How Much Does It Cost to Build a CRM App?
As per the statistics gathered by Grand View Research, in 2022, the global CRM (Customer relationship management) systems market reached $58.82 billion. Experts emphasize that from 2023 to 2030, it will only continue to grow, with an estimated average annual growth rate of 13.9%. This is because business owners are increasingly turning to advanced automated solutions to improve customer service and overall employee productivity.
In line with this trend, entrepreneurs ask, “How much does it cost to build a CRM system?” In this article, experts and consultants from the GetTrusted platform will tell you all about the specific pricing aspects of software development services. Additionally, from the material, you will learn about the advantages, functions, and types of systems that are designed to help you optimize customer relationships.
How Much Does It Cost To Build a CRM App?
The cost of CRM systems for customer relationship management depends on many factors, but first things first, it’s important to decide whether you need a custom solution or a ready-made one. Custom development is more expensive, but it will precisely meet all your business needs. Ready-made software is cheaper and comes with a limited set of standard functions. However, the process of scalability and integrating the necessary modules into a boxed CRM can be challenging or even impossible.
Custom software development provides your company with only the necessary features to optimize your operations. Furthermore, it will be entirely owned by you, and unlike a ready-made solution, you can customize, modify, and expand it according to your preferences.
Considering the question of “How much does it cost to build a CRM app,” let’s focus on custom solutions. Development costs can vary significantly:
- From $15,000 to $50,000 for a minimum viable product (MVP) with basic functions.
- Approximately $50,000 to $150,000 for a CRM project with few features.
- From $150,000 to $350,000 for a digital solution with advanced capabilities.
- From $350,000 to $650,000 for a multi-user system with many functions and additional modules.
As we can see, the cost of CRM development can be quite high. However, when purchasing a ready-made solution, you will still have to pay monthly rental fees. On average, this cost is around $100-150 per user. If you have a team of 20 people, the fee reaches $2,000-3,000 per month. Therefore, over 3-4 years, you will spend more than the custom CRM development cost with standard functionality.
However, you may encounter lower efficiency with a ready-made system, as it may not always meet your business needs. Based on this, we see that custom software development is an investment that can pay off in just a few years.
Getting an exact estimate for project development is challenging because many variables significantly impact the total cost. Pricing for CRM system development services depends on the following:
- The type of software.
- The number of functions and modules.
- The qualifications of specialists.
- The number of involved developers and more.
We will delve into all these and other factors influencing the final project cost in more detail below.
Benefits of Custom CRM Systems
Why do companies from various industries need a custom solution for customer relationship management? In short, to get the most suitable tool for their business goals and fully experience all the benefits of a reliable CRM.
Understanding “how much does it cost to build a CRM app” is also essential to know how it will pay off. A system developed specifically for you offers many advantages that positively impact the company’s overall revenue.
Adaptation to Business Needs
Custom CRM will be tailored to your industry, company’s features, and business processes. Therefore, it will have only the necessary functionality and capabilities to fully meet your needs and help your staff increase productivity.
Unlike off-the-shelf solutions, a custom CRM from a licensed contractor is easily customizable to fit your company’s goals. In the future, you can effortlessly add new features as your business grows, priorities change, and your customer base expands. Moreover, the system will receive important updates on schedule and provide on-demand technical support.
Turnkey Development for Your Business
When you order a system from qualified developers, you get comprehensive services. Turnkey development includes creation, testing, configuration, installation on your servers, integration with your company’s IT infrastructure, technical maintenance, and ongoing support. Thus, you can save your financial resources by finding and hiring specialists for different project tasks.
Scalable Functionality to Meet Growing Needs
Using a personalized CRM prevents you from limiting yourself to a basic set of functions. While you can initially create an MVP with the minimal necessary functionality, collaborating with experienced developers allows you to have an easily expandable solution. Therefore, adding new functions and modules in the future won’t take much time and won’t disrupt your operations. Despite the potentially high custom CRM development cost, you can leverage many important options for productive business operations.
