Custom software development around how you work
Custom software development gives you a web app, a mobile app or an internal system that works the way your team already works. We plan it with you, build it, test it and hand over every line of code.
Custom software built around your business alone
Web apps, mobile apps and business systems, with one team from first plan to final test.
What we build
- Web applicationsCustomer portals, booking systems and online stores
- Mobile appsNative iOS and Android, or cross platform
- Business softwareTools for orders, stock, approvals and reporting
- Integrations and APIsLinks to payment, accounting and customer systems
- Fixed estimate before work begins
- You own all code and designs
Four kinds of software we build
Plenty of projects mix two of these. Either way, one team takes yours from the first sketch to release day. Building for phones? Compare native and cross platform apps.
Web applications
Customer portals, booking systems, marketplaces and online stores, built to stay quick when a busy week brings far more visitors than usual.
Mobile apps
Separate native iOS and Android apps, or one cross platform app that runs on both. We'll help you pick based on your users and your budget.
Business software
Tools for orders, stock, approvals and reporting that replace the spreadsheets and long email chains your team juggles today.
Integrations and APIs
APIs (application programming interfaces) are how two systems pass data to each other. We use them to link your payments, your customer relationship management (CRM) tool and your accounting software.
What is custom software development?
Custom software is made for one organisation: yours. A product you buy off the shelf has to suit thousands of customers, so it handles the usual case well and leaves your team to work around everything else.
It's usually worth it when one of these sounds familiar:
- Someone on your team spends hours each week copying data from one tool to another.
- The way you work is part of why customers choose you.
- You pay for several subscriptions that don't share data.
- You're launching a product that customers will depend on every day.
And if a product you can buy today already does the job, we'll tell you and save you the cost of building one.
Custom or off the shelf software?
Neither is always the right answer. Here's how the two compare when you're choosing business software.
| Question | Custom software | Off the shelf software |
|---|---|---|
| Fit with your process | Built around how your team works | You adapt your process to the product |
| Upfront cost | Higher, agreed as a fixed estimate | Lower, usually a monthly fee |
| Cost over time | Hosting and support, no fee per user | Fees grow with users and features |
| Time to start using it | Weeks to months | Days |
| Connecting other systems | Any system with an API | Limited to the integrations offered |
| Ownership | You own the code and data | You rent access under the vendor's terms |
How custom software development works
Here are the five main stages, a shorter view of our seven stage process. You review what each one produces before the next begins. A senior engineer leads your project the whole way through.
- Discovery and scopingUser interviews, a written scope and a fixed estimate.Weeks 1 to 2
- Design and architectureClickable screens to try, and a plan for data and hosting.Weeks 2 to 4
- Key stepBuild in sprintsYou see working software every one to two weeks and can change priorities each time.Most of the project
- Testing and launchCI/CD (an automated pipeline that tests and releases each change), plus checks on real phones and browsers.Final weeks
- HandoverYou get the source code, technical notes, user guides and every login.At launch
We repeat sprints until the release is ready and send you a written update every week.
Technology we build with
We pick widely used tools, so you'll find it easy to hire people who can look after your product later.
How a typical custom application fits together
TypeScript checks the code as it's written and catches many mistakes before anyone runs it. Swift and Kotlin get the most out of each phone, while React Native and Flutter let one app run on both iOS and Android.
How long it takes and what it costs
Most first releases take 3 to 9 months, and you'll have a fixed estimate agreed before the build starts. Want to test the idea first? Read how to build an MVP.
Time to a first release
What the cost depends on
- Scope: screens, features and user rolesHigh
- Platforms: web only, or also iOS and AndroidHigh
- Integrations with other systemsHigh
- Old records to clean and moveMedium
- Rules for payments, health or personal dataMedium
What you receive at the end
Your hosting, domain names and app store listings are all registered in your name. After launch you can run the software yourself, or hand its care to our software maintenance and support.
Your custom software questions answered
Yes. We start by reading through the code, the tests and how it's hosted. Then we tell you plainly whether to build on it or rewrite the parts that are slowing you down.
Yes. We can build two native apps, or one shared app in React Native or Flutter. A shared app is usually quicker and costs less. Native is the better pick when your app leans on heavy graphics or phone features such as the camera.
Most first releases take 3 to 9 months. Discovery comes first and takes one to two weeks. After that you'll see working software every two weeks until launch.
That's up to you. Your own team can run it, or we can keep watching and improving it through our care and support service.
That's normal, and the process allows for it. We look at changes at the start of each cycle and agree any effect on cost or timing with you before we carry on.
We follow the OWASP Top 10 (a list of the most common web security risks) and review every change. Data is encrypted while it moves and while it's stored, and each person can reach only what their role needs.
Industries we build custom software for
We build custom software for every sector we serve, and most briefs come from four of them. In finance and banking, approvals are slow and every decision needs a record behind it. In healthcare, the systems holding patient records rarely share data with each other. In the public sector, a service has to work for everyone entitled to use it. And in logistics, a shipment passes through several systems and its status often goes missing somewhere in between. See all the industries we work in.
Tell us what you want to build
Tell us about your idea, and you'll get a fixed estimate before any work starts.