The verdict in three sentences
For a medical center with 30 clinicians in London, a patient portal showing results, letters and prescriptions processes special category health data: UK GDPR, a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) and, if you hold NHS contracts, the NHS Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPT) are not optional. The 2026 build budget sits between 60,000 and 180,000 GBP, plus 250 to 1,300 GBP a month for compliant hosting. The realistic timeline is 4 to 7 months, a third of which goes to compliance, security testing and integration with the clinical system.
Patient portal cost items in 2026
Ranges observed on the UK market (2026 estimates, health specialists and generalist agencies).
| Item | Range | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Scoping, DPIA, security policy | 5,000 to 15,000 GBP | With your DPO, before any development |
| Strong authentication (MFA, NHS login where relevant) | 7,000 to 18,000 GBP | Essential for document access |
| Patient area: documents, results, secure messaging | 18,000 to 50,000 GBP | Functional core of the portal |
| Appointment booking and SMS reminders | 7,000 to 20,000 GBP | Or connection to an existing diary |
| Clinical system and lab integration (HL7, FHIR, API) | 12,000 to 45,000 GBP | Most variable item depending on the vendor |
| Admin back office for reception and clinicians | 6,000 to 20,000 GBP | Account management, document publishing |
| Penetration testing and QA | 5,000 to 12,000 GBP | CREST-accredited testers recommended |
At Kolonell, a portal of this level falls into our complex applications range, 7,000,000 to 15,000,000 FCFA (about 10,670 to 22,870 EUR) for development, with hosting contracted from a compliant UK provider chosen with you.
Compliant hosting: what you really pay
The UK has no direct equivalent of France's HDS certification, but NHS guidance, DSPT and UK GDPR require UK or adequate-country hosting, encryption, access logging and certified providers (ISO 27001, Cyber Essentials Plus).
| Hosting option | Monthly cost 2026 | Suited to |
|---|---|---|
| UK public cloud region, entry setup | 250 to 450 GBP | Simple portal, under 5,000 active patients |
| Managed UK cloud with backups and monitoring | 500 to 850 GBP | 5,000 to 20,000 active patients |
| Fully managed service, 24/7 on-call | 850 to 1,300 GBP | High volumes, 99.9% availability target |
| Offsite encrypted backup | 40 to 170 GBP | Required as a complement |
| Monitoring and access logging | 80 to 250 GBP | Audit trail expected by the ICO |
Typical 6-month schedule
- Month 1: scoping, DPIA, hosting provider choice, data processing agreement.
- Months 2 to 4: patient area, authentication and back office development.
- Months 4 to 5: integration with the clinical system and partner lab.
- Month 6: penetration test, fixes, reception staff training, phased opening.
Mini case study
Illustration: Dr Patel, director of a fictional 30-clinician medical center in Marylebone, sees reception handle 900 calls a month just for results requests, at 4 minutes each, so 60 hours. With a portal at 110,000 GBP and 700 GBP a month of hosting, she expects to shift 70% of those requests online: 42 hours freed each month, about 1,000 GBP of reception time. Add no-shows: 10% of 6,000 monthly consultations, cut by a third through SMS reminders, so 200 slots recovered. At an average private consultation fee of 150 GBP, filling even half of those slots brings 15,000 GBP a month, so the portal pays back in under 9 months.
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FAQ
Is DSPT compliance mandatory?
It is mandatory for organizations with access to NHS patient data and systems. Purely private clinics are not bound by it, but UK GDPR applies regardless, with fines up to 17.5 M GBP or 4% of turnover.
How much does a DPIA cost?
Count 3,000 to 8,000 GBP with a consultant, less if your DPO runs it internally. It must be completed before the portal opens.
Can lab results be published automatically?
Technically yes via HL7 or FHIR, but most centers require clinician sign-off before release. Plan this workflow in the back office, it adds 1 to 2 weeks of development.
Do we need a native mobile app?
Rarely at first. A responsive web app or PWA covers 90% of use cases and costs 30 to 50% less than iOS and Android apps.
How long before patients can log in?
Between 4 and 7 months. Delays mostly come from integration with the clinical system vendor, to be addressed in month one.
Let's scope your project. Tell us your number of clinicians, your clinical system and the documents to publish: we price a portal between 7 and 15 M FCFA with a 4 to 7 month schedule, compliant hosting included in the scoping. 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.
