The verdict in three sentences
A custom BI dashboard costs in 2026 between 2.5 and 8 million FCFA (about 3,810-12,200 EUR), over 6 to 12 weeks. The cost depends mostly on the number of data sources to connect (ERP, Excel, sales database, mobile money) and the quality of the ETL. The return is immediate: reporting that went from 2 days to 10 minutes.
The cost per data source
The bulk of dashboard work is not the chart, it is the data pipeline: extract, clean, harmonise (ETL) then refresh automatically. Each source adds a connector to build.
| Item | Scope | FCFA budget | EUR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Framing & KPIs | Defining key indicators | 400,000-1,000,000 | 610-1,525 |
| Connector per source | Excel, ERP, database, API | 400,000-1,200,000 / source | 610-1,830 |
| ETL pipeline | Cleaning, harmonising, refresh | 800,000-2,500,000 | 1,220-3,810 |
| Charts & visualisations | Graphs, filters, drill-down | 700,000-2,000,000 | 1,070-3,050 |
| Roles & sharing | Access by profile, exports | 300,000-1,000,000 | 460-1,525 |
| Dashboard total | Full BI (3-4 sources) | 2,500,000-8,000,000 | 3,810-12,200 |
Hosting, refresh and time saved
A dashboard lives over time: it must refresh automatically and stay accessible. Here are the usage benchmarks and the concrete gain.
| Metric | 2026 order of magnitude | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Hosting + database | 20,000-70,000 FCFA/month | By volume |
| Refresh frequency | Real-time to daily | By need |
| Typical number of sources | 3-5 | Excel, ERP, sales, MoMo |
| Reporting time before | ~2 days/month | Manual compilation |
| Reporting time after | ~10 minutes | Automated |
| Annual maintenance | 15-18 % of project cost | KPI evolutions |
Mini case study
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Mr. Traore, director of a trading company, consolidates his figures by hand each month: sales in Excel, stock in software, Orange Money collections exported separately. Two full days of a manager go into it. He invests 5,000,000 FCFA in a BI dashboard (4 sources + ETL), delivered in 9 weeks.
Before: 2 days/month x 12 = 24 days/year of manual reporting, i.e. ~192 hours. After, compilation is automatic: ~10 minutes/month, i.e. 2 hours/year. Net gain: ~190 hours/year. Valued at 4,000 FCFA/loaded hour (manager profile), that is ~760,000 FCFA/year of recovered time, before counting faster decisions from fresh data. The investment pays back in a little over 6 years on time alone, but the decision value (reacting fast on margins and stock) is the real lever.
FAQ
What costs the most in a dashboard? Not the charts, but the data pipeline: connecting and cleaning each source (400,000-1,200,000 FCFA/source) and building the ETL. That is what guarantees accurate, up-to-date figures.
How many sources can be connected? As many as needed: Excel, ERP, sales database, mobile money, Google Sheets. A typical dashboard consolidates 3 to 5 sources; each added source is priced separately.
Does the dashboard update by itself? Yes: refresh is automatic, from real-time to daily as needed. No more manual exports and error-prone copy-paste.
What time saving to expect? Concretely, a 2-day monthly report often drops to a few minutes. The freed time is reinvested in analysis and decisions, not compilation.
What maintenance budget? Plan for 15-18 % of the project cost per year to evolve KPIs and connectors, plus hosting (20,000-70,000 FCFA/month).
Let's scope your project. List your data sources and target KPIs, with an indicative budget and timeline: we price the pipeline and the dashboards. 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.
