In startup culture, what does “dogfooding” mean?

In startup culture, “dogfooding” means using your own product. The practice encourages a company’s employees and leaders to rely on the product themselves, exposing problems that outside customers might encounter.

The expression comes from the phrase “eating your own dog food,” popularized in the technology industry during the 1980s. Microsoft became especially associated with the practice, using internal versions of its software and discussing the idea as a way to test reliability and build confidence.

Dogfooding is not the same as beta testing with external users. Internal use can reveal workflow problems, confusing interfaces and missing features before a public release, but employees may still behave differently from ordinary customers. Startups therefore often combine dogfooding with customer interviews, usability tests and production data.