The $30K Custom Tool That Replaced $15K/Year SaaS

"We're spending $15,000 per year on a project management tool that doesn't quite fit our workflow. Should we build custom?" This is the question that leads to either smart economic decisions or expensive mistakes. Here's a real case study where building custom made financial sense, paid for itself in 24 months, and continues saving $10,000+ annually.

The Starting Situation

Company: 35-person consulting firm Industry: Management consulting Problem: Using Monday.com Pro for project and resource management Annual cost: $15,120 ($19/user × 30 users × 12 months + integrations)

What Wasn't Working

Workflow mismatches:

• Resource allocation across projects (Monday.com's strength is tasks, not resource management)
• Consultant availability tracking (workarounds with custom fields)
• Financial tracking integration (Zapier connecting to QuickBooks, fragile)
• Client portal access (Monday.com not designed for client visibility)
• Reporting on consultant utilization (difficult to get accurate data)

Cost concerns:

• Growing from 30 to 40 users would increase cost to $20,000+/year
• Integration costs (Zapier) adding $1,200/year
• Time spent on workarounds: ~10 hours/week across team

The Decision Point

Year 3 on Monday.com:

• Cumulative spent: ~$45,000
• Frustration level: High
• Growth trajectory: Adding 10-15 people over next 2 years
• Projected Year 5 cost: $25,000+/year

Question: Is custom development a better 5-year investment?

The Custom Development Project

Requirements Phase (3 weeks, $4,000)

What we needed:

• Project and task management
• Resource allocation and scheduling
• Consultant availability calendar
• Time tracking integration
• Financial tracking (budgets, actuals, forecasts)
• Client portal (view project status, not edit)
• Utilization reporting
• QuickBooks integration

What we documented:

• 15 user stories covering core workflows
• Data model for projects, tasks, resources, time
• Integration requirements (QuickBooks, Google Calendar)
• Reporting requirements
• Mobile requirements (view-only acceptable)

Design Phase (2 weeks, $3,000)

UI/UX design:

• Wireframes for all major screens
• User flow diagrams
• Design system (colors, typography, components)
• Mobile responsive layouts

Technical architecture:

• React frontend
• FastAPI backend
• PostgreSQL database
• Hosted on AWS
• QuickBooks OAuth integration
• Google Calendar sync

Development Phase (10 weeks, $18,000)

Sprint 1-2 (Core functionality):

• Project and task CRUD
• User authentication
• Basic resource allocation
• $6,000

Sprint 3-4 (Advanced features):

• Resource calendar view
• Availability tracking
• Time tracking interface
• $6,000

Sprint 5-6 (Integrations):

• QuickBooks integration
• Google Calendar sync
• Email notifications
• $6,000

Testing & Launch (2 weeks, $2,000)

• User acceptance testing
• Bug fixes
• Data migration from Monday.com
• Training documentation
• Go-live support

Total Development: $27,000

Timeline: 17 weeks (4 months)

Year 1: Implementation and Stabilization

One-Time Costs

• Development: $27,000
• AWS setup: $500
• Training time: $2,000 (internal labor)
• Total: $29,500

Ongoing Costs (8 months post-launch)

• AWS hosting: $150/month × 8 = $1,200
• Bug fixes and adjustments: $3,000
• Total ongoing Year 1: $4,200

Year 1 Total: $33,700

vs. Monday.com Year 1: $15,120 Year 1 difference: -$18,580 (custom costs more)

Year 2: Refinement and Growth

Costs

• AWS hosting: $150/month × 12 = $1,800
• Maintenance: $4,000
• New features (2 major additions): $5,000
• Year 2 Total: $10,800

Company Growth

• Grew from 35 to 45 people
• Custom: Same $10,800 (no per-user costs)
• Monday.com equivalent: $20,520 (45 users)

Year 2 difference: +$9,720 savings (custom cheaper)

Features Added

• Advanced utilization reporting
• Automated availability updates from Google Calendar
• Enhanced client portal with document sharing

Year 3: Optimization

Costs

• AWS hosting: $1,800
• Maintenance: $4,000
• Features: $3,000
• Year 3 Total: $8,800

Company Size

• Grew to 50 people
• Custom: $8,800
• Monday.com equivalent: $22,800 (50 users)

Year 3 difference: +$14,000 savings

Optimization Benefits

• Consultant utilization improved 15% (better visibility)
• Project profitability tracking enabled better pricing decisions
• Client satisfaction improved (portal transparency)

Year 4-5: Mature Product

Annual Costs (Each Year)

• AWS hosting: $1,800
• Maintenance: $4,000
• Minor enhancements: $2,000
• Annual: $7,800

Company Size (Year 5)

• 55 people
• Custom: $7,800
• Monday.com equivalent: $25,080

Year 4-5 difference: +$17,280 savings each year

5-Year Financial Analysis

Total Costs

Custom development:

• Year 1: $33,700
• Year 2: $10,800
• Year 3: $8,800
• Year 4: $7,800
• Year 5: $7,800
• 5-Year Total: $68,900

Monday.com (projected growth):

• Year 1: $15,120 (30 users)
• Year 2: $20,520 (45 users)
• Year 3: $22,800 (50 users)
• Year 4: $25,080 (55 users)
• Year 5: $25,080 (55 users)
• 5-Year Total: $108,600

