Custom Software Pricing Guide

How much does custom software cost?

The honest answer is that it depends. Not because we are trying to avoid giving you a straight answer, but because two pieces of software can be completely different things.

One might manage a complicated process currently held together by spreadsheets, emails and several people remembering what needs to happen next. Another might need customer accounts, staff permissions, payments, live locations, reports, documents and several existing systems all working together.

Describing both simply as custom software does not tell us very much about what is actually involved.

The prices in this guide are therefore exactly that: guide prices. They will give you a sensible idea of the likely investment, but they are not fixed packages or promises made before we understand what you need.

The only way to receive an accurate price is to talk to us about your business, what is slowing you down and what the software needs to do.

Those conversations are free. You will not receive a bill for discussing an idea with us, either at the time or retrospectively if you decide not to go ahead.

Custom software prices at a glance

If the software you need already exists within the RiCollection, we may be able to customise a complete, working application instead of beginning a new build. You can find more information about the RiCollection and its pricing at the end of this guide.

These ranges are useful starting points, not fixed quotations. A smaller project can still involve technically complex work, while a larger system may be divided into several manageable stages.

Starter Custom Tools: £3,500–£6,500

Typical delivery time: 2–4 weeks

These are purpose-built systems designed to take control of a particular area of a business.

That might be a complete stock and equipment system used across a warehouse and several vehicles, a secure document process with different levels of approval, or a system that gathers information from several sources and turns it into useful reports automatically.

It could manage detailed calculations, create documents, keep a full history of changes, communicate with customers or connect with software you already use.

The scope is focused, but the work does not have to be simple.

These systems are usually suitable when there is one clearly identifiable problem to solve, rather than several departments or large parts of the business needing to work through the same application.

The finished system should remove workarounds, reduce mistakes and give people a dependable way to complete the job.

Mid-level Custom Apps: £6,800–£11,000

Typical delivery time: 1–3 months

These projects usually bring several parts of a business together.

The software might manage customers, jobs, stock, documents, bookings or staff activity in one place. It may replace several disconnected subscriptions or remove the need to enter the same information into different systems.

There may be several types of user, each needing to see or do different things. Information might need to pass between departments, trigger actions automatically or produce reports without somebody spending half a day assembling them.

The system could also include customer access, staff dashboards, approvals, automated communications, document creation or connections with other services.

The result is not simply another piece of software to look after. It should become a useful part of how the business operates.

Complex / Larger Projects: £12,000–£25,000+

Typical delivery time: 3 months or more

These are larger systems that support important or complicated areas of a business.

They may include multiple organisations, large numbers of users, live data, customer-facing services, payments, detailed reporting, complex permissions, location tracking, automated documents or connections with several outside systems.

Some projects also need to work in situations where the internet connection is unreliable, process substantial amounts of information, or provide a dependable service that customers and staff rely on throughout the working day.

We normally divide larger projects into clear stages. This allows you to see the system developing, use the important parts sooner and make informed decisions before we move on to the next stage.

Some projects will exceed £25,000 because there is no sensible upper limit to what custom software can contain. If that is likely, we will explain why and discuss how the work could be divided into manageable phases.

What affects the price?

The cost is based on what needs to be designed, built, connected, tested and supported.

Some of the things that can affect it include:

• How many different jobs the software needs to handle

• The number and type of people who will use it

• Whether different users need different levels of access

• Complex rules, calculations or approval processes

• Customer accounts, memberships or subscriptions

• Payments, invoicing or financial information

• Stock, equipment or location tracking

• Maps, routes or live information

• Automated emails, reminders and notifications

• Reports, certificates or other generated documents

• Connections with software you already use

• Existing information that needs to be imported or reorganised

• Security, record keeping and compliance requirements

• The number of people or businesses the system must support

• Whether parts of it need to work without a reliable internet connection

• Artificial intelligence or automation where it would genuinely be useful
  This does not mean every feature automatically makes a project expensive. Often, one carefully planned system can replace several subscriptions and hours of manual work.

It does mean that we need to understand the whole job before placing a reliable price against it.

What if your current software nearly works?

