SaaS Development Costs: How Much Does It Cost in 2025?

It’s now easier than ever to start a business. Take Gene Caballero for example who quit a comfortable tech job to launch GreenPal. A “Lawn Care on Demand” service, referred to as the “Uber for lawn care.” 

The financial demands can be overwhelming,  although the idea of launching a groundbreaking SaaS product is very appealing. Creating a software product that can scale and reach a large audience is quite expensive. 

If you are wondering “How much does it cost to build a SaaS platform?”, we will help you answer the question. This blog will give you an overview of SaaS development costs in 2025. 

Let’s get started.

Factors Impacting The Cost of SaaS Development

Cost isn’t just a straightforward figure when developing a SaaS application. There are many factors involved that can determine SaaS development costs. Let’s explore the factors leading to the overall cost of SaaS development.

1. Application Type

Depending on what the application is meant to do, the cost can vary widely. It will be less expensive generally, to develop a simple tool that handles a specific task. However, the cost will be much higher when building a more complex platform for large organizations.

Let’s use a basic tool for managing projects or sending marketing emails as an example. It doesn’t take too much time or resources to develop such a tool. The cost is often lower for this reason. The story would be different if we were to look at a more advanced SaaS application like a CRM or an ERP tool.

It requires a lot more time, effort, and money to build these kinds of applications. They also need maintenance to ensure they can handle large amounts of data and users.

Specific industries such as healthcare or finance might be more expensive to develop SaaS applications for because they need to meet strict regulations and include extra security to protect sensitive data. The need for specialized features in these industries can also drive up the cost.

2. Your Development Team

The expertise and skill of your team play a role too. Putting together a team that performs well and sticks to timelines and budgetary limits is important for a high-quality product.

A smaller team can be nimble and might save on costs, but each team member must be versatile, and capable of handling a range of tasks. As the product expands it may become necessary to bring more people on board.

However, this expansion needs to be carefully managed to avoid overspending while still ensuring that the growing demands of the project are met. 

Critical roles in a SaaS Development team include:

• Product managers: to take abstract ideas and turn them into plans that the team can work with.
• UI/UX designers: for developing user interfaces that are functional and easy to use.
• Developers: to code the designs into the SaaS application
• QA Engineers: for testing the software to identify bugs, performance issues, and any deviations from the requirements.

3. Team’s Location

Various factors like the local economy, industry norms, and the cost of living in each location can affect how much you spend on your SaaS application due to labour costs globally.

• Some of the most skilled developers come from Western Europe and North America, but hiring them can be expensive. 
• Eastern Europe offers a good mix of talent and reasonable prices. 
• Asia, especially India, stands out as a highly favourable location for hiring developers. 
• Latin America is becoming known for its tech talent and competitive pricing.

4. Tech Stack

Another key factor that will influence costs is the technology stack you choose for your SaaS application. This includes the programming languages, frameworks, databases, and tools you’ll use. These choices can impact your budget.

A more advanced stack can give you powerful capabilities, but it might also lead to longer development times and higher costs. To help you decide on the best tech stack, consider how much you expect your product to scale in the future.

5. Integrations

The complexity and number of integrations required can significantly influence development costs. Integrating various systems, APIs, or third-party services demands careful planning and execution, with more complex or numerous integrations leading to increased development time and associated costs.

How Much Does It Cost To Build a SaaS Application? [Estimating The Costs]

Let’s see how some factors can contribute to the overall estimate for SaaS development costs.

1. Discovery Phase

The stage where your initial ideas begin to take shape and turn into a solid plan is the discovery phase. A vital but often overlooked part. Spend enough time and effort here to ensure that the rest of the development process goes more smoothly and doesn’t end up costing more than necessary.

Before anything else, the SaaS developer (take ScaleupAlly as an example) will take the time to thoroughly understand your business goals, who your target users are, and what features you want. We will work with you to define what the project will include to avoid confusion later on which will lead to unexpected costs.

That is not all. Important milestones and a timeline for completion will be put together in a plan that outlines the different stages of development before we begin the work.

We offer two types of estimates to help you get an idea of what the project might cost. One is a general estimate which is a rough idea of the cost based on our initial conversations. The other is a detailed estimation.

