The verdict in three sentences
A serious B2B SaaS MVP costs 35,000 to 80,000 EUR excl. VAT in Paris or Berlin in 2026, over 4 months, with an agency day rate of 550 to 750 EUR. The common building blocks (authentication, Stripe billing, dashboard, back office) weigh around 20,000 EUR whatever the product: the core feature is what moves the bill. A founder who raised 300,000 EUR should not spend more than 25 % of the round on the MVP, to keep enough to sell and iterate.
Cost block by block
The figures below are 2026 orders of magnitude for a web B2B SaaS (no native mobile app), built by a team of 2 developers, a part-time designer and a project manager.
| Block | Content | Estimated days | 2026 cost (EUR excl. VAT, 650 EUR day rate) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scoping and UX | Workshops, user journeys, 15 to 25 screen mock-ups | 10 to 12 | 6,500 to 7,800 |
| Authentication and roles | Sign-up, Google or Microsoft SSO, organisations, admin and member roles | 6 | 4,000 |
| Stripe billing | Plans, free trial, invoices, EU VAT, customer portal | 5 to 9 | 3,000 to 6,000 |
| Core feature | The product's unique value: engine, calculation, workflow | 20 to 50 | 13,000 to 32,500 |
| Dashboard | Key metrics, charts, filters, CSV export | 12 | 8,000 |
| Back office | Account management, support, deactivation, logs | 5 to 8 | 3,200 to 5,200 |
| Emails and onboarding | Transactional emails, getting-started checklist | 3 to 4 | 2,000 to 2,600 |
| Infrastructure, CI and tests | Environments, continuous deployment, tests, monitoring | 6 to 10 | 3,900 to 6,500 |
| Total | 67 to 111 | 43,600 to 72,600 |
A product whose core feature is a simple workflow (forms, approvals, notifications) lands around 40,000 EUR. A product with a calculation engine, a heavy integration or generative AI exceeds 70,000 EUR.
Agency, freelancers or salaried CTO: 4-month comparison
The production model matters as much as scope. The table compares three realistic options for a non-technical founder in 2026.
| Option | Cost over 4 months | Main risk | Realistic timeline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agency (day rate 550 to 750 EUR) | 45,000 to 75,000 EUR excl. VAT | Lock-in if the code is undocumented | 4 months |
| 2 senior freelancers (day rate 500 to 650 EUR) | 40,000 to 60,000 EUR excl. VAT | Coordination, availability, mid-project departure | 4 to 6 months |
| Salaried CTO + 1 developer | 55,000 to 70,000 EUR loaded, plus 2 to 3 months of hiring | Hiring delay, 5 to 15 % equity | 6 to 7 months |
| No-code (Bubble, assembled tools) | 10,000 to 25,000 EUR | Performance and migration limits | 6 to 10 weeks |
| Shared recurring costs | Hosting 150 EUR a month, tools 200 to 400 EUR a month | Third-party service creep | Ongoing |
For a founder who must put a product in front of first customers within 4 months, an agency remains the most predictable option, provided you require code ownership, a Git repository in the company's name and handover documentation. CTO hiring can start in parallel to take over the product in month 5.
What blows up an MVP budget
Three drifts recur in most projects. Features added along the way after a customer meeting, which add 20 to 40 % to the budget: park them in a "post-MVP" list. Chasing a perfect design before the first user. And integrations requested by a single prospect, such as a 10,000 EUR ERP connector, which is better billed to that customer.
Mini case study
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Thomas Mercier, non-technical founder of an expense management SaaS for SMEs, raised 300,000 EUR in Paris (the same maths applies to a Berlin startup). He caps his MVP at 58,000 EUR excl. VAT, 89 days at a 650 EUR day rate and 19 % of the round. He keeps 242,000 EUR for 14 months: a salesperson, a CTO hired in month 5 and 1,200 EUR a month of infrastructure and tools. With 25 customers at 290 EUR a month reached by month 10, he generates 7,250 EUR of monthly recurring revenue, 87,000 EUR annualised, enough to prepare a second round on real numbers.
FAQ
Can we build a SaaS MVP for under 30,000 EUR?
Yes with no-code, around 10,000 to 25,000 EUR, to validate usage. You will probably need to rebuild in code beyond 50 to 100 active customers.
Should Stripe be in the MVP?
Yes, if you sell online. 3,000 to 6,000 EUR covers subscriptions, free trial and VAT, and you measure willingness to pay from day one.
How much does hosting cost after launch?
About 150 EUR a month for the first 100 customers, plus 200 to 400 EUR of tools (email, monitoring, analytics). The bill rarely exceeds 1,000 EUR a month before 500 customers.
Who owns the code built by the agency?
The founder's company, if the contract includes an assignment of economic rights. Require it, along with access to the Git repository from week one.
What budget should we plan after the MVP?
Allow 3,000 to 8,000 EUR a month of improvements during the first 6 months, depending on customer feedback.
Let's scope your project. Describe your core feature, your first target customers and your deadline: we will price your MVP block by block, between 35,000 and 80,000 EUR excl. VAT, delivered in 4 months. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
