The verdict in three sentences
For a London conveyancing practice handling 600 to 2,000 matters a year, a client portal with secure uploads, identity checks and milestone tracking costs £18,000 to £55,000, delivered in 3 to 5 months, and sits alongside your case management system rather than replacing it. The least predictable line is integration with your existing case management software, which depends on the APIs or exports the vendor provides. Then budget £200 to £650 a month for maintenance, plus hosting, per check AML fees and an annual penetration test.
A typical quote, line by line
The quote below fits a firm with 4 partners and 15 fee earners and support staff handling about 1,200 residential matters a year, at an average day rate of £650, a 2026 estimate for London agencies and software consultancies.
| Line | Scope | Days | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Discovery | Workshops with partners, conveyancers and reception, milestone mapping | 5 | £3,250 |
| Journey design | Client portal and staff dashboard prototypes | 6 | £3,900 |
| Client portal | Secure login, two factor authentication, matter progress view | 15 | £9,750 |
| Secure uploads and AML onboarding | Encryption, file checks, identity verification provider integration | 8 | £5,200 |
| Matter tracking | Milestones from instruction to registration, alerts, dashboards | 12 | £7,800 |
| Case management integration | Sync of matters and parties via API or scheduled export | 10 | £6,500 |
| Notifications | Email and SMS at each milestone | 3 | £1,950 |
| Testing and security | Functional tests, security review, acceptance on 20 live matters | 8 | £5,200 |
| Launch and training | Go live, staff training | 3 | £1,950 |
| Total | 70 | £45,500 |
A smaller firm with 600 matters and simpler dashboards lands around 28 to 40 days, £18,000 to £26,000. A multi office firm with several integrations and a mobile app moves towards 80 to 85 days, about £52,000 to £55,000.
The London specifics: AML, SRA and Land Registry
Three regulatory threads shape the scope. Money Laundering Regulations require client identity and source of funds checks, so the portal should collect documents and run electronic ID checks through a specialist provider. SRA transparency rules require price information for residential conveyancing on your website, and the portal is a natural place to keep quotes consistent with it. HM Land Registry milestones, from searches to registration and requisitions, should be explicit statuses so clients see progress without calling.
Recurring costs to add to the quote
| Recurring line | 2026 range | Annual cost |
|---|---|---|
| Corrective and evolutive maintenance | £200 to £650 a month | £2,400 to £7,800 |
| UK hosting and backups | £80 to £200 a month | £960 to £2,400 |
| Electronic ID and AML checks | £2 to £8 per check | £4,800 to £19,200 for 2,400 checks |
| SMS notifications | £0.04 to £0.07 per SMS | £240 to £420 for 6,000 SMS |
| Penetration test | Once a year | £3,000 to £6,000 |
| Annual total | £11,400 to £35,820 |
ID checks are often already paid today through another tool: moving them into the portal changes where the cost sits more than how much you pay.
Ways to bring the bill down
Split delivery into two releases: progress tracking and document uploads first, dashboards and SMS later, which defers 30% to 40% of the cost. Before asking for quotes, check what your case management vendor actually exposes: a scheduled export often works instead of real time sync. And benchmark a remote option: Kolonell builds complex web applications for 4,000,000 to 8,000,000 FCFA (about €6,100 to €12,200) in 3 to 6 months, to be validated on UK hosting and UK GDPR obligations.
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Illustrative example: James, managing partner of a 15 person conveyancing firm in London handling 1,200 matters a year. Reception fields about 6 progress calls per matter, 7,200 calls of 5 minutes, or 600 hours a year. The portal targets 3 calls per matter, saving 300 hours, about £10,500 at a loaded £35 an hour. Faster, complete document uploads also cut the average time to exchange by roughly a week, which matters when referral agents rate firms on speed. The time savings roughly cover the new maintenance, hosting and testing costs, so the business case for the £45,500 project rests on speed: winning 25 extra matters a year at a £1,500 average fee adds £37,500, a payback of about 15 months.
FAQ
How much does a conveyancing client portal cost in London?
Between £18,000 and £55,000 in 2026 depending on matter volume and integrations, over 3 to 5 months. A firm with 1,200 matters often lands around £45,000.
Does the portal replace our case management system?
No, it connects to it to pull matters and parties. Integration typically represents 10% to 15% of the budget.
What recurring costs should we expect?
Around £11,000 to £36,000 a year, with ID checks the largest variable line at £2 to £8 each. Maintenance runs £200 to £650 a month.
How do we secure client documents?
Require file encryption, two factor authentication, access logs and UK hosting, in line with UK GDPR. A penetration test before go live, £3,000 to £6,000, is strongly recommended given the fraud risk around completion funds.
Can we phase the project?
Yes, in two releases 2 to 3 months apart, deferring 30% to 40% of the cost. The first release should already deliver value, typically progress tracking and the document checklist.
Let's scope your project. Tell us your matter volume, case management system and priorities, and we will price your client portal from 4,000,000 to 8,000,000 FCFA (about €6,100 to €12,200), delivered in 3 to 6 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.