Sometimes a business already uses an excellent piece of off-the-shelf software, but there is one important thing it cannot do.

Other times it technically does everything required, but only after the business has paid for dozens of features nobody wants and changed its working methods to suit the software.

A completely new system is not always the answer.

We may be able to connect your existing software to something else, build a separate tool to handle the missing part or automate the movement of information between them.

We will recommend the approach that makes sense for your business. We are not going to suggest rebuilding everything simply because we can.

Can a project be built in stages?

Yes, and for many projects that is the most sensible way to do it.

We can begin with the part that will make the biggest immediate difference and add further capabilities once that is working properly.

This can make the initial cost more manageable, allow staff to become familiar with the new system gradually and give you the opportunity to learn from real use before deciding what should come next.

It also avoids spending money on features that sounded useful at the beginning but turn out not to be needed.

Larger projects can usually be divided into an agreed payment plan rather than requiring the full cost upfront.

How long does custom software take to build?

A project could take days or it could take months.

The timescales above are useful indications, but they are not deadlines attached to fixed packages. The actual schedule depends on what is being built, what it needs to connect with and how quickly decisions and information are available.

We will give you a realistic timescale once we understand the project. If that changes during the work, we will tell you why rather than allowing a mysterious silence to develop.

You can be as involved as you would like to be. Some clients want regular demonstrations and updates; others prefer us to handle the detail and bring them in when decisions are needed.

Either way, we make sure we are building what you actually need.

What happens when the software is ready?

When the work is finished, we hand over the complete package agreed at the beginning of the project.

Depending on what has been built, that may include:

• Your existing information moved into the new system

• User accounts and access levels set up

• Training for the people who will use it

• Straightforward instructions and supporting documents

• Hosting, monitoring and backups

• Ongoing maintenance arrangements

• A plan for any future stages or additions

• A full handover to your own team, where that is the chosen arrangement
  These are not unfinished extras for you to organise after launch. Anything included within the project will be prepared, tested and ready as part of the finished system.

We will also make sure the people using it know what they are doing. There is little value in handing somebody powerful new software and then leaving them alone to work out which button does what.

Ownership and handover arrangements will be agreed before the project begins. If the finished software is being passed over to you completely, you will receive the appropriate rights as part of that handover.

You may prefer us to continue looking after the software through an ongoing retainer. If so, you can cancel whenever you wish. We would rather you stayed because our support is useful than because an agreement made it difficult for you to leave.

You may not need to start from the beginning

Custom software does not always have to mean designing and building an entirely new system.

The RiCollection is our growing portfolio of complete, working business applications. Instead of beginning with an empty screen, we begin with software that has already been built and then adapt it around your business.

That might include changing the branding, adding particular fields, adjusting how information moves through the system, setting up different types of user or adding features specific to the way you work.

If a RiCollection application already does most of what you need, this can be a faster and more affordable route than commissioning a completely new build.

If it does not, we can discuss whether new custom software would be more appropriate.

We will not try to squeeze your business into an existing application simply because it is already there. The point is to find the right starting place.

The RiCollection has its own pricing guide, where you can see the available applications and find out more about the cost of adapting them around your business.

The only accurate price starts with a conversation

You do not need to arrive with a finished specification, a list of technical requirements or even a particularly tidy explanation.

You can tell us what is frustrating you, what takes too long, what regularly goes wrong or what you wish your current systems could do.

We can then help you work out whether you need completely custom software, whether an existing system could be connected or extended, or whether an application from the RiCollection could be adapted around you.

There is no charge for that conversation and no obligation to turn it into a project.

If you have an idea, a difficult process or a system that is making work harder than it needs to be, get in touch. We are always happy to talk it through.

Where To Go Next

If you already have a project in mind, come and tell us about it. You do not need a technical plan or a finished list of requirements—we can help you work out what is needed.

Talk To Us About Your Project

If you are still exploring the possibilities, you can read more about how we work, discover what custom software could do for your business, or look through examples of systems we have already built.

How We Build Custom Software Around Your Business

What Can Custom Software Actually Do?

Our Work

RiCollection Pricing and Customisation Guide