If you have asked for a price for custom software, you have probably been told «it depends». That is true, but it does not help you decide. This article explains exactly what it depends on, which parts of the cost do not usually appear in the first figure, and how to prepare your request so that two or three companies give you quotes you can put side by side.
Why nobody can give you a price without seeing the project
Custom software is not an off-the-shelf product: it involves analysis, design, development, testing and going live. The cost comes mainly from the hours of skilled people, and those hours depend on what the software has to do and how well defined it is.
Two requests that sound the same can be very different. «A program to manage orders» could be a single screen to enter orders and print a list, or it could include customer-specific price lists, stock across several warehouses, sending delivery notes, a link to the accounts and an app for sales reps. So when someone gives you a fixed figure over the phone without asking anything, it is wise to be wary: either they have made assumptions you have not told them about, or they have left out things you take for granted.
What moves the cost the most
These are the factors that weigh most. Go through them before asking for a quote, because you can decide on many of them yourself.
| Factor | Why it adds to the cost | How to keep it down |
|---|---|---|
| Number of processes | Each process (orders, purchasing, production, invoicing…) means screens, rules and testing | Start with the process that hurts most and leave the rest for later phases |
| Exceptions and odd cases | Special rules («this customer is charged differently») multiply the logic | Separate what happens every day from what happens twice a year |
| Where it is used | Office, mobile, tablet or several at once are different developments | Decide who uses each part and from which device |
| Working without coverage | Saving data on the device and syncing it later requires more development and testing | Ask for it only where there really is no signal |
| Connections with other systems | Accounting, weighbridges, scanners, third-party websites: each link has to be designed and maintained | List which data has to pass between systems and in which direction |
| Reports and dashboards | Each custom report means design work and database queries | Use the reports you already have on paper or in Excel as a model |
| Data to be brought in | Moving data from an old program requires cleaning and transforming it | Decide which history you really need |
Costs that are not in the first quote
Development is the visible part. There are others you should ask about from the start, because sooner or later they appear:
- Installation and go-live: getting the software running on your computers or in the cloud, with users and permissions set up.
- Data migration: customers, items, prices and history from the system you use now.
- Training: how many sessions, for whom, and whether it is repeated when new staff join.
- Server or hosting: if the software lives in the cloud, someone pays for that service every month or every year.
- Third-party licences: databases, reporting tools or external services the software uses.
- Maintenance and support: bug fixes, updates, backups and answers to your questions once it has been delivered.
- Later changes: anything you ask for after approving the analysis is quoted separately in almost every contract.
None of these costs is bad in itself. What is bad is discovering them once you have already chosen a supplier by comparing only the first figure.
How to ask for quotes you can compare
If you send three companies a two-line email, you will get three quotes that look nothing alike. Preparing a simple document of two or three pages changes the result. You do not need technical language:
- Describe how you work today. Who does what, with which papers or spreadsheets, and where the work gets stuck.
- Say what you want to achieve. For example: «that the order taken by the sales rep reaches the warehouse without being typed in again».
- List the users. How many people, which profiles (office, warehouse, field) and which device they work on.
- Attach real examples. A delivery note, a work report, the Excel file you use. They are worth more than any description.
- List the systems you already have. Accounting software, machines, website, and what should connect to what.
- Set priorities. What is essential to get started and what can wait.
- Ask everyone for the same breakdown. Analysis, development by module, migration, training, hosting and maintenance, each item separately.
With that basis, the price differences between companies start to have an explanation: one includes migration and another does not, one prices the app for Android and iOS and another for just one system.
How to read the offers
Once you have the quotes, look at more than the total.
Fixed price or hourly
A fixed price gives peace of mind, but only if the scope is well written; otherwise every question turns into «that wasn't included». An hourly quote is more flexible and requires you to follow progress closely. On medium-sized projects a mix is common: a fixed-price analysis and development in phases, each with its own quote.
What is delivered in each phase
Ask for the offer to state what you will be able to use at the end of each phase. A useful first delivery, even a small one, lets you check that the supplier has understood your process before you invest more.
What happens after delivery
Ask how long bug fixing is covered at no cost, how maintenance is calculated and who helps you when something goes wrong. A good custom software development supplier will explain this without you having to insist.
Common mistakes when budgeting
- Wanting everything in the first version. It raises the cost, lengthens the project and delays the point at which the software starts saving you work.
- Not involving the people who will do the work. The warehouse manager or site manager knows what exceptions exist; if they do not take part in the analysis, those exceptions will turn up during development, which is when they cost the most.
- Comparing custom software with a monthly licence. They are different decisions, with costs spread differently over time.
- Forgetting mobile. If part of the team works away from the office, thinking about an app later usually costs more than planning it from the start. If that is your case, look at app development before asking for a price.
- Not asking about the data. Owning the software is not much use if your data ends up trapped in a format you cannot extract.
How we approach it at Infonet
At Infonet Consultores, custom software built around each client's process has been our main line of business since 1999. We start by analysing how you work and, from there, we develop the web application, app or desktop program you need, or we adapt one of our own applications thanks to its configurability and our customisation service, which in many cases reduces the development required. The quote includes what is usually left out: installation, migration of the data you already have, configuration and training, and then direct support from the same team that developed it. If you want to see what kind of projects we do, on the Infonet home page you will find the applications that started out as custom developments.
