Calculating the estimate cost for software development is a very tricky process since various factors go into the calculation process. Having an estimated cost in hand is necessary for software developing businesses because it helps streamline their efforts and functions.
Therefore, to learn how to estimate costs for software development, read this guide right now.
What Factors Affect The Estimate Cost Of Software Development?
There are several factors that affect the estimate cost of software development. These factors are:
1. Size Of Software
The size of the software to be developed plays a major role in dictating how much it will cost. This is a pretty obvious metric and the most important one. It is such because of the fact that this factory influences all the other factors on this list.
As a rule of thumb, creating bigger software will take a longer time to do so. Therefore, costs will proportionally be higher. The size of most applications is determined by their feature pages or screens. The more screens your application has, the more it will cost for software development.
Small apps have around 10 to 25 feature pages. Medium-sized apps have anywhere between 25 feature pages to 40. If your app has more than 40+ feature pages, then it will be considered a large-scale application. Steps To How Link Square Enix with Sqex me Link Code
2. Complexity Of Software
Adding more and more features and uses to your application will automatically make it more complicated. Therefore, the more complicated your application will become, the more its costs will rise significantly.
Here, complexity can be subdivided into three major categories. They are:
- Feature Set Complexity: The number of features to be included in this application depends on advanced business logic. Therefore, the requirements of the clients will determine its complexity, along with costs.
- Tech Complexity: Sometimes, various high-end complicated technologies and other software are required to be used to build one. The more external software is used, the more its development price will be.
- Design Complexity: When software is to be developed, the requirements of the clients are to be kept in mind. Therefore, to make its quality better, various personalized design ideas are necessary to be implemented.
3. Design Of UI & UX
When an app is developed, it is necessary to make it as friendly as possible to as many users as possible. This is because complicated pieces of software will only make it difficult for end users. Therefore, you will need to streamline and simplify all the functions of the application in the most concise manner possible.
The ultimate goal of simplification of UI is to make the user experience (UX) better. Therefore, if you want to streamline lots of features of the application, the effort required will go up accordingly. The more effort is required, the more it will cost to develop the app.
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4. Size Of Team
To develop software, you will need a proper team to ensure the project is a success. In software development, there are five primary specialists required. They are:
- Frontend Developer
- Backend Developer
- Project Manager (PM)
- Business Analyst (BA)
- Quality Assurance Engineer (QA)
The frontend and backend developers of the software are responsible for the main developmental process of creating the application. On the other hand, the PM, BA, and QA are uncredited for software development. They look over the management and the business-related processes of the development phase.
5. Platform
The platforms on which the software will be developed play a huge role to estimate the cost for software development. This is because you might be tasked with creating software that will be launched on multiple platforms at once.
For example, to create software as expansive as Uber, you will be required to release it on multiple platforms. This includes releasing it on both Android and iOS as well. Therefore, you will need to create two versions running on two different codes, successfully increasing the estimate cost for software development.
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How To Estimate Estimate Cost For Software Development?
To learn how to estimate cost for software development, you can apply two different methods. They are:
1. Straightforward Cost Estimate
This is the easiest way to estimate cost for software development. Here, you simply estimate costs by using one simple formula, which is:
Estimated cost of project resources x estimated time to complete project = Estimated Project Cost.
However, this can sometimes be more complicated. This is because of the fact that various resources are not used throughout the entirety of the project development time.
2. Rough Cost Estimate
When you try to estimate cost for software development roughly, you take certain rough estimates instead of actual estimates. Doing so will not give you a straightforward figure but will give you a rough estimate of total costs.
In the opinion of various financial experts, this is the best way to estimate costs because certain uncertainties might arise from time to time. These can lead to an increase or decrease in costs. Therefore, estimating a rough range will help you better understand the final value.
Conclusion
There are various factors that go into estimate cost for software development. This takes into account the size and complexity of the software developed, the number of employees required, and the platforms it will be released on.
There are two ways to estimate costs. You can either do it by giving a straightforward cost estimate or by a rough cost estimate. However, most experts suggest you use rough cost estimation to estimate costs.
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