Simple pricing for Complex Software

Software development costs are predictable by using fixed pricing always when the scope of work is clear, in which case the client has no risk of costs increasing, unlike pure hourly pricing, which is used only for urgent work or discovery when the scope of work is uncertain. Because I sell my own expertise rather than capacity, the salary of an individual software engineer or unused capacity does not determine my pricing.

As I already mentioned on the Welcome page, I am interested in solo developer-sized projects. In practice, this means I am looking for projects of a suitable size, not too small and not too large.

A project of suitable size typically lasts around three months. During that time, the development of the web application is priced at 15 000 euros on a turnkey basis. If initial discussions suggest that the project fits this scope, we can proceed with a more detailed requirements specification.

A detailed written requirements specification for the web application costs 750 euros. Ordering it does not commit you to the development project, but if we proceed, it will serve as an attachment to the contract.

After the project, further development is carried out in iterations. One iteration is a software solution that I estimate I can complete within 20–30 hours of development work. The contents of each iteration are first negotiated with the customer, after which the scope remains fixed and only the delivery time agreed with the customer affects the price.

When the iteration is completed faster than agreed, I will charge only according to the agreed delivery time. If the completion is delayed from the agreed delivery time, I will automatically charge according to the lower-priced delivery time.

I handle urgent tasks on an hourly basis, at a rate of 100 euros per hour, with a minimum of half an hour. When the scope cannot be estimated in advance, a discovery day can be scheduled. The discovery work is done on an hourly basis at a rate of 70 euros per hour, with a minimum of half of the hours reserved for the day. By the end of the day, the problem is either solved or there is a better understanding of how to proceed next.

Hosting

The cost of hosting a web application in the cloud depends on the chosen architecture. A cloud environment with fixed capacity is more affordable with low usage, and costs 120 euros per year. The cost of an automatically scaling cloud environment varies depending on usage.

Who owns the code?

If you are purchasing code as a service for the first time, have you considered who owns the code. From the perspective of intellectual property rights such as copyright, the most effective approach is to take advantage of open-source code whenever possible. This includes code licensed under MIT, Apache, BSD, or similar licenses that allow resale without requiring the project-specific code to be released as open source. This makes it easy to clearly define that all code and copyrights not covered by open-source licenses are directly transferred to the paying customer.

Maintenance

Updating and testing open-source dependencies is also available as an optional service at a fixed price. With a one-year contract, the price is 400 euros per month, after which the agreement continues until further notice.

All prices listed on this page are excluding value-added tax. The VAT rate of 25,5% will be added to the total.