How we charge
We don't publish prices, because a portal can be a small job or a large one. Here is how you get your own price, what changes it and what you never pay for.
Your price, in three steps
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A rough range in our first reply
Tell us what you need, and your budget if you have one. Our first reply gives a rough range for the whole project, free and with no obligation.
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A fixed price for the planning step
The first thing you pay for is a short planning step we call discovery. Its price and length are agreed before it starts.
You get a written plan with the price of every stage and the total. It is yours to use with any supplier and commits you to nothing more. If you continue with us, its price is credited against the first build stage.
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A fixed price for each build stage
The contract shows the price of every stage and the total, before you sign. Each stage takes two to four weeks and is invoiced only when you accept it.
You can stop after any stage and keep everything built so far.
After launch: a monthly arrangement
For work with a rhythm, such as support, updates and a steady flow of changes, we agree an amount of work each month. You get a plan at the start of the month and a report at the end.
It runs month to month, and either side can end it with 30 days' notice. It is separate from the build, so ending it doesn't end anything else.
What affects the price
What the system has to do
How many other systems it connects to, and how easy they are to connect to
How many types of user it has, and what each may see
Whether existing data has to be moved across
How many languages it needs
The support you need after launch
Should you tell us your budget?
It helps, but it's optional. We use it to tell you straight away whether what you want is achievable for that amount, not to set the price.
Costs you pay directly
These are billed to you by the supplier, with nothing added. The accounts are in your company's name, and you can cancel them without asking us.
- hosting, databases and email delivery
- AI providers and software licences
- copy, photos, video and translations
- test devices and paid test accounts
- any fee an outside provider charges to approve your connection to them
How a change is agreed
The same four steps apply whether the change is your idea or ours.
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You ask, or we suggest
In writing, so there is one record of what was asked and when.
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We estimate it, at no charge
A written estimate of the work, the effect on dates and any new risk, usually within one working day.
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You accept or decline
Nothing is built until you accept. Declining costs nothing and doesn't change the rest of the plan.
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The plan is updated
The contract is amended, and that week's progress report shows the change and its effect on the stage date and price.
Payment and contract terms
In brief. The full wording is in the contract, and a blank copy is in our supplier pack.
- Invoicing
Each build stage is invoiced when you accept it. If you don't object in writing within the period in the contract, normally five working days, the stage counts as accepted. Monthly work is invoiced at the end of each month.
- Rights in the code
Full rights pass to you as each stage is paid. If we reuse a component of ours, the contract names it and licenses it to you permanently, free of charge.
We may reuse general know-how and tools that contain none of your data, business rules or confidential information.
- Accounts
Code, hosting and other services are in your company's name from day one, and stay there if we stop working together.
- Liability
Capped in the contract, normally at the fees paid for the stage concerned, except where the law doesn't allow a cap.
- Who works on your project
Nobody else joins without telling you in writing first, and anyone who does is bound by the same confidentiality and data terms.
- Law and currency
English law, with the courts of England and Wales. Invoices are in pounds sterling.
What we never charge for
- Estimating a change
- Fixing defects for 30 days after you accept a stage
- Anything outside the agreed scope that you haven't approved
- A mark-up on hosting, licences or other outside costs
- A platform fee, or anything you rent from us
- The handover if you leave, including removing our access
Questions about price
Why do you charge for the planning step?
Because it is real work: we study your systems, data and ways of working, and write a plan you can use with any supplier. If you continue with us, its price is credited against the build.
Is the price fixed for the whole project?
Each stage has a fixed price, and the contract shows the total before you sign. The total changes only if you approve a change.
Can the project fit a fixed budget?
Tell us the budget first, and the plan can put the most important stages first. You can stop after any stage, and if the budget can't cover what you need, we say so early.
Get your rough range
Tell us what you need, and your budget if you have one.
Written reply within one working day. No sales calls.