Indicative ranges for projects built by an experienced India-based team:
- Simple software (basic web app, internal tool, small portal): ₹3 lakh to ₹8 lakh (roughly $4,000 to $10,000)
- Mid-complexity software (SaaS MVP, CRM, e-commerce platform, multi-role dashboards): ₹8 lakh to ₹25 lakh (roughly $10,000 to $30,000)
- Complex or enterprise software (large platforms, heavy integrations, strict compliance, AI features): ₹25 lakh to ₹1 crore or more (roughly $30,000 to $120,000+)
Agencies in the US, UK or Western Europe often charge two to four times more for similar work, mainly because of higher hourly rates. Treat every figure here as an estimate. An exact price needs a defined scope.
What Decides the Price of Custom Software?
Two projects that sound alike can differ in cost by several times. These are the main reasons:
- Scope and number of features: every feature (user roles, payments, reports, notifications) adds design, development and testing time.
- Design and user experience: a simple, clean interface costs less than a fully custom design with animations and user research.
- Platforms: a web app costs less than a web app plus Android and iOS apps.
- Integrations: payment gateways, ERPs, WhatsApp, government portals and third-party APIs all take extra effort.
- Security and compliance: banking, healthcare, legal and data-protection needs (such as India's DPDP Act) add encryption, audit logs and access control.
- AI features: chatbots, recommendations or document analysis add model, data and testing costs.
- Timeline: an urgent deadline usually needs a bigger team, which raises the cost.
- Team location and experience: rates vary widely by region and seniority.
Where Does the Money Go? Cost by Project Phase
Knowing how a budget is usually split helps you judge a quote. A typical breakdown looks like this:
- Discovery and planning: 5% to 10%
- UI/UX design: 10% to 15%
- Development (frontend, backend, database): 40% to 50%
- Testing and quality assurance: 10% to 15%
- Deployment and project management: 10% to 15%
If a quote spends almost nothing on planning, design and testing, expect problems later. Skipping them rarely saves money, it just moves the cost to rework.
Typical Cost by Type of Software
- Business website with CMS: ₹30,000 to ₹3 lakh
- Custom web application: ₹3 lakh to ₹20 lakh
- Mobile app (Android and iOS, cross-platform): ₹5 lakh to ₹25 lakh
- SaaS product (MVP): ₹8 lakh to ₹30 lakh
- CRM or ERP for a business: ₹6 lakh to ₹40 lakh
- E-commerce or marketplace platform: ₹5 lakh to ₹35 lakh
- Adding AI features to existing software: ₹2 lakh to ₹15 lakh
Three Example Projects
These illustrative examples show how scope changes price:
- Clinic appointment portal (patient login, booking calendar, reminders, admin panel): about ₹3 lakh to ₹6 lakh
- Law firm CRM (case tracking, document storage, user roles, deadline alerts, reports): about ₹8 lakh to ₹18 lakh
- B2B marketplace (vendor and buyer panels, payments, order management, admin dashboard): about ₹15 lakh to ₹35 lakh
Hourly Rates by Region
Roughly speaking, developer rates look like this:
- India: about $15 to $50 per hour
- Eastern Europe: about $35 to $80 per hour
- US and UK: about $100 to $200 or more per hour
Lower rates do not mean lower quality. Judge a team by its past projects, communication and process, not only by the hourly number.
Pricing Models: Fixed Price, Time and Material, Dedicated Team
- Fixed price: one agreed price for a clearly defined scope. Best for small, well-defined projects. The risk is that any change becomes a new change request.
- Time and material: you pay for the hours spent. Best when requirements may change. It is flexible, but you need regular budget tracking.
- Dedicated team: developers work as an extension of your team on a monthly basis. Best for long-term products and ongoing development.
The right model depends on how clear your requirements are and how much change you expect.
Hidden Costs People Forget
- Hosting and cloud: servers, databases, storage and backups are monthly or yearly costs.
- Third-party services: paid APIs, SMS, email, maps, payment gateway fees and software licences.
- Maintenance and support: a common rule of thumb is 15% to 20% of the build cost per year for bug fixes, updates and security patches.
- Security testing: audits and penetration testing for sensitive applications.
- Changing requirements: new ideas mid-project are normal, so keep a 10% to 20% buffer.
Custom Software vs Off-the-Shelf: Which Costs Less?
Off-the-shelf software (a SaaS tool) is cheaper to start, but you pay monthly per user, adapt your process to the tool, and may hit limits as you grow. Custom software costs more upfront, but you own it, it fits your exact workflow, and it can become a real business advantage.
If your process is unique or you plan to scale, custom usually wins within two to three years. If your needs are standard, an existing tool may be enough.
How to Reduce Software Development Cost Without Losing Quality
- Start with an MVP: build only the core features, launch, collect feedback, then expand.
- Define requirements clearly: a written feature list and rough wireframes prevent expensive rework.
- Phase your roadmap: split the project into releases instead of building everything at once.
- Choose the right tech stack: modern, widely used technologies are easier and cheaper to build and maintain.
- Reuse proven components: login, payments and dashboards do not need to be built from zero.
- Pick the right partner: the cheapest quote often becomes the most expensive project after fixes.
Red Flags in a Software Quote
- A price with no feature list or scope document
- A fixed price given after a five-minute call
- No mention of testing, deployment or support
- No clear ownership of source code
- No milestones or regular demos
- A quote far below every other quote with no explanation
What to Prepare Before Asking for a Quote
You will get a faster and more accurate estimate if you have:
- A short description of the problem the software solves
- A list of main features, split into must-have and nice-to-have
- Who will use it and how many users you expect
- Any systems it needs to connect to
- Your budget range and target launch date
- Examples of apps or sites you like
How We Estimate Projects at 10ai Solutions
We keep the process simple and transparent:
- Discovery call: we understand your business goal, users and budget.
- Scope and wireframes: we list features and prioritize what goes into version one.
- Estimate and timeline: you receive a clear breakdown of cost and delivery milestones.
- Build in sprints: you see working progress regularly, not only at the end.
- Launch and support: we deploy, monitor and support your product after go-live.