The verdict in three sentences
A serious fleet management SaaS MVP costs 35,000 to 60,000 EUR excl. VAT in Berlin or Paris in 2026, delivered in 12 weeks if the scope fits three roles and a single mobile app built as a PWA. Running costs stay modest, 150 to 400 EUR/month of cloud, but you must budget for Stripe Billing and a 15 % reserve for feedback from the first customers. Early-stage grants such as EXIST in Germany or the Bpifrance French Tech grant (up to 30,000 EUR) can cover half of the invoice if you apply before development starts.
What a fleet MVP that actually sells contains
A founder selling corporate mobility to HR or facilities managers does not need 40 features. They need to prove that a fleet manager saves time and that an employee can book a bike in under 30 seconds. The MVP is therefore built around three roles: the client administrator (company), the employee user and the maintenance technician.
| MVP module | Role | Estimated effort (days) | Indicative cost excl. VAT |
|---|---|---|---|
| Authentication, roles, multi-company | All | 8 to 10 | 5,600 to 7,500 EUR |
| Bike inventory, assignment, condition | Administrator | 10 to 14 | 7,000 to 10,500 EUR |
| Booking and pick-up (QR code) | Employee | 8 to 12 | 5,600 to 9,000 EUR |
| Maintenance tickets and history | Technician | 6 to 9 | 4,200 to 6,750 EUR |
| Stripe Billing subscriptions, invoices | Administrator | 5 to 8 | 3,500 to 6,000 EUR |
| Usage dashboard and CSV export | Administrator | 5 to 8 | 3,500 to 6,000 EUR |
| PWA, notifications, light offline mode | Employee, technician | 6 to 10 | 4,200 to 7,500 EUR |
2026 order of magnitude, based on an average day rate of 700 to 750 EUR excl. VAT for a team in a major European capital. Modules add up to 48 to 71 days, which matches the 35,000 to 60,000 EUR range once scoping, testing and acceptance are included. The PWA avoids paying for two native iOS and Android apps: employees install the app from the browser, scan the bike's QR code and receive notifications. The saving runs into tens of thousands of euros in year one.
Tech stack and running costs
The stack must serve two goals: ship fast and let a future CTO take over the code without a rewrite. Next.js, TypeScript and managed PostgreSQL tick both boxes.
| Item | Recommended choice | Estimated monthly cost |
|---|---|---|
| Front end and PWA | Next.js, TypeScript | included in hosting |
| Application hosting | Vercel or an EU cloud (Frankfurt or Paris region) | 20 to 120 EUR |
| Database | Managed PostgreSQL with backups | 30 to 120 EUR |
| Bike condition photo storage | S3 compatible | 5 to 25 EUR |
| Transactional email and SMS | Brevo or equivalent | 25 to 80 EUR |
| Monitoring and logs | Sentry, uptime | 0 to 55 EUR |
| Billing | Stripe Billing | 0.7 % of billed volume on top of card fees |
With 10 to 30 client companies, the cloud bill stays between 150 and 400 EUR/month. The line that often surprises founders is Stripe Billing: 0.7 % of recurring volume is added to transaction fees, i.e. 70 EUR per month for 10,000 EUR of MRR. Acceptable at MVP stage, worth renegotiating above 1 million euros of annual volume. EU hosting and signed GDPR data processing agreements: HR buyers will ask for them in the first meeting.
12-week plan and funding
| Weeks | Deliverable | Decision point |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 2 | Scoping, clickable mock-ups, prioritised backlog | Scope and fixed price sign-off |
| 3 to 6 | Accounts, inventory, booking | Internal mid-point demo |
| 7 to 9 | Maintenance, Stripe, dashboard | Test with a pilot customer |
| 10 to 11 | PWA, notifications, fixes | Functional acceptance |
| 12 | Go-live, documentation | Commercial launch |
In France, the Bpifrance French Tech grant funds up to 30,000 EUR for startups under one year old, matched by equal equity. In Germany, EXIST and regional programmes play a similar role. In both cases the application should be filed before committing spend: a dated quote broken down by module speeds up review, which often takes 4 to 8 weeks. Honour loans from founder networks complete the funding plan.
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Thomas, founder of a company bike startup, targets 15 client companies with 40 bikes each, billed 45 EUR excl. VAT per bike per month. His MVP costs 48,000 EUR excl. VAT, of which 30,000 EUR is covered by a public startup grant, leaving 18,000 EUR of equity. Cloud and Stripe cost about 350 EUR/month. At 15 clients, MRR reaches 27,000 EUR (15 x 40 x 45), with a software share estimated at 15 %, i.e. 4,050 EUR/month attributable to the platform. The net 18,000 EUR contribution pays back in just under 5 months once the 15 clients are signed. A working assumption, not a guaranteed result: the real test is the weekly booking rate among employees.
FAQ
Can a fleet SaaS MVP ship in less than 12 weeks?
Yes, in 8 weeks if you drop Stripe billing and maintenance, with a budget around 25,000 EUR excl. VAT. The risk is having to rebuild subscription management when you sign your first paying contracts.
Why a PWA rather than a native app?
A PWA costs about 5,000 to 8,000 EUR versus 25,000 EUR and more for two native apps. It handles QR scanning, notifications and home-screen installation, which is enough to validate usage.
Do I own the code at the end?
You should own it entirely: require an IP assignment clause in the contract and access to the Git repository from week 1. Investors also check this during a seed round.
What budget should I plan after launch?
Count 15 to 20 % of the initial cost per year for maintenance and minor changes, i.e. 7,000 to 12,000 EUR excl. VAT for a 48,000 EUR MVP, on top of 150 to 400 EUR/month of cloud.
Are startup grants compatible with an outsourced agency?
Yes, outsourced development costs are usually eligible if backed by a quote and committed after filing. The French Tech grant caps at 30,000 EUR and 70 % of eligible spend.
Let's scope your project. Send us your three user roles and target launch date, and we will price an MVP module by module with a 12-week 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.
