spike, paid traffic, and cohort curves that decay to zero. Same revenue this month — completely different companies. The signals, not the sentiment, are what an investor (or a founder being honest) reads.
Frequently Asked Questions
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