Custom software built by a team in Mexico —a client portal, a process automation, an ERP built for your operation— starts, at Play.Interactive, at USD $5,000, and the first working version is usually ready in 6 to 8 weeks. The final price depends on how many modules it needs, which systems it integrates with, how many user types it has and how complex the workflow it automates is. The question that saves the most money isn’t “how much does it cost,” but “what’s the minimum that solves 80% of the problem”: that’s where you start, and the rest gets built in phases with the system already running.
First: do you actually need custom software?
Not always. If your process looks like almost every company’s in your industry, there’s probably a subscription product that already handles it, and renting is cheaper than building. Custom-building something you can buy off the shelf is money down the drain.
Custom software makes sense in three situations:
- Your process is your edge. The way you quote, deliver or follow up is what sets you apart, and forcing it into a generic tool makes you work like everyone else.
- You already pay for several tools that don’t talk to each other. And someone on your team spends hours copying data between them.
- The process lives in spreadsheets, email and one person’s memory. It works until that person goes on vacation.
What costs what
| System type | What it solves | From (Play.Interactive) | First version |
|---|---|---|---|
| Client portal | Your customers check status, documents, orders or payments without emailing anyone | USD $5,000 | 6 to 8 weeks, with the modules that cover most requests |
| Process automation | Moving a workflow that lives in spreadsheets and email into a system | USD $5,000 | 6 to 8 weeks |
| Custom management system (ERP-style) | Running a core business process with your own rules, traceability and reporting | USD $5,000 | In phases; the first module in 6 to 8 weeks |
| Platform with users and payments (SaaS) | Selling a digital service to your own customers | USD $5,000 | First version in 6 to 8 weeks |
These are floors. A serious system for a core process is almost always above them, and that’s fine: what matters is that the price comes from a clear scope, not a number invented to close the deal.
What drives the price
Number of modules
Each screen with its own rules —customer onboarding, quotes, approvals, reports— is design, development and testing work. Fewer modules done well beat many done halfway.
Integrations
Connecting to your CRM, current ERP, invoicing or bank is what varies most. Some systems have good APIs; others don’t, and you have to work around them.
User types and permissions
A system only your team uses is not the same as one with customers, suppliers, admins and auditors, each seeing different things.
Rule complexity
Exceptions, calculations, validations, documents that generate themselves. That’s where a process becomes real software.
Data to migrate
Years of information in spreadsheets or a legacy system has to be cleaned and imported. It’s usually more work than it looks.
Support and evolution
A system used every day needs monitoring, security updates and adjustments. Define it in the contract.
A real case, with numbers
A law firm, PDLC, won a contract to recover thousands of past-due loans for a financial institution. Each batch held around 1,200 contracts, and there were only two weeks between receiving a batch and the deadline to file the lawsuits in court. By hand, it was impossible without errors.
We built a custom system that analyzes, drafts and manages the lawsuits. It took seven months of development and has already generated more than 5,000 lawsuits, with full traceability. No subscription tool did that, because the process was the business. That’s the kind of project where custom software pays for itself.
How not to waste the money
- Start with the module that hurts most. The one that costs the most hours or errors today. If that one works, the rest justifies itself.
- Ask for deliveries every few weeks. Seeing real progress, not presentations, is the best way to course-correct in time.
- Get ownership of the code and data in writing. If the vendor disappears, your operation can’t disappear with them.
- Ask about support. Who responds when something fails, how fast, and at what cost.
- Be wary of a quote with no questions. If they priced it without understanding your process, the price will change.
The 80% rule
Almost every successful system started by solving what repeats most, not every possible case. The first version doesn’t have to do everything: it has to take the heaviest work off your team.
How we quote
We start with a brief where we understand the process, not just the feature list. Within 3 to 5 business days we deliver a proposal broken down by phase, with timelines, deliverables and costs. The proposal is free, and if the scope doesn’t fit your budget, we propose alternatives with adjusted scope.
Each project type is detailed in custom client portals and process automation with custom software. If you’re a US company looking for a team in Mexico, see nearshore web development. If what you need is more a website than a system, the numbers are in how much a corporate website costs. And if you already have a site, in 20 seconds you can compare it against Mexico’s largest companies.
Frequently asked questions
At Play.Interactive, the minimum for a custom system is USD $5,000. The final price depends on the number of modules, integrations, user types, the complexity of the process rules and the data to migrate. After a brief, we deliver a detailed, phased quote.
The first working version, with the modules that solve most of the problem, is usually ready in 6 to 8 weeks. Larger systems are built in phases, with the system already in use. A case like PDLC’s, a complete lawsuit management system, took seven months.
When your process is your competitive edge, when you pay for several tools that don’t talk to each other, or when the process depends on spreadsheets and a single person. If your process is the same as everyone else’s in your industry, renting existing software is probably the better call.
It should be you, and it should be written into the contract: code, data, domain and credentials. If a vendor won’t hand over ownership, your operation stays tied to them.
Yes, and that’s often where the biggest value is: information flowing without double entry. Complexity depends on how good the API of your existing system is, which is why integrations should be listed in the brief.