Software development costs: What are the prices for custom software?
There are many thought processes and price comparisons behind the idea of having software developed. That is why we also expect the important question of the price for software development in every conversation. In order to give you a good idea of the price, we will show you in this article how the costs of software development are made up and calculate different project types and sizes.
What are the costs for software development?
The costs depend very directly on the complexity of the desired software. With an increasing number of features The project scope is growing, which affects the choice of programming technology as well as the size of the development team and their necessary qualification and experience.
- Project scope and complexity: Simple web applications with few functions are significantly cheaper than scalable platforms with complex user roles, databases and interfaces to third-party systems.
- Technology required: The choice of programming languages, frameworks, and tools also influences costs. It depends on the project goals whether cheap no-code variants are sufficient or whether deliberate hardcoding is more appropriate.
- Team size and qualification: Experienced developers come at a price. A team of senior developers will usually be more expensive than a mix of junior and mid-level developers. The deployment of personnel also depends directly on the scope of the project and its goals. The costs for software development per hour are set at 90 to 180 CHF. [Please classify/change the values as is customary in the industry]
Software development is therefore no different than in other industries. A small house with a few rooms or a car with basic equipment will always be cheaper than the larger and more powerful counterpart in your own configuration.
The same applies to the skilled workers employed. Quality and long-term reliability The software is more likely to be expected from experienced programmers, even though beginners can buy significantly cheaper on freelancer platforms such as Fiverr.
Cost examples for the development of typical software projects
To get specific about the costs of software development, we will introduce you to some price ranges here. These come from our experience and previous, i.e. real projects.
Important: The table below is none Price list with binding values. But it gives you a sense of the price range. Further down in this article, you will also find a chapter in which we classify and compare prices.
Software development costs by project type
The lower value of each price range relates to a minimally viable product (MVP) with a few core functions. Software solutions with high performance, deep integrations and special requirements must be measured by the highest value in each case. The development time also depends on this smaller or larger complexity.
Software development costs by project size
Not all projects of the same or similar type are the same size. That's why we're putting a Guidance for project size , which is also based on the projects we have carried out so far.
Costs: No-code/low-code vs. hard-coded
For some projects, it makes sense to first use the Core of the idea with an MVP to test. These are available more quickly and are created with no-code or low-code programming. Larger projects should be hard-coded in order to implement correspondingly higher requirements
Classification of costs: individual vs. finished software
Most standard software, which you could immediately book online, is based on licensing models and offers predefined features. Since these functions are preferably based on a broad user market If they should fit, special requirements usually cannot be met.
Subscription payments for finished software nevertheless quickly add up to orders of magnitude that equal or even exceed those of custom software — without the advantage of adapted functions. The following calculation example using Salesforce Marketing Cloud shows which costs can arise even over short periods of time.
The costs for this software range from 15,000€ to 180,000€ (approx. 14,000 to 168,000 CHF) per year. Over a typical depreciation period of five years, there is therefore Subscription fees from 70,000 to 840,000 CHF.
How can I reduce software development costs?
When it comes to ideas for saving costs, we ignore sacrifices in quality, as Axisbits exclusively in the high-quality range moved and had the best experiences with it. Nevertheless, there are ways to manage costs very consciously, even with the highest quality standards:
- Define a clear requirement: Explain in detail what software requirements you have. This makes it possible to work towards these goals in a straight line without taking expensive detours.
- First focus on an MVP: With a minimum viable product, you can test the most important functions on the market or in your company first before moving on to a higher-priced full development. The experience gained helps to develop in a targeted manner, which ultimately saves costs.
- Use of no-code/low-code platforms at the start: They are particularly suitable for prototypes or simple applications and can be developed more quickly and therefore more cost-effectively. The switch to hardcode will take place later.
- Agile development methods: With iterative development steps, we ensure that the software is developed particularly closely to the customer's wishes. This also avoids expensive detours.
The costs of software development from a bird's eye view
As shown, prices are always within a range and the driving cost factors are in particular the scope and technology chosen for the software.
We know that there should be much more information on the table for investments of this scale — and that for both sides. That's why we always offer you a free consultation, In which we define the key points of your project idea and tell you much more precisely what price you can expect. This also makes it much easier to estimate the duration of the project.
Wir schaffen leistungsstarke Plattformen und Websites für Startups, Scale-Ups und KMUs, von Konzept bis Go-Live.
Software development costs — frequently asked questions and answers
A list of the customer's specific requirements is transferred to a specific project plan and then priced. The costs for subsequent maintenance and updates should always be included in the calculation of costs.
Costs depend on factors such as project scope, technology stack, and developer team size. The complexity of the requirements also has a significant impact on prices.
Cost-reducing measures include the use of no-code and low-code platforms at the beginning, agile development methods to avoid expensive detours and starting with an MVP (Minimum Viable Product).
High-quality software reduces maintenance costs in the long term and significantly improves scalability. In this context, the quality of individual software is reflected in the fact that the software can also be relied on in the long term.
The price for a comprehensive mobile app (iOS/Android) with user profile, in-app purchases, push messages, backend API and, if applicable, chat functions starts at around 60,000 CHF.
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