Implementing Solutions for Improved Service
Salesforce’s “State of Marketing” report showed that 84% of consumers consider the level of service as important as the quality of a company’s products. Custom CRMs enhance customer satisfaction and loyalty. These programs offer you a wide range of implementation options so that your employees can instantly access essential customer data. As a result, your company improves individual customer service.
Enhanced Data Security Measures
When you order custom development, you will be the sole owner of the CRM, preventing anyone else from using your system. You will also be able to assign user roles and manage access levels for each employee, minimizing the risk of data leakage. In addition, developers will implement additional security protocols in your CRM to enhance its resilience to various cyberattacks.
Opportunity to Improve Employee Efficiency
Adapting to your business processes will give your staff the necessary tools for efficient and high-quality customer service. You can also implement special functions for data management designed to automate routine processes, reduce data errors, and accelerate the processing of customer information, sales, marketing campaigns, and more.
As a result, team efficiency increases. Additionally, you can generate reports that provide data on the performance of individual employees, departments, and the entire company.
Despite the numerous advantages, custom CRM systems also have several downsides. The key one is the cost. To create a truly high-functioning product, you need to invest in it.
However, in the end, you will receive efficient software that works in multiple directions and enhances the productivity of sales, marketing, and customer support departments. Furthermore, automation features in CRM improve both internal workflow and customer interactions.
Types of Custom CRM
While seeking answers to the question “how much does it cost to build a CRM system,” it is necessary to determine which of the three main types is suitable for your business.
Collaborative
This software enhances interaction between the main company and its branches, as well as with partners and third-party platforms (social networks, websites). With collaborative CRM, you improve customer service levels as it allows you to update information in real-time. The program’s features also enable you to exchange data about customers, sales, and customer interaction history with your website, social media accounts, partner resources, and more.
Analytical
A CRM system that provides analytics and data for evaluating user behavior. It is also a valuable tool for planning the company’s future development since it simplifies the process of collecting information from various sources. All this data can be processed, modified, or edited in real-time, helping to obtain more accurate business forecasts.
Operational
Operational CRMs are designed to streamline and automate routine tasks that are often repetitive and demand significant attention. This enables the acceleration of processes, thereby enhancing your company’s productivity. Among the main work areas for this type of software are data processing for potential consumers, automatic SMS, and email distribution, and collecting responses. Thus, the program simplifies sales processes, customer service, and marketing.
Top Factors Influence Custom CRM Development Cost
Now, let’s take a closer look at the key factors that affect the custom CRM development cost.
CRM’s Modules
One of the first criteria affecting the answer to “How much does it cost to build a CRM system?” is the number and types of modules. These are specialized components that enable the program to perform various tasks. Typically, modules are categorized by their application areas and have different costs. Here are examples of average development costs for the main components of CRM:
- Customer support module – $9,000-12,000
- Knowledge base module – $2,000-6,000
- Company management module – $8,000-15,000
- Service analytics module – $5,000-10,000
- Customer segmentation module – $5,000-10,000
- Analytical module – $3,000-6,000
- Forecasting (planning) module – $2,000-6,000
- Lead and account management module – $8,000-12,000
Type of CRM
We already know that there are three main types of CRM—collaborative, analytical, and operational. However, each has its own features, performs different tasks, and requires a specific set of functions. Therefore, the development cost also depends on the type of software for managing customer interactions:
- Collaborative – $85,000-450,000
- Analytical – $100,000-650,000
- Operational – $95,000-600,000
Complexity CRM
To find out “How much does it cost to build a CRM app,” it’s essential to consider the level of complexity. A simple project that doesn’t require extensive functionality and additional integrations with third-party resources can be completed in a few days. In such cases, developers expend fewer resources and effort, lowering costs.
Traditionally, three levels of complexity are distinguished, and here are approximate average sums for each:
- Simple CRM – $50,000-200,000
- Medium complexity project – $200,000-400,000
- Complex, comprehensive solution – $400,000-650,000
Developer’s Location
Another important criterion is the geographical location of the developers you want to hire. The cost per hour of work for the same specialist can significantly differ in various regions. For example, a developer from the United States may charge at least $150-200 per hour, while a specialist with the same level of qualification from Ukraine may charge $40-45 per hour.
