The boards
Rules
BuyOnce has two boards. The Most wanted board counts votes for subscription apps people would rather buy once. The paid leaderboard is a promotional placement for software you can buy once.
Votes need email confirmation
A vote counts only after the person confirms it by email. One confirmed email address gets one vote per app. If you delete your email, your votes are deleted too. The price a voter picks is a signal of demand, not a payment or a promise.
We publish demand, never emails
The Most wanted board shows counts only. We never sell or share emails. Builders reach people only through a BuyOnce email those people asked for. See Privacy.
Suggestions are reviewed
A suggested app stays private until we approve it. Votes and the paid leaderboard never affect each other.
Paid leaderboard
One-time software only
Listings must promote software available through a one-time purchase without a required subscription.
Minimum bid is $3
You choose the bid in USD. Amounts are stored in cents and validated by the server before Checkout.
Confirmed money sets the order
A product ranks by the sum of its paid bids confirmed by an authenticated Stripe webhook. Higher totals rank first.
Curated editorial baseline
Curated picks hold no paid position and enter the paid ranking only after their first confirmed placement.
One product, one running total
Submitting the same normalized domain adds a top-up to the existing product instead of creating another listing.
Checkout reserves nothing
Opening or returning from Checkout never changes rank. Another confirmed bid can move the board before your payment is confirmed.
Ties favor the earlier confirmation
When totals match, the product whose first paid bid was confirmed first stays ahead, then the listing id breaks any remaining tie.
Paid promotion, not endorsement
Placement is advertising priority only. There is no prize, payout, review, or guarantee of future position. Votes on the Most wanted board never change this ranking.