How much does a custom web system cost?
What a custom web system costs: the factors behind the price, Oxtren systems from €4,900, running costs after launch and how to get an exact quote in writing.
In short
The cost of a web system depends on how many user roles it has, how many business rules have to be built in, how many systems it exchanges data with and what reports you expect. At Oxtren Labs, a custom platform or system starts from €4,900; the exact price is based on scope and given in writing before work starts. On top of the build, budget for hosting, third-party services and maintenance after launch.
Key takeaways
- The price is driven not by the number of screens but by roles, business rules, integrations and reports – the logic you don't see.
- An Oxtren Labs custom platform or system starts from €4,900; scope is assessed separately, and the price and timeline are set in writing before work starts.
- According to McKinsey and the University of Oxford, large IT projects run 45% over budget on average – which is why the first version should be limited to the most important process.
- Recurring costs remain after launch: hosting, third-party services, maintenance and new work.
- The most accurate quote comes from describing the process, not a list of features.
What a web system is, and how it differs from a website
- Web system
- A program that runs in the browser, where signed-in people get work done: they fill in and approve orders, see their own data, receive notifications and reports. A website mainly tells; a system works – it has users, permissions, a database and rules.
A client portal where your customers see order status and invoices, an internal tool that replaces several spreadsheets, a booking or application workflow – these are all web systems. That is why the price is calculated differently from website development: not by the number of pages, but by what the system has to do.
If you are not yet sure you need a custom system at all, start with when a business needs a custom system – sometimes an off-the-shelf tool and a few automations are enough.
What drives the cost of a web system
Two screens can look the same, yet one only shows a table while the other checks permissions, calculates a price, sends a notification and writes the change to another system. The price is driven by what happens behind the screen. Below are the six factors we assess in every project.
User roles and permissions
A system with one administrator and a system used by customers, account managers, accounts and management differ by more than a button. Each role sees different data and can do different things, and every permission has to be built and tested. That is why a client portal often costs more than a similar internal tool: an external user needs stricter boundaries.
Business rules and states
“Orders above a certain amount wait for a manager's approval”, “the invoice is issued only after delivery”, “the discount depends on the contract” – these are rules that today often live in people's heads. In a system, each one becomes logic with exceptions. The more states the core record has (an order, an application, a project), the more work there is.
Integrations with the systems you already use
Accounting, CRM, payments, email, inventory – every integration means mapping data, handling errors and testing on both sides. What drives the price most is not the connection itself but what happens when the other system doesn't respond or returns unexpected data. We cover how to handle this with a CRM in integrating a CRM with your website.
Reports and data migration
A simple filtered list and a report that combines data from several sources by period are jobs of different sizes. Data migration is a separate line: if your customers, orders or history live in spreadsheets today, they have to be cleaned, linked and imported.
Security, reliability and monitoring
Sign-in, password recovery, an activity log, backups, monitoring and clear behaviour when something fails are not extras – they are the foundation of a system. The more important the data and the more people depend on the system, the more attention this needs.
Design and usability
People use a system every day, so every awkward step is repeated hundreds of times. A custom interface costs more than standard components, but it often pays for itself because people actually use the system instead of drifting back to spreadsheets.
What a web system costs at Oxtren Labs
Our web platforms and systems start from €4,900. There are no packages: every system is different, so we assess the scope separately and put the price and timeline in the proposal before work starts. Our prices are final – VAT is not charged.
| What | How |
|---|---|
| Price | From €4,900, scope assessed separately |
| What we build | Client portals, internal systems, integrations between the tools you already use |
| Technology | Most often Next.js and Payload CMS; alternatives where they fit better |
| Infrastructure | Containerised infrastructure, Cloudflare and European cloud providers |
| Payment | 50% deposit when work begins, 50% on handover |
| After handover | 6-month warranty; maintenance plans from €149/month |
What every system project includes
- Scope, task list, price and timeline – in writing, before work starts
- Screen layouts you approve before development
- A working interim version you can click through and test during the build
- Infrastructure chosen to fit the product
- 6-month warranty: we fix bugs in what we built and handed over
- Once paid in full, the rights to the content, data and contracted custom code created for the project
- Domains, business accounts and accounts created in your name – yours
Why system budgets grow, and how to avoid it
45%
The average budget overrun on large IT projects (initial price tag above $15 million), which also deliver 56% less value than predicted. McKinsey and University of Oxford data on more than 5,400 IT projects.
Source: McKinsey & Company, 20261
These figures are about large projects, not a small company's portal, but the causes are the same. The same research found that the longer a project is scheduled to last, the more likely it is to run over time and budget.
