The verdict in three sentences
In 2026, a custom ERP/CRM connector (customers, orders, stock synced in real time) costs between 15 000 and 45 000 EUR, versus an iPaaS subscription of 100 to 1 200 EUR/month (Make, Zapier, Talend). The real calculation is over three years: iPaaS wins at launch, custom wins once volumes and business rules grow complex. What costs money is not the connection but duplicate handling, bidirectional sync and error recovery.
Custom or iPaaS: the real 3-year cost
The comparison changes everything depending on horizon. 2026 orders of magnitude for an SME/mid-market firm.
| Item | Custom connector | iPaaS (Make/Zapier/Talend) |
|---|---|---|
| Setup | 15 000 - 45 000 EUR | 2 000 - 8 000 EUR |
| Monthly cost | 120 - 600 EUR (run) | 100 - 1 200 EUR |
| 3-year total | 19 000 - 66 000 EUR | 5 600 - 51 000 EUR |
| Volume limits | None | Task/operation quotas |
| Complex business rules | Unlimited | Limited, workarounds |
Over three years, iPaaS stays competitive for simple flows and low volumes. As soon as monthly operations explode or logic gets specific, custom becomes cheaper AND more reliable.
Where a custom connector's budget goes
The "happy path" sync is easy; the error cases are what cost.
| Technical item | Share of budget | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Mapping & data model | 25 - 30 % | Field matching ERP ↔ CRM |
| Bidirectional sync | 20 - 25 % | Update direction, conflicts |
| Duplicate handling & dedup | 15 - 20 % | Unique keys, merge, arbitration |
| Monitoring & error recovery | 20 - 25 % | Alerts, replay, queues |
| Security & authentication | 10 - 15 % | Tokens, encryption, logs |
A connector without monitoring and error recovery always ends up silently desynchronising the two systems: never sacrifice this item.
Mini case study
Bart, CIO of a 120-person wholesale firm in Amsterdam, manually re-enters orders between his ERP and CRM, with regular stock discrepancies. An iPaaS would cover 80 % of cases but hits his pricing rules and volumes (30 000 operations/month, ~800 EUR/month). He picks a custom connector at 32 000 EUR with 300 EUR/month run. Over three years: 32 000 + 10 800 = 42 800 EUR versus ~52 000 EUR of iPaaS at that volume, while eliminating stock errors and saving 15 h/week of re-entry (~700 h/year). Here custom is both cheaper and more reliable.
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FAQ
Isn't iPaaS always cheaper?
No. It is at launch and for low volumes, but its task quotas drive the bill up. Beyond ~20 000-30 000 operations/month or with complex business rules, custom becomes cheaper over 3 years.
How long to deliver a connector?
Between 4 and 10 weeks depending on the number of synced objects and API accessibility. We deliver one direction first (e.g. ERP → CRM) before bidirectional sync.
What happens if a system goes down?
A well-built connector queues operations and replays them on recovery, with no loss. That is exactly the role of error recovery, which is 20 to 25 % of the budget.
How do you handle duplicates?
With unique keys (registration number, email, reference), merge rules and arbitration when two sources conflict. This item is 15 to 20 % of the project but saves months of cleanup.
Can we connect more than two systems?
Yes: ERP, CRM, e-commerce, accounting, WMS. Each system adds mapping and cost, but the architecture stays the same. We centralise via middleware rather than multiplying point-to-point links.
Let's scope your project. Share your systems (ERP, CRM), monthly operation volume and objects to sync; indicative budget 15 000 to 45 000 EUR, delivery in 4 to 10 weeks. 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.
