An MVP costs $15,000 to $45,000 for a product with one core workflow, authentication and billing, delivered in 8 to 14 weeks. A clickable prototype to test the concept first costs $3,000 to $6,000. Budget roughly two to three times the build cost in total, because the twelve months after launch is where most of the spend goes.
Founders ask what an MVP costs. The more useful question is what the first eighteen months cost, because launching without runway to iterate is the most common way these products die.
Typical MVP
Prototype first
To launch
Build cost = total budget
$3,000–$6,000. Clickable flows you can test on real prospects before writing production code.
$8,000–$20,000. The one thing your value proposition depends on, built properly.
$3,000–$6,000. Signup, teams, roles and Stripe subscriptions with trials and proration.
$2,000–$4,000 in the same codebase, so the funnel and the product feel like one product.
$1,500–$3,000. Enough to support early customers without running database queries.
$3,500+/month. The iteration budget. Skipping this is how a launched product quietly dies.
| Phase | Cost | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Prototype and validation | $3,000 – $6,000 | 2–3 weeks |
| MVP build | $15,000 – $45,000 | 8–14 weeks |
| Launch and first fixes | $3,000 – $6,000 | 1 month |
| Iteration (6 months) | $21,000 – $54,000 | 6 months |
| Infrastructure and tools (12 months) | $1,500 – $6,000 | 12 months |
| Realistic first-year total | $45,000 – $120,000 | 12 months |
Raising or budgeting only for the build is the single most common planning error. The product that ships is never the product that succeeds; the iteration budget is what closes the gap.
| $15,000 | $45,000 | |
|---|---|---|
| User roles | One | Three or four |
| Core workflow | One, straightforward | Several, with business rules |
| Integrations | None | Two or three |
| Design | Component library based | Custom design system |
| Billing | Single plan | Tiers, trials, usage |
| Admin tooling | Minimal | Full support console |
| Marketing site | Three pages | Full site with blog |
You can build a prototype or a very narrow single-workflow tool. You cannot build a multi-tenant product with billing and support tooling. Anyone quoting that is either misunderstanding the scope or planning to renegotiate.
Almost always. It costs a fifth of the build, takes three weeks, and regularly changes what gets built. The founders who skip it are usually the ones who rebuild a major feature within six months.
Some do. We do not, because it distorts the advice — a partner with equity has an incentive to keep building rather than to tell you the idea is not working.
At least six months of iteration budget, ideally twelve. Launching with no capacity to respond to what users do is the most common reason a technically successful MVP fails commercially.
Indicative ranges in USD. Every engagement is quoted to a written scope before work starts, so the number you approve is the number you pay.
$3,000 – $6,000
2–3 weeks
Best for: Testing before building
$15,000 – $45,000
8–14 weeks
Best for: A product customers can buy
from $3,500 / month
Ongoing
Best for: Iterating on what you learn
How we think about this work, in more depth.
Cost guide
A 30-minute call, then a written proposal with scope, price and timeline within two to three working days. No retainer required to get a real number, and no obligation if the answer is that we are not the right fit.