How much does a custom application cost?
Real ranges, what moves them, and what nobody thinks to tell you before you sign.
Four budget markers
Starting ranges, not a price list. Enough to place your project before you even call us.
-
A tool that does one thing well
Under €5,000
2 to 4 weeks
An automation that replaces a task done by hand, a form wired into your tools, a small internal tool for one team.
-
A first usable version
€5,000 – €15,000
4 to 10 weeks
The core of your idea, online and usable. Almost always the best way in.
-
A complete application
€15,000 – €50,000
2 to 5 months
Several kinds of users, accounts, an admin area, connections to your other software. Web, mobile, or both.
-
A business platform
Over €50,000
6 months and up
A system your operation genuinely runs on: many users, complex business rules, security or compliance requirements.
What actually moves the price
In order of real importance. The first one weighs more than all the others put together.
- 01
How many things the application has to do
The first factor by a long way. Ten screens don’t cost twice five screens: they cost more, because they interact.
- 02
Web, mobile, or both
A website you reach from a phone costs less than a real app you install. We will tell you honestly if a site is enough.
- 03
How many systems have to be connected
Making your tool talk to your accounting or your CRM is often the most expensive and least visible part.
- 04
How much care goes into how it looks
A clean, standard interface is included everywhere. A visual identity worked screen by screen is a separate line.
- 05
Accounts and data
The moment people log in, you need passwords, access rights, privacy and backups. Invisible to the user, and not compressible for us.
- 06
The application’s life after launch
An application needs updates and improvements. Budget for it at the start, not six months later.
What is included, and what never is
The second column is the number one source of nasty surprises. Better said upfront.
Included in our quotes
- Conversations, questions and progress meetings
- The design work that happens before development
- Testing, and fixing any defect we introduced
- Go-live and training for your teams
- The source code, which is yours from day one
Never included, by anyone
- Apple developer account (99 $/year) and Google Play (25 $ once)
- Monthly hosting for your application
- Third-party service fees: text messages, maps, online payments
- Content: copy, photography, professional translation
- Features decided after signing — these get a written addendum, never a surprise invoice
How we price
-
The first conversation is free and commits you to nothing
An hour on a call. You leave with a first order of magnitude — even if you never work with us.
-
Fixed price for a defined scope
We write down together what needs building, then we name a firm price. If we got our estimate wrong, that is our problem, not yours.
-
Time and materials for ongoing work
When the need keeps evolving, we bill the time spent, with an agreed ceiling and a weekly update on what got done.
-
You can stop
At the end of each stage, you decide whether we carry on. You leave with what has been built and paid for — the code is yours.
Markers by type of project
The detail of what each service covers.
- Custom web applications Your internal tools, your customer portal, your dashboards.
- Mobile applications An app on iPhone and Android, published on both stores.
- Custom software development For when no off-the-shelf software does what you need.
- Advice and scoping Know what it costs and what it commits you to, before committing anything.
- Going live and hosting Your application online, fast, backed up and watched over.
- Data and dashboards Finally know what your numbers say, without re-typing them by hand.
The questions we get about money
Why not display a fixed price?
Because it would be false. “An application” is as much a connected form as a platform a whole company depends on. A fixed price quoted before knowing your project is always too high or too thin.
Is the first meeting billable?
No. It is free and commits you to nothing, and you leave with an order of magnitude.
What if the project goes over budget?
On a fixed price, an overrun caused by our own estimate is on us. Only what you add along the way moves the price — quoted before, never after.
Can I start small?
That is what we recommend nearly every time. The real risk is not overpaying: it is paying for features nobody will use.
How much does maintenance cost?
A monthly retainer proportional to the size of the application: security, monitoring, fixes, agreed improvements. Priced with the project, not afterwards.
Does the code really belong to me?
Yes, entirely, from day one. You can take it at any moment and hand it to another team.
Can you take over an application somebody else started?
Yes, and it is a significant part of what we do. We look at what exists first and tell you plainly what it is worth.
Want an order of magnitude for your project?
Describe it in a few lines. A realistic range within one business day, no strings attached.
