Every maker has a folder of scripts they wrote for themselves: the one that renames a batch of files, the one that generates a report, the one that scrapes a page they check every morning. For years those sat on a hard drive because turning a script into a product felt like too much work. In 2026, it isn't.
Small is the point, not the problem
The instinct is to think a tool is 'too small to sell.' Flip it around. Small is exactly why it sells: it solves one problem completely, a buyer understands it in ten seconds, and there is nothing to learn. You are not competing with a platform. You are the answer to a specific search.
What packaging actually takes
Turning a script into something a stranger can run comes down to a short checklist:
- A one-line description of the exact problem it solves.
- A SETUP file so it runs with one command, or so an AI assistant can set it up.
- A short demo video, ideally a screen recording of the tool doing its job.
- Honest notes on what it needs (a runtime, a folder, an API key) and what it touches.
That's it. No landing page, no company, no funnel. The marketplace is the distribution.
You are not launching a startup. You are giving your past weekend's work a price tag.
The compounding part
One tool is a nice bit of side income. Five tools, each earning quietly, start to look like a small portfolio. And because they are finished and local, they need almost no maintenance. The work is done once and the sales keep arriving. That is the closest thing indie makers have to passive income that isn't a course about passive income.