Ask HN: Should I Open Source Every Product I Build as an Indie Developer?

Definitely not. Disclosing your code makes sense only if you are young and want to have something to show to recruiters in case you are looking for a job as a proof that you know what you are doing. But that is a young man's game. You will gain absolutely nothing by giving the code away. Especially now when bots are scraping the whole internet for data.

It depends on what you're building and if you're trying to build a business, or just make a few bucks on the side. If you're trying to build a business, your decision to open source it should be in service of that goal. Is it a developer tool/library with a commercial offering that builds on top of it where open-sourcing it is your main marketing source? If so, then that can be a solid strategy. But if they are just regular tools you're building, then likely there are far better marketing strategies than using open-source.

And that is great to want to give back with open source. But if you're just starting out on your business, then that is a major distraction from the main task at hand.

> My dilemma is whether to open source these products now, or wait until they're more established.

I find this statement curious because I don't understand why there should be a connection between software being "established" and being open source.

What is your goal here?

I tend to open source my projects when they fail.

Only if you want to die poor and stressed. That is a lot of free work that most likely won't bring you benefits.

> monetize through advertising

If you open-source, what's preventing someone running a quick copy elsewhere?

Just a question, why do you want to open source at all?

Naah bro, it's hard to monetize open source projects.