How much should custom software cost?
A small, well-defined internal tool runs about $5,000 to $15,000. A real product with users, data, and integrations (a Forge build) runs about $15,000 to $50,000 and up. Complex, regulated, or AI-heavy systems run higher and are usually built in stages. An ongoing embedded team runs about $14,000 to $48,000 a month. These are Ego Eimi's published ranges. What moves your number is scope, integrations, security, and certainty.
By Felipe Telles, founder of Ego Eimi
01 / The real fear
Most people asking what software costs are really asking a different question: am I about to get taken advantage of.
If you cannot read code, a quote is just a number on a page. You cannot tell if it is fair, padded, or missing the parts that matter. So the worry is not the price itself. It is the fear of overpaying, of a bill that keeps growing, of paying for hours and getting nothing you can use. That fear is reasonable. It is also fixable.
The fix is not to hunt for the lowest day rate. It is to change what you are buying. When the price is fixed in writing against a scope you agreed, tied to acceptance criteria you signed, the question stops being "is this number fair" and becomes "is this result worth it." That is a question you can actually answer.
How much does custom software cost by project type?
- Small, single-purpose tool: about $5,000 to $15,000.
- Real product with users, data, and integrations: about $15,000 to $50,000 and up.
- Complex, regulated, or AI-heavy system: $50,000 and up, usually built in stages.
- Ongoing embedded team: about $14,000 to $48,000 a month.
- The precise figure for your project: only after a short paid audit.
Everything below explains why those drivers move the number, and how to use them to spot a quote that is wrong.
02 / What drives the cost
Custom software pricing falls into four tiers: a small tool at about $5,000 to $15,000, a real product at about $15,000 to $50,000 and up, complex or regulated systems above $50,000 built in stages, and an ongoing embedded team at about $14,000 to $48,000 a month. The table shows what sits inside each tier.
These tiers map to how we structure work: a Spark audit to get clarity and a real number, then a Forge build at a fixed price. The audit fee is credited in full toward the build, so the clarity is effectively free if you proceed.
| Scope tier | Typical range | What sits inside it |
|---|---|---|
| Small tool | About $5,000 to $15,000 | A single clear job, like a calculator or an internal workflow, with a few real integrations and data that has to stay clean. Sometimes better as no-code, and we will say so. |
| Real product (Forge) | About $15,000 to $50,000 and up | A focused product with real users, one or two integrations, migrated data, documentation, and full ownership from day one. |
| Complex or regulated system | $50,000 and up, built in stages | Compliance, heavier AI, high uptime, and many tangled integrations, priced and shipped in clear stages. |
| Ongoing team (Engine) | About $14,000 to $48,000 a month | An embedded team carrying steady, predictable work or a full roadmap month to month. |
See how we structure work on our pricing page, read your build complexity with the cost estimator, or estimate the upside with the software ROI calculator.
03 / What makes it cost more
Six things move the price of the same project up or down: scope clarity, integrations and data, security and compliance, AI features, who does the work, and ownership terms. They sit below in rough order of impact, and they are why two projects that sound identical can be priced miles apart.
If a quote is much higher or lower than you expected, one of these is the reason. Knowing them lets you ask the right question instead of just hoping the price is fair.
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01
Unclear scope.
- The single biggest cost driver, and the one nobody quotes for honestly.
- Vague scope means change orders, rework, and a price that creeps. A signed scope caps it.
- This is the whole reason to start with an audit instead of a guess.
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02
Integrations and data.
- Every system you connect to (payments, CRM, your existing tools) adds work and risk.
- Messy or migrated data is often the most expensive part of a build, and the least visible.
- Three clean integrations cost far less than one tangled one.
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03
Security and compliance.
- Building to standard and audit-readiness cost more up front and save far more later.
- Regulated work (health, finance) raises the floor on every part of the build.
- A cheap quote that skips this is not cheaper. The cost arrives later, with interest.
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04
AI you can actually trust.
- AI features need evals, guardrails, and someone catching the vulnerabilities AI itself introduces.
- Done carelessly it looks cheap and ships risk. Done well it costs more and holds up.
- We judge AI behavior against pre-agreed evals, which is work, and worth it.
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05
Who actually does the work.
- A low rate often hides juniors and subcontractors you never agreed to.
- Senior-led work costs more per unit and far less per project, because there is less rework.
- The cheapest rate and the lowest total cost are rarely the same vendor.
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06
Ownership and handover.
- Owning the repo, docs, prompts, evals, and deployment is a feature you should be paying for.
- A quote that quietly leaves you locked in looks cheaper and costs you everything if you leave.
- With us you own everything from day one, so the price has no hidden exit tax.
Want to compare how billing itself changes the cost? Read fixed-price vs hourly.
04 / How to tell if you are overpaying
You are overpaying for custom software when the bill is open-ended, scope grows without a priced change order, security and handover are sold as extras, or you do not own what you are paying for. A fixed price tied to signed acceptance criteria caps your exposure. Run any quote through the eight checks below.
