It starts with understanding, not code.
Before anything gets built, we make sure we're building the right thing. Every project opens with discovery and a written scope-back you approve — then a fast, fixed-scope build, and a clean handoff at the end. Here's exactly how it goes.
MVP and Production, stage by stage
The same four stages, two depths — and knowing what to cut is worth as much as knowing what to build. The build phase in the middle is what scales; here's how each tier moves through it.
Discovery
Find the core loop and define what "validated" looks like for you — the smallest thing that proves the idea with real users.
A fuller discovery — not just the core loop, but real-world usage, edge cases, security needs, and how it has to scale.
Scope-back & quote
A written scope-back and a fixed $12,500 quote. You approve it; we lock scope. Deposit secures your build slot.
The scope-back and fixed quote reflect the added depth — architecture and security decided before any code is written.
Build
Custom design and the core feature set come together — something clickable within days, iterated inside the agreed scope. Auth, database, and deployment set up properly.
Hardened auth, a database built for integrity and performance, error handling, and a CI/CD pipeline first — then the full feature set with automated tests and load testing as we go.
Handoff
Deployed and live. You get the keys, documentation, and a walkthrough. Final payment due, 30-day fix window begins.
Full IP transfer on final payment. Complete documentation, a technical walkthrough, and the deployment handed over. 30-day fix window begins.
Standard MVP and Production builds run 50% up front, 50% on delivery. Larger engagements above ~$60k move to staged milestone payments (typically 40% to start, 30% at a midpoint check-in, 30% on delivery) — keeping the commitment proportional to progress on both sides.
Why we don't bill by the hour.
Speed shouldn’t cost you
AI-assisted tooling compresses a build that used to take months into weeks. Hourly billing would punish that speed by charging you less for more value. Fixed price lets you keep the upside.
The risk sits with us
You pay for a delivered, working product — not for hours logged. If something proves harder than expected, that's on our side of the table. Your budget is settled before we start.
Scope is the contract
A fixed price needs a fixed scope, written down. That's what the scope-back is. Anything beyond it becomes a Phase 2 — quoted clearly, never slipped onto a bill.