About G3: Cheap and Privacy-Respecting Small Business Tools
A guide to the tools we use to run the biz!
America’s economic prosperity is dead. We all know we’re in the late stages of capitalism, and frankly, being a small business owner isn’t gonna get easier. But we can use our collective power to stick it to the billionaires and find other means for smoothing the rough waters ahead. We do it by protecting our information and lowering our overhead.
DSM G3 is degoogling and increasing our privacy. We’re also finding every way we can to reduce business expenses. In doing so, we’ve found many inexpensive, privacy-respecting tools. This guide details what we’re using to keep overhead low but stay on top of all the things!
Note: Rates current as of May 9, 2025. This post is not sponsored nor does it contain affiliate links.
Web Hosting: IONOS
$7.01/month
Despite a maddening customer portal, I’ve had no issues in 5 years.
Virtual Mailbox: iPostal1
$14.99/month
The name sounds scammy, but it’s safe. Having a virtual mailbox keeps my home address private. I’ve got the "Business Green” package.
Graphics: Canva
$120/year
I enjoy Canva, but I’m no longer using social media. So, I’m letting my pro membership go. It was worth the $120 a year for this design noob.
Total Monthly Overhead
After July 2025, my monthly overhead is $22. That’s it!
Other Stuff
Phone Number: Google Voice
Financial cost: Free. Privacy cost: High. While Google Voice provides a great, free tool for phone numbers, I rarely use it and am letting it lapse. But as the saying goes with billion-dollar corporations, "If it’s free, then you’re not the customer; you're the product.”
Website: WordPress
Our website is housed on WordPress (WP), which I’ve used for at least a decade. WPIt’s clunky, annoying, and excessively complicated. But I can’t be bothered to change at the moment. It does the job for now and is free.
Business Management: Obsidian and LibreOffice
Two free, open-source tools help me track everything business related: Obsidian and LibreOffice. Both have strong privacy policies. There’s a bit of a learning curve for Obsidian, but it's pretty easy. I do pay for this, but I do it out of personal funds because I use it more for personal projects. Meanwhile, LibreOffice also has a learning curve if you’re used to Google Suite and Microsoft Office, but that’s more annoying than anything.
Browser: Vivaldi
I do A LOT of online research. I switched from Google Chrome to Vivaldi. It’s an excellent browser that respects privacy, and their executives has spoken out against incorporating AI. It’s highly customizable as well. Oh yeah, and free.
Platform: Substack (and Stripe)
Using Substack can be free, but I do pay fees, which come out of paid subscriptions. I’m not thrilled with Substack’s leadership, and I hate Stripe’s platform, but they will do for now. Switching is not an option at the moment.
Email: Mailfence
I’m switching from Gmail to Mailfence this year. Again, I do pay for this service, but I primarily use it for personal purposes. Mailfence is a privacy-respecting service unlike Gmail which is a privacy nightmare.
Socials: None
This month (May 2025), I deleted my remaining social media accounts. I still check Reddit for local information, and I’m sometimes forced to find info on Meta products, which is tricky without accounts. However, the tradeoff is fine by me. Not using Meta gives me peace of mind. Social media is dying anyway.
And the Rest
Banking: I don’t pay for a business bank account, but that’s because I refuse to open one. Don’t tell my bank.
Affiliate Programs: I use Bookshop.org and Impact for Uncommon Goods.
File Conversions: CloudConvert is nifty but has limits. I also haven’t vetted it.
Photo Storage and Editing: I’m still using Google Photos. I’ve not found a privacy-respecting tool I like yet. I’m looking at Immich, but self-hosting is a whole different thing.
If you find any of these tools helpful or have tips for better ones, share those in the comments! Or if I forgot anything, let me know!
We’re all in this impending economic shitshow together, so let’s make like a community and build.
You know I am team Ghost for blogging. They've recently added access to the fediverse, which makes it even easier for people to follow content (WP has had that integration for a while I think). It's free if self hosted, $7 for their hosting.
I also like credit unions for business bank accounts! Mine is free at a local credit union.