If a quote fails several of these, the problem is not the number. It is that the number is attached to nothing you can hold them to. Use this on every call, even ours.
- + The price is fixed in writing before any code is written
- + It is tied to a written scope and acceptance criteria you signed
- + Change orders are named up front, not sprung on you mid-build
- + Security, testing, documentation, and handover are included, not extra
- + You own the repo, infrastructure, and IP from the first line
- + One senior is accountable, and you know who is actually building
- + There is a written guarantee with a clear remediation path
- + The fee maps to a result you can measure, not hours you cannot see
One honest caveat
Sometimes the cheaper option is the right one. For a simple internal tool, no-code or a small build can genuinely cost less and do the job, and a good partner will tell you so instead of upselling. Cheap only becomes a trap when it quietly drops ownership, security, or accountability. The test is not the price. It is what the price buys.
05 / Why the only real number comes from an audit
Drivers help you sanity-check a quote. They cannot tell you your number, because your number depends on your scope, and nobody knows your scope until it is written down.
That is the entire purpose of a Spark audit. In two to eight weeks you get a clear scope, signed acceptance criteria, a quantified ROI, and a fixed price with a date. The fee is a small, fixed amount and it is credited in full toward the build, so if you proceed the clarity costs you nothing. For pre-screened fits there is a value guarantee: if we cannot find at least 10x the fee in value you agree is real, the audit is free.
After the audit, the build is fixed scope, fixed price, fixed deadline. New asks become change orders you approve. Third-party delays are the one thing outside our control, and we name those up front. No change orders you did not agree to, no hidden fees, no surprises.
Spark audit
A small, fixed fee, about two to eight weeks. Scope, signed acceptance criteria, quantified ROI, and a fixed price with a date. Credited in full toward the build.
Value guarantee for fitsForge build
A single fixed price, set before any code, four to eight weeks. Fixed scope, fixed price, fixed deadline. You own the repo, docs, prompts, evals, and deployment from day one.
Written delivery guaranteeEngine
A monthly retainer. The embedded engineering team you do not have, for ongoing work. Builds ascend here once trust exists.
Your team, on subscriptionGet your real number: book the software audit, see all services, or start a conversation.
06 / Cost is the wrong first question
Before "what does it cost," ask "what is it worth." A build that returns 10x its price is cheap at any number. One that returns nothing is expensive at any discount.
This is why we start with ROI, not a rate card. The audit quantifies the upside in your own terms, so the price is a decision you can defend, not a leap you are hoping pays off. Run a rough version yourself with the software ROI calculator before any call.
We have shipped the 46 builds in our public case studies, several for founders with no engineering team. The point of the range is to keep you from overpaying. The point of the audit is to make sure you are paying for something worth more than the fee.
When you are ready, start a conversation and we reply within one business day, and you get a fixed price and a date in writing before any code.
07 / Common questions
How much does custom software cost?
It depends on scope, but here are the honest drivers. A small, well-defined tool sits at the low end. A real product with users, data, and integrations costs more, because every system you connect to and secure adds work. A complex, regulated, or AI-heavy system runs higher and is often built in stages. Anyone who gives you a precise number before scoping is guessing. The only number you can plan around comes from a short paid audit, which is why we quote a fixed price after one.
Am I overpaying for software?
You are probably overpaying if the bill is open-ended, if scope keeps expanding without a clear price, or if you are paying for hours rather than a result. Overpaying is rarely about a high day rate. It is about rework, restarts, and projects that never ship. A fixed price tied to signed acceptance criteria caps your exposure. Compare the two billing models on fixed-price vs hourly.
Why are quotes for the same project so different?
Because they are pricing different things. One quote covers a quick prototype, another covers a secure, documented system you own and can scale. Some hide juniors and subcontractors behind a low rate. Some leave out security, testing, and handover, which become expensive later. The way to compare fairly is to make every quote answer to the same written scope and acceptance criteria, which is exactly what an audit produces.
Is cheaper software a bad sign?
Not always. For a simple internal tool, no-code or a small build can be the right, cheaper call, and we will tell you when it is. Cheap becomes a problem when it means no ownership, no documentation, no security, and no one accountable when it breaks. The real cost of software is the rework and the failed projects, not the day rate. We sell certainty, not the lowest hourly number.
What is the cheapest way to find out my real number?
A Spark audit. It is a small, fixed fee, runs about two to eight weeks, and is credited in full toward the build. You get a clear scope, signed acceptance criteria, a quantified ROI, and a fixed price with a date. For pre-screened fits there is a value guarantee: if we cannot find at least 10x the fee in value you agree is real, the audit is free. It is the cheapest way to replace guessing with evidence.
How do you keep the price from creeping up mid-build?
The price is fixed in writing before any code is written, tied to a signed scope and acceptance criteria. New asks become a change order you approve, not a surprise on the invoice. There are no hidden fees and no billable-hour games. Third-party delays are the one thing outside our control, and we name those up front. See the Forge build and our pricing.
Last updated July 2026 · Talk with Felipe
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