Why nobody wants to write this down
Because “it depends” is true, and because a single number in a title is how you get the wrong kind of enquiry. Still: buyers search this question, and vague answers waste everyone’s time. Here are bands we can stand behind for work done properly — design, build, test, deploy, handover — not a weekend prototype.
| What you are buying | Typical shape | Ballpark |
|---|---|---|
| Paid discovery / prototype | 2 to 4 weeks, written scope at the end | Small, fixed |
| Focused MVP or internal tool | 8 to 16 weeks, one main workflow | Medium |
| Business system replacing several spreadsheets | 4 to 9 months, integrations | Larger, often phased |
| Multi-module platform (ERP-shaped) | 9 months and up | Programme, not a project |
We are deliberately not printing a rupee figure that will be wrong for your integrations. If a vendor gives you a precise total before they have seen your data and your other systems, treat that as a marketing number. A serious estimate names assumptions.
What actually drives the price
- Integrations. Talking to Tally, a payment gateway, a legacy desktop app, or a supplier portal is often more work than the screens.
- Roles and permissions. Five roles that must not see each other’s records is a design problem, not a checkbox.
- Data quality. Migrating ten years of Excel with duplicate customers is a project of its own.
- How finished “done” is. A demo on a laptop is not the same as hosted, backed up, with a handover and someone who can change a rate without calling you.
Build versus buy, in cost terms
Off-the-shelf looks cheaper until you add licences, modules you do not need, and the consultant who customises it until it is a unique system you still do not own. Custom looks expensive until you add the years of workarounds you are already paying for in staff time. The comparison belongs on custom software versus off-the-shelf, not in a single cell of a spreadsheet.
How to keep the number honest
Start with an MVP: one workflow, real users, a written definition of done. Time and materials with a cap, or a fixed phase with a change process, both work. What does not work is a fixed price on an unfixed problem.
If you are still choosing who to trust with the estimate, use how to choose a software development company. For .NET-shaped systems, the work itself sits under .NET development.