Savings: $39,700 over 5 years (37% reduction)

Break-Even Analysis

Cumulative costs:

• Year 1: Custom $33,700 vs. SaaS $15,120 (custom -$18,580)
• Year 2: Custom $44,500 vs. SaaS $35,640 (custom -$8,860)
• Year 3: Custom $53,300 vs. SaaS $58,440 (custom +$5,140)

Break-even: 26 months (mid-Year 3)

The Intangible Benefits

Beyond dollar savings, custom delivered value SaaS couldn't:

Perfect Workflow Fit

Before (Monday.com):

• 5-10 workaround steps per common task
• Data in multiple places (Monday, spreadsheets, QuickBooks)
• Clunky resource allocation
• Poor utilization visibility

After (Custom):

• Direct workflow support
• Single source of truth
• Intuitive resource calendar
• Real-time utilization dashboards

Time savings: ~8 hours/week across team Value: ~$40,000/year in productivity

Client Experience Improvement

Custom portal allowed:

• Real-time project status
• Document access
• Communication history
• Transparent billing

Impact:

• Client satisfaction improved (measured in surveys)
• Reduced client check-in calls
• Stronger client relationships

Business Intelligence

Custom reporting enabled:

• Consultant utilization by client, project, skill
• Project profitability in real-time
• Resource forecasting
• Pricing optimization data

Impact:

• 15% improvement in utilization
• Better project pricing decisions
• Capacity planning accuracy

Conservative value: $50,000+/year in better resource allocation

What Made This Successful

1. Clear Requirements

Spent 3 weeks documenting exactly what was needed. No scope creep because requirements were thorough.

2. Phased Development

Built core first, advanced features later. Could have launched after Sprint 4 if needed.

3. Realistic Timeline

17 weeks actual vs. 16 weeks estimated. Padding and good project management avoided delays.

4. Experienced Team

Hired agency with track record. Cost more upfront but avoided rookie mistakes and delays.

5. Data Migration Plan

Carefully migrated from Monday.com with 2-week parallel operation. Smooth transition.

6. User Involvement

Weekly demos to stakeholders. Feedback incorporated during development, not after.

7. Maintenance Budget

Planned for ongoing costs. Not shocked by Year 2 maintenance needs.

Common Questions

"What if requirements change?"

They did. Year 2-3 added features not in original spec. Cost $8,000 total. Still way ahead of Monday.com costs.

"What if developer relationship sours?"

Risk mitigation:

• Source code owned by company
• Documented codebase
• Not locked to single developer
• Could hire different team if needed

"What about hosting reliability?"

AWS uptime: 99.9%+ (same as most SaaS) Cost: $150/month vs. included in SaaS Control: Full control over infrastructure and data

"What if the company didn't grow?"

Scenario: Stayed at 35 people

Monday.com: $15,120/year × 5 = $75,600 Custom: $68,900 (as calculated)

Still saved: $6,700 (9% savings)

Break-even: 48 months instead of 26 months

Conclusion: Growth accelerated ROI but wasn't required for positive economics.

Lessons for Others Considering Custom

Good Candidates for Custom

Annual SaaS cost $12,000+ Growing user base (multiplies SaaS costs) Poor workflow fit (spending time on workarounds) 3-5 year time horizon Clear, stable requirements Can afford $25,000-50,000 upfront investment

Poor Candidates for Custom

Annual SaaS under $5,000 (not worth custom effort) Shrinking or stable small team SaaS fits workflow well (why rebuild what works?) Short time horizon (1-2 years) Rapidly changing requirements Can't afford upfront investment

Key Success Factors

1. Thorough requirements (prevents scope creep)
2. Experienced development partner (avoids delays and cost overruns)
3. Realistic timeline (plan for 15-20 weeks minimum)
4. Budget for ongoing (maintenance isn't free)
5. Clear ownership (someone accountable for the tool)
6. User involvement (feedback during development, not after)

The Thalamus Custom Development Approach

How we ensure success:

Discovery Phase ($3,000-5,000)

• Requirements documentation
• Workflow analysis
• Data migration planning
• Risk assessment
• Fixed-price quote for development

Development ($25,000-100,000 depending on complexity)

• Phased delivery
• Weekly stakeholder demos
• Change request process
• Testing and QA
• Launch support

Ongoing Support ($500-2,000/month)

• Hosting and infrastructure
• Bug fixes and maintenance
• Feature enhancements
• User support

Success rate: 90%+ projects deliver on time and budget

Why: Thorough discovery, experienced team, realistic expectations

The Bottom Line

This case study shows custom can win economically when:

1. SaaS costs $12,000+/year
2. Company growing (user-based pricing hurts)
3. Workflow mismatch with SaaS (time wasted)
4. 3-5 year time horizon
5. Initial investment affordable ($25,000-50,000)

Results for this company:

• $39,700 saved over 5 years (37% reduction)
• Break-even at 26 months
• Better workflow fit (worth $40,000+/year in productivity)
• Ongoing savings $15,000+/year after break-even

Not every company should build custom. But if you match this profile, the economics often favor custom over continuing to pay high SaaS costs for imperfect fit.

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About Thalamus: We build custom business applications for companies spending $10,000+/year on SaaS tools that don't quite fit. Typical 18-36 month payback, ongoing savings of 30-60%. Discovery phase: Contact us