Published 22 October 2026 · By iFactory India
A billing application for one outlet and a customer portal connecting several departments are different projects. A headline development price tells you little until you know the workflows, users, data and acceptance criteria included.
iFactory India prices custom projects after reviewing the requirement. This guide explains how to compare proposals; it does not set a standard rate or promise a delivery period for an unseen project.
The main drivers of custom software cost
- Workflow complexity: count the decisions, approvals, revisions and exceptions, as well as the screens.
- Users and permissions: define who can view, edit, approve, export or correct records.
- Integrations: investigate the other system's access, documentation, provider charges and failure handling.
- Existing data: cleaning duplicate products, matching identifiers and verifying opening balances take work.
- Operating conditions: mobile devices, printers, unreliable connections and multiple outlets change testing requirements.
- Reporting: define the calculation and reconciliation behind each total rather than requesting an unspecified dashboard.
- Handover and support: agree training, documentation, hosting responsibilities and how future changes are priced.
Compare software quotations against the same brief
| Proposal area | Ask for |
|---|---|
| Included scope | Named workflows, users, environments and explicit exclusions. |
| Delivery | Milestones, client dependencies, review time and acceptance checks. |
| Data migration | Data formats, cleanup responsibility, trial imports and reconciliation. |
| Third-party services | Who holds each account, usage assumptions and separately payable fees. |
| Ownership and exit | Source-code and licence terms, data export, credentials and handover. |
| Support | Included period, covered hours, response expectations and change process. |
Ask the supplier to demonstrate one normal transaction and one exception. For billing, that might mean a sale followed by an exchange. For manufacturing, it could be a quotation revision followed by a partial dispatch.
Budget for operation as well as development
Separate the initial build from hosting, domains, backups, storage, email or messaging providers, paid APIs, payment-provider charges, maintenance and future changes. Some may be unnecessary for a particular project; ask which apply and how they are calculated. Confirm taxes and invoice terms in the proposal.
A fixed-price quote needs a defined scope and a way to handle change. A time-based engagement needs agreed priorities, visibility into work completed and a budget review process. Neither approach removes the need for acceptance criteria.
Should we buy an existing tool instead?
Compare an existing subscription product, a smaller configuration project and a custom build against your requirements. Include subscription costs, implementation effort, data access and the work that remains manual. Read when to replace spreadsheets with custom software before committing to development.
Can a paid pilot reduce the initial commitment?
A limited pilot can test one workflow with agreed users and sample data. Define what it must prove, what is excluded and whether any work will be reused in a later rollout. A pilot still needs a written price, delivery milestones and acceptance checks.
Prepare a brief that makes proposals comparable
Describe today's process, its main difficulty, the people involved and one measurable outcome. Include sample inputs and outputs, existing tools, integration needs and a budget constraint if you have one. The project brief planner helps assemble this information.
For a detailed walkthrough, use our software project planning guide. Retail teams can also use the billing and inventory checklist; manufacturers can explore order and quotation workflows.