+15%
Each additional year spent on a project increases cost overruns by 15%, according to McKinsey and the University of Oxford.
Source: McKinsey & Company, 20261
Common mistake
- Every feature that might ever be needed goes into the first version
- Requirements are written as a feature list, without the process
- Integrations and data migration are left until the end
- Changes are worked out while coding
Better
- The first version covers one key process from start to finish
- The process is described: who, when, with what data
- The riskiest integration is tested first
- Layouts are approved before development, when changes cost least
The first version of a new product is built the same way – more on that in building an MVP: from idea to first version.
Costs after launch
A system is not a one-off purchase. Below are the costs that recur or appear later. Some depend on the providers you choose, not on the developer.
| Cost | When it appears | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Hosting and domain | Monthly or yearly | The server is sized to the load; the domain is registered in your name |
| Third-party services | Based on usage | Email delivery, SMS, maps, payments – each has its own pricing |
| Software licences | Depends on the choice | Payload CMS is released under the MIT licence – no licence fee |
| Maintenance | Monthly | Updates, backups, monitoring and a monthly report |
| New work | When you need it | Estimated in advance and done as a separate job |
Payload CMS, which we most often use to manage content and data, is open source under the MIT licence, so there is no monthly fee for the software itself. You pay for the server it runs on and for the work.
Every project we hand over comes with a 6-month warranty, but updates, backups and monitoring are maintenance work. Our maintenance plans: Essential – €149/month (up to 1 hour of work, response within 2 business days), Business – €299/month (up to 3 hours, response within 1 business day), Priority – €599/month (up to 6 hours, response to critical incidents within 4 business hours). Response time is not resolution time.
How scope changes: three scenarios
The scenarios below are illustrative, not real clients. They show how the same factors change the size of a project.
- A services company wants customers to sign in and see their order status and documents. One customer role, one administrator, data entered in the system. This is the smallest scope – closest to the starting price.
- A manufacturer wants an order approval process: an account manager creates the order, a manager approves it, the warehouse sees it and the invoice goes to the accounting software. Three roles, several approval steps and one integration – scope grows because of the rules and the link to accounting.
- A platform used by both your team and your partners, with payments, reports and several integrations. A system like this is worth splitting into stages: the core process first, reports and extra integrations later.
For what a larger platform looks like, see our work on Esportas.net – a Lithuanian esports platform for which we did the design, front end and back end.
How to get an exact quote
You don't need a technical specification. It is enough to describe how the work is done today and where it gets stuck. The more of the points below you can answer, the less guesswork is left in the price.
What to prepare before the call
- Which process the system should replace and how it works today
- Who will use it: your team, customers, partners – and how many
- What each role needs to see and do
- Which systems it must exchange data with
- What data needs migrating and where it lives now
- What reports or notifications you expect
- What is essential in the first version and what can wait
- Your preferred launch date and budget range
Once you have the answers, describe the system in an enquiry. From there we work in four stages: conversation, proposal, build and launch. You commit to nothing until the proposal. We reply to enquiries within 1 business day.
Methodology
- Date
- Criteria
- Oxtren prices, scope and terms – from the public service and maintenance pages
- External figures – only from the pages listed in the sources, accessed 2026-10-01
- Cost factors – the ones we use to assess every system enquiry
- Limitations
- The scenarios are illustrative, not client projects, and carry no prices because those depend on scope. McKinsey's figures on large IT projects are a guide to risk, not to the price level of small systems.
Frequently asked questions
What does the simplest web system cost?
An Oxtren Labs custom platform or system starts from €4,900. The exact price depends on roles, rules, integrations and reports – we put it in the proposal together with the scope and timeline.
How long does it take to build a system?
The timeline depends on scope, so we don't publish one in advance. The exact timeline goes into the proposal together with the price, before any work starts.
Can we start with a smaller version?
Yes, and we usually recommend it: the one key process first, further stages later. Each new stage is estimated and agreed in advance.
Who will own the code?
Once you have paid in full, you receive the rights to the content, data and contracted custom code created for the project. Oxtren keeps the rights to its pre-existing libraries and reusable solutions; third-party software is covered by its own licence terms.
Do the prices include VAT?
Our prices are final – VAT is not charged. Third-party services (hosting, email delivery, payments) are billed at their own rates.
Sources and methodology
- McKinsey & CompanyDelivering large-scale IT projects on time, on budget, and on valueaccessed
- Payload CMS (GitHub)Payload – LICENSE (MIT)accessed