This is an in-depth calculation based on a thorough analysis of your requirements. Giving you a clearer picture of the budget you’ll need.

To estimate the cost of this phase, multiply the total number of hours (40-120) by the specialist’s hourly rate. This will give you an estimated cost range of US$1,600 to US$4,800 or more.

2. UI/UX Design

A great experience is the beginning of a successful SaaS application. How the user interface and user experience are designed plays a role in how happy users are with the product, and this happiness is what keeps them coming back.

We don’t just focus on making things look nice when we design at ScaleupAlly. We take the time to understand who the users are, what they like, and what they struggle with. This helps us make smart decisions when it comes to design.

A well-designed product makes it easier for users leading to more people using and sticking with it over time.

Prices generally range from US$5,000 to US$50,000 or more. More complex projects can exceed these estimates, reflecting the increased time and expertise required to deliver customized and impactful designs.  

3. Development and Quality Assurance

Plans laid out in the discovery phase should be followed to ensure things go as planned. This is why you will need a team of skilled professionals who can follow a well-organized plan if you have an idea and want to see it become a reality. Focus on building the main features of your product to begin with. This is the front-end and back-end development. 

Don’t rule out outsourcing some parts of the project. Sometimes, it’s more efficient to hire third-party providers to handle specific tasks or infrastructure. This can help speed up development and bring in specialized expertise.

As for the time and cost involved, creating an MVP typically requires a team consisting of two developers, one QA engineer, one UI/UX designer, and one project manager cum business analyst. The development process usually takes around two months.

The initial budget for this stage starts at approximately US$10,000 per month, or US$20,000 for the two-month period. The total cost can vary depending on the project’s complexity.

4. Launch and maintenance

Developing and testing your SaaS product is just the beginning. The next steps, like launching and maintaining the product, are necessary to ensure its long-term viability. 

Have a team for support, updates, and improvements after launching your MVP. You’ll also need to cover hosting expenses, ranging from US$1,000 to over US$10,000 per month, depending on traffic, storage, and performance needs.

Additionally, it’s important to consider your vision and budget for the entire year. If your MVP costs US$20,000, you might need an additional US$50,000 to sustain and grow your startup over the year if everything goes well.

SaaS Development Cost: Practical Examples of Estimation

Here are a few examples with cost estimates for SaaS development costs that will give you a fair  idea on total investment required:

1. SaaS System for Tattoo Studio Management

A SaaS platform for managing tattoo studios to streamline appointment scheduling, client management, and payment processing. The development of such a system typically costs around USD30,000.

2. Digital Credit Book for Small Businesses

A digital credit book allows small businesses to track transactions, manage credits, and streamline financial record-keeping. This type of SaaS application costs approximately USD 20,000 to develop.

3. SaaS for the Travel Industry

A SaaS platform designed for the travel industry might include features like booking management, itinerary planning, and customer service tools. Developing this type of platform can start at around USD 10,000.

4. SaaS for Fintech

Fintech solutions require a higher level of security and compliance features, which add to the development cost. Depending on the complexity and regulatory requirements, a SaaS platform in this space might start at around USD 40,000.

Why Choose ScaleupAlly as your SaaS Development Partner?

ScaleupAlly could be the partner you’re looking for if you’re thinking about developing a SaaS product. We’ve been doing this for over six years and have a team of over 100 developers who understand what is expected of them. We offer a range of services that can help take your idea from just a concept to a fully developed product.

We’re committed to doing our best on every project we take on. Our team brings a lot of experience to the table, so you can trust that you’re in good hands. We offer solutions that cover the entire Software development Lifecycle (SDLC). Our focus is on innovation and building SaaS products that not only work well today but will continue to do so in the future.

We understand that every project is different, and we make it a point to customize our approach to fit your needs. If you’re interested in learning more about how we can help, or if you want to discuss your project in more detail, let us know. We’d be happy to chat.

Conclusion

As we wrap up this blog, we hope you’ve gained a good understanding of the various aspects that contribute to the costs of developing a SaaS product and also, helped you answer the question “How much does SaaS cost” after you have understood the factors that can influence these costs.

We’d like to suggest that companies should focus on maintaining high quality even when working within a budget. It’s also a good idea to work with experienced development partners and incorporate new technologies to help manage costs and build a successful SaaS solution.