Turning family photos into coloring pages is a real business.
The idea: AI photo-to-coloring-page generator
ColorBliss founder Ben Robertson posted on Indie Hackers that he quit his job, launched in October 2023, and hit $2K MRR seven months later. Starter Story also profiled the business. A separate photo-to-coloring-page app has $6K in verified revenue.
Startup cost (est.)Under $100
DifficultyEasy
Time to first dollar (est.)1–3 weeks
No-code friendlyPartly
The receipts
ColorBliss: Founder: launched in October, and 'now, just 26 days later, I made it to $2k' MRR (May 2024).
Source: Indie Hackers (founder post) · checked 2026-10-15
Coloring Book: $559 verified revenue in the last 30 days; $6,225 all-time
Source: TrustMRR · checked 2026-10-15
Payment-verified figures come from TrustMRR, which reads revenue from the business's payment provider. Founder and press figures are claims we found on the linked page and haven't audited. How we check.
Who pays
Parents, teachers, grandparents, gift buyers.
How it makes money
Subscription or packs; printed books as upsell.
How to start your own
- Rank for '[animal] coloring pages' with generated pages.
- Charge for custom pages from photos.
- Sell printed custom coloring books.
The catch
Lots of free coloring sites, so custom and personal is the paid hook.