What API or third-party service did you stubbornly avoid paying for until it broke your workflow?

As a solo dev, my default mindset is always "I can build a workaround for this." I built custom web scrapers, rate-limit bypasses, and manual fallback scripts just to avoid paying $29/mo for an API service.

Then came the night before a launch. A free API endpoint changed its schema without warning, breaking my main feature. I spent 4 hours fixing something that a paid, SLA-backed API would have handled seamlessly. I upgraded at 3 AM. The cost of my lost sleep and stress was way higher than $29.

Sometimes, free tools don't save you money—they just charge you in time and anxiety.

Have you ever spent days building a workaround just to end up buying the service anyway?