Let’s look at average hourly rates for CRM developer services depending on their location:
- North America – $250-500.
- South America – $20-50.
- Western Europe – $100-300.
- Eastern Europe – $35-150.
- Africa – $50-80.
- Asia – $20-85.
The price difference in developer services is primarily due to economic and political situations in different regions rather than the skill level and quality of work. Therefore, before making a decision, analyze the market situation. This will help you choose the most advantageous location for hiring IT experts.
Developer Expertise Level
The level of expertise of IT specialists also influences the custom CRM development cost. Complex, highly scalable projects require talented and highly experienced developers whose services cost more. They may also complete work on small CRM projects more quickly. Therefore, by collaborating with professionals on an hourly payment basis, you can save some money while still getting a reliable system in a shorter time frame.
Custom CRM Development Cost Examples
To better understand how much does it cost to build a CRM system for your business, let’s consider two examples:
1. Medium-sized Software
This CRM suits a company with more than 200 employees and an annual turnover of over 1,500 orders. Among the modular functions of the system are:
- Internal telephony
- Automatic notifications for customers
- Task synchronization apps
- Order tracking/order widget
- Customer request management app
- Recording customer interaction history
- Automatic payroll calculation for employees
- Online payment function for customers
The total project duration is 3,120 hours (5-6 months).
The average team rate of developers is $45-50/hour.
The final amount is approximately $140,000-156,000.
2. CRM with Key Features
This customer service and data management program suits small companies with fewer than 200 employees. Key modules include:
- Planning calendar
- Online payment function for customers
- SMS and email sending system
- Customer interaction history recording apps
- Personnel management system
The total project duration is 670 hours.
The average team rate of developers is $45-50/hour.
The final amount is approximately $30,000-34,000.
Custom CRM Functions And Their Cost
By determining the quantity and types of functions you need, you can get a more precise idea of how much does it cost to build a CRM app. You can order the creation of standard functionality, a fully custom development, or take some basic features and supplement them with others specifically created for your business.
Standard CRM functions include:
- Lead management
- Contact and customer personal data management
- Automation of routine tasks
- Integrations with email, IP telephony, payment gateways
- Document management and report generation
- Customer interaction history tracking
The custom CRM development cost with a basic set of functions starts at $15,000. Adding new features created specifically for you can increase the average price two or more times. It all depends on the number of unique functions your CRM requires.
How Much Does It Cost To Develop Custom CRM Functions In Different Countries?
The average development time for the system is about 1,000 hours, but the cost can vary significantly depending on where the IT specialists you hire are located.
Let’s consider “How much does it cost to build a CRM app” by specialists from different countries: the USA, Germany, the UK, and Ukraine. Let’s assume the team consists of four people: two developers, a designer, and a tester.
| Country | Hourly rate for a developer | Team’s hourly rate | Total project cost |
| USA | $150 | $600 | $600,000 |
| Germany | $60 | $240 | $240,000 |
| UK | $80 | $320 | $320,000 |
| Ukraine | $40 | $160 | $160,000 |
Please note that the prices in the table are approximate. For a more accurate estimate, it is necessary to directly contact the developer company. The experts will perform calculations taking into account the specific features of your project, business goals, and timeframe.
Conclusion
Now you know what factors influence “how much does it cost to build a CRM system.” To obtain more precise cost estimates, it’s important to consider the key factors affecting pricing: the type of software, its complexity, the number of functions and modules, the qualifications and location of developers, team composition, and more.
Selecting the right IT company is crucial to ensure you obtain a digital product that matches your requirements and budget. Look for experience, pricing, and portfolios of different experts to find a team with an understanding of your industry and the necessary skills for creating custom CRM solutions.
On the GetTrusted platform, you will find numerous candidates with the relevant qualifications and licenses. Our team personally verifies the quality of services of each developer company listed on the GetTrusted rating. Therefore, we guarantee you only trustworthy IT providers and support at every stage of collaboration with them.
Feel free to reach out to our consultants to start searching for suitable CRM system developers today!
