“How much will it cost?” is the first question almost every business asks about custom software, and the honest answer is “it depends”. That’s frustrating, so this guide explains what it depends on, and how to get a price you can actually hold a developer to.
Why there’s no fair single price
Custom software is built to fit your business, so two projects that sound alike can be very different underneath. “An app for our deliveries” could mean a simple list your drivers tick off, or a system that plans routes, takes payments and talks to your accounting software. The words are the same; the work isn’t.
Any company that quotes a firm price before understanding your business is either guessing or padding the price to cover what it doesn’t know. Neither is good for you.
What drives the cost
How much the software must do
Every screen, every feature and every business rule takes time to design, build and test. Rules are where the hidden work lives: discounts, approvals, who can see what, what happens when a payment fails.
How many kinds of users it serves
Customers, staff, managers, drivers, administrators. Each kind of user needs its own screens, its own permissions and its own testing.
What it connects to
Payment providers, SMS and WhatsApp messages, accounting software, maps, your existing systems. Each connection has to be built carefully, tested, and watched in case the other side changes.
Where you’re starting from
Building from nothing is different from working with software you already have. Existing code has to be read and understood before it can be changed safely. If it’s in poor shape, that adds work. Our rescue checklist explains why.
Design
A clean, simple interface built from a well-made design system costs less than a fully bespoke look. Both can be right; it depends on what your customers expect.
Testing
Software for Nigerian customers needs testing on ordinary Android phones and slow, patchy networks, not just on fast office laptops. It takes time, and it saves money later. Our testing guide explains how.
Timescale
A fixed date can mean more people working at once, which costs more than the same work done at a steady pace.
Looking after it
Software isn’t finished at launch. Updates, security patches, monitoring and fixes cost money every month or year. Ask about these before you start, not after.
How to get a quote you can trust
- Write down what you need first. A short, plain document of who uses the software and what they need to do changes everything. Our guide on writing a software requirements specification shows how.
- Ask for a quote in stages. Each stage should have its own scope, its own price and something you can see at the end of it. You can stop or change course between stages.
- Ask what isn’t included. Hosting, domain names, third-party fees, app store accounts, support after launch.
- Ask how changes are priced. Things will change. A good developer tells you before a change costs more, not afterwards.
- Compare like with like. Give every developer the same written requirements, so their quotes describe the same work.
Ways to keep the cost down
- Start smaller. Build the part that solves the biggest problem first, use it, then decide on the next part.
- Use what already exists for the ordinary parts, like logins, payments and messaging, and spend on what’s specific to your business.
- Don’t pay for features you might need. Build for what you know today.
- Test early. Problems found in the first weeks cost a fraction of problems found by customers.
How we price
At Synovika we don’t publish a price list, because no two projects are the same. After a first conversation we send a short write-up of what we heard, then a written quote in stages, before any work starts. If something would change the price later, we tell you before we do the work.
If you’re planning custom software for your business, tell us what you need. We’ll start with questions.