What drives the cost of a custom ERP for a small organisation
A custom ERP's cost is set mostly by scope: how many workflows it covers, how far your process is from what standard tools model, how tangled it is today, what records move in, what it connects to and who runs it afterwards. Insist on a fixed price agreed before the build, so the risk of overrunning sits with the builder.
Why is there no price list for a custom ERP?
Because "custom ERP" covers very different jobs. One workflow, such as invoicing or instalment payments, goes live with us in 30 days. A whole system is bigger: Sijjil Travels, a Hajj and Umrah operator in Chattogram, needed bookings and packages, invoicing, payments, accounting and a reporting dashboard, and that build took three months. Any single price would be wrong for most of the people reading it.
What you can know before you commit is what sets the cost, and a fixed price for your own scope.
What sets the cost?
Six things, roughly in order of how much they move the price:
- How many workflows it covers. Each workflow is its own piece of work, and the pieces have to agree with each other. This matters more than anything else on the list.
- How far your process is from standard. Accounting, inventory, HR and sales are modelled by tools like Odoo and ERPNext. Pilgrim groups, visa batches and sub-agent ledgers are not. The less a standard tool covers, the more has to be built.
- How tangled the process is today. If every staff member does the same job differently, someone has to agree the one right way before it can be built. That work is part of the cost, whoever does it.
- What records move in. Bringing in years of bookings or accounts from spreadsheets and notebooks takes time. Starting fresh from a set date costs less.
- What it connects to. Each link to another system, such as a payment provider or existing accounting software, adds work.
- Who runs it afterwards. Hosting, fixes and changes cost something every month, whether you pay a builder or a member of staff.
Fixed price or hourly billing?
| Fixed price | Hourly or day rate | |
|---|---|---|
| You know the full cost | Before the build starts | When the last invoice arrives |
| Who carries the risk of overrunning | The builder | You |
| When the scope changes | The price changes before the work | The bill grows as the work happens |
| What the builder is paid for | Delivering the agreed scope | Time spent |
Every Bizonix build is a fixed price, quoted after the Admin Audit and agreed before we start. No day rates and no hourly billing. If the scope changes, the price changes before the work, never after.
How can I keep the cost down?
- Start with one workflow. Pick the one that costs your team the most hours, get it live, then add the next. That is how our 30-Day Build works.
- Fix the process before the software. A messy process built into software stays messy, at a higher price.
- Buy a tool if one fits. If a $30-a-month tool solves your problem, we'll tell you to buy it. If your processes are standard, read custom ERP, Odoo or ERPNext: which fits.
- Don't pay for what you won't use. A module nobody opens still costs money to build and maintain.
What should I ask before signing?
Ask any builder, including us:
- Is the price fixed, and what exactly does it cover?
- What happens if it's late?
- Who owns the code, the data and the accounts?
- What does it cost to run each month after launch, and what does that include?
- If I stop paying for support, does the system keep working?
Our answers: fixed, quoted after the audit. If one workflow isn't live in 30 days, we keep building free until it is. You own the code, the data and the accounts. Keep Automating is optional and monthly, and if you cancel it the system stays yours.
How does Bizonix work out a price?
With the Admin Audit: a week finding where your team's hours go, then a plain plan for what to fix first and a fixed price for building it. The audit is a small fixed fee, credited in full against the build, and free if we can't find you 10 hours a week.
Questions
How much does a custom ERP cost?
It depends on scope, which is why an honest builder quotes after looking at your process, not from a price list. The biggest factor is how many workflows the system covers. At Bizonix, every build is a fixed price, quoted after the Admin Audit and agreed before we start.
Why doesn't Bizonix publish prices?
Because the same word, ERP, covers one workflow live in 30 days and a five-part system that took Sijjil Travels three months. A published number would be wrong for most people who read it. The Admin Audit gives you a fixed price for your own scope.
Is fixed price better than hourly billing?
For the buyer, usually. With hourly billing, every delay costs you. With a fixed price agreed before the build, the risk of overrunning sits with the builder. Ours also carries a promise: if one workflow isn't live in 30 days, we keep building free until it is.
What does a custom ERP cost to run after launch?
Hosting, fixes and changes. With Bizonix that is the optional monthly Keep Automating plan, which also automates one more piece of admin each month. You can cancel it, and the system stays yours.
Is Odoo or ERPNext cheaper?
The licence is cheap. Implementation is the real cost: configuring the system to fit how you work, and keeping it maintained. If your processes are standard, one of them may well cost you less, and we will say so.