The verdict in three sentences
An MS Access database with 40 tables that has been running for 15 years is an operational risk: the day the one colleague who understands it leaves, or an Office update breaks the macros, the business stops. A migration to a web app on PostgreSQL costs, as a 2026 Amsterdam market estimate, €18,000 to €40,000 excl. VAT, preceded by a €1,500 audit, for 25 users and delivery in 3 to 4 months. Success is not a technical question: it depends on migrating the data without loss, rehearsed twice before cutover.
Signals that make migration urgent
Access served Dutch SMEs well, but it hits its limits as soon as several people work at the same time, the file passes 1 GB or the team works remotely. The table below lists the symptoms and what they cost.
| Symptom (2026 estimate) | Typical frequency | Hidden yearly cost |
|---|---|---|
| Corrupted .accdb file, restore from backup | 2 to 4 times a year | €1,500 to €4,000 (lost days) |
| Concurrent access locks beyond 10 users | daily | 30 to 60 min lost per person per week |
| VBA macros broken after an Office update | once a year | €2,000 to €5,000 in fixes |
| No outside access without a makeshift VPN | permanent | remote work impossible or risky |
| Only one person able to change the database | permanent | full stop risk if they leave |
| No change log | permanent | customer disputes left unresolved |
With 25 users losing 45 minutes a week, the company already pays close to 900 hours a year to keep a tool it thinks is free.
What the audit and migration include
The €1,500 audit, over 3 to 4 days, produces three deliverables: a map of the 40 tables and their real relationships (often different from the declared ones), an inventory of the queries, forms and reports actually in use, and a costed estimate per work package. That is what turns a quote of "€18k to €40k" into a fixed price.
| Item | Simple migration (≈ €18,000) | Full migration (≈ €40,000) |
|---|---|---|
| Data model | 40 tables migrated, light normalisation | redesigned model, historical duplicates removed |
| Screens | 12 to 15 forms reproduced | 25 redesigned screens with search and filters |
| Reports and exports | 10 PDF/Excel reports | 25 reports + dashboards |
| VBA logic | rewrite of 5 to 10 critical macros | full rewrite + documented business rules |
| Data migration | 1 dry run + cutover | 2 dry runs + automated consistency checks |
| User rights | 2 profiles | 5 profiles + audit log |
| Integrations | CSV export to accounting | API to ERP or payroll software |
Choosing PostgreSQL is not ideological: free licence, rich data types, strong integrity constraints and EU hosting with a sovereign provider for €40 to €120 a month.
The real risks and how to neutralise them
- Dirty data: dates stored as text, duplicate customer codes, "misc" fields used for everything. Reserve 15 to 20% of the budget for cleanup, it is the most underestimated item.
- Rules hidden in VBA: a macro can apply a discount or block an order without anyone remembering. Every macro must be read and its rule confirmed by a business user.
- User resistance: people know the old tool's shortcuts. Involve 3 pilot users from the wireframe stage and keep the same field labels.
- A failed cutover: run both systems in parallel for 1 to 2 weeks, comparing totals (revenue, stock, receivables) every evening.
Typical plan: 2 weeks of audit and scoping, 8 to 10 weeks of development, 2 weeks of dry run and acceptance testing, 1 week of cutover and training.
Mini case study
Femke, office manager at a building materials distributor in Amsterdam (fictional persona), runs quotes, orders and delivery tracking on a 40-table Access database with 25 users. She estimates 45 minutes lost per person per week (locks, slowness, re-keying) and two corruption incidents a year, each costing 2 days for 3 people.
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- Lost time: 25 × 0.75 h × 46 weeks = 862 hours a year, about €30,000 at a €35 loaded hourly cost.
- Incidents: 2 × 2 days × 3 people × 7 h × €35 = €2,940 a year.
- Investment: €1,500 audit + €28,000 migration = €29,500 excl. VAT, plus €1,200 a year of hosting and €3,000 of maintenance.
The yearly gain of about €32,900 pays back the investment in 11 to 12 months, before counting the remote work it enables.
FAQ
Can we keep Access as the front end and only migrate the data?
Yes, by linking Access to PostgreSQL through ODBC, for €5,000 to €9,000. It fixes file corruption but not remote access or the VBA dependency: keep it as a 6 to 12 month transition step.
How long will the business be without its tool during cutover?
With a validated dry run, cutover happens over a weekend: stop Friday at 6 pm, migration and checks on Saturday, live Monday at 8 am.
Isn't a no-code tool cheaper?
For 5 to 10 tables, yes. At 40 tables with business rules, no-code subscriptions for 25 users often reach €6,000 to €12,000 a year, and the logic stays locked in the platform.
Who owns the code and data after migration?
Require ownership of the source code, a Git repository in your name and deployment documentation. Your data stays in your PostgreSQL database, exportable at any time.
What maintenance budget should we plan?
As a market estimate, 8 to 12% of the build cost per year, or €2,200 to €3,400 for a €28,000 migration.
Let's scope your project. Send us the number of tables, users and must-have reports in your Access database: we will scope the audit, then a fixed migration price with a 3 to 4 month plan. 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.
