Building a SaaS product is not just coding.

You are paying for:

• Development
• UI/UX
• Backend architecture
• Infrastructure
• Security
• Maintenance
• Marketing
• Support

If you underestimate cost, you run out of runway.

Let’s break this properly.

1️⃣ What Type of SaaS Are You Building?

Cost depends heavily on complexity.

🔹 Basic SaaS (Simple Tool)

Examples:

• Task management tool
• Simple CRM
• Appointment booking system

🔹 Mid-Level SaaS

Examples:

• Project management system
• HR management platform
• EdTech platform
• Subscription-based service

🔹 Advanced SaaS

Examples:

• AI-driven SaaS
• ERP platform
• Multi-tenant B2B SaaS
• Marketplace SaaS

Different levels = very different budgets.

2️⃣ Development Cost Breakdown (India 2026)

🔹 A. Basic SaaS (MVP Level)

Features:

• Login/signup
• Dashboard
• Basic CRUD
• Payment integration
• Admin panel

Estimated Cost:

₹5 Lakhs – ₹12 Lakhs

If built by:

• Small dev team (2–3 developers)
• 3–5 months timeline

Cheaper than this usually means corners cut.

🔹 B. Mid-Level SaaS

Features:

• Multi-user roles
• Subscriptions
• Reporting
• API integrations
• Notifications
• Performance optimization

Estimated Cost:

₹15 Lakhs – ₹40 Lakhs

Team:

• 2–4 developers
• UI/UX designer
• QA
  Timeline: 4–8 months

🔹 C. Advanced SaaS

Features:

• Multi-tenant architecture
• Advanced security
• Analytics engine
• Scalability
• AI/ML integration
• Enterprise dashboard

Estimated Cost:

₹40 Lakhs – ₹1.5 Crore+

Team:

• Backend engineers
• Frontend engineers
• DevOps
• QA
• Product manager

Timeline: 6–12+ months

3️⃣ Ongoing Monthly Costs (People Forget This)

Building is only part of cost.

🔹 Infrastructure (Cloud)

₹10,000 – ₹2,00,000/month
Depends on users & traffic.

Includes:

• Servers
• Database
• Storage
• Backups
• Monitoring

🔹 Maintenance & Updates

Minimum:
₹50,000 – ₹3 Lakhs/month
If you retain developers.

You cannot ignore bug fixes and feature updates.

🔹 Support & Customer Handling

• Support staff
• Ticket system
• Chat system

Cost grows with users.

4️⃣ Hidden Costs Most Founders Ignore

❌ UI/UX redesign
❌ Security audits
❌ Compliance (GST, data protection)
❌ DevOps monitoring
❌ Payment gateway charges
❌ Marketing & ads
❌ Sales team

Tech build is only 40–60% of total SaaS cost.

5️⃣ In-House Team vs Agency Cost

Option A: Hire Agency

Pros:

• Faster execution
• Experienced team

Cons:

• Expensive
• Less long-term control

Cost:
₹10L – ₹1Cr+ depending on scope

Option B: In-House Team

1 Backend Dev: ₹6–12L/year
1 Frontend Dev: ₹6–10L/year
1 DevOps: ₹8–15L/year

Annual team cost easily:
₹20L – ₹50L+

But you retain control.

6️⃣ Can You Build SaaS Cheaply?

Yes — if:

• You build MVP only
• You do coding yourself
• You use no-code tools
• You reduce features
• You validate before scaling

Example:

Solo founder building MVP:
₹2L – ₹5L possible

But scalability later will need reinvestment.

7️⃣ Example Cost Scenarios

Scenario 1: Small CRM SaaS (MVP)

• 2 developers
• 4 months
  Cost: ₹8 Lakhs

Cloud: ₹15,000/month

Break-even depends on subscription pricing.

Scenario 2: B2B HR SaaS

• 4 developers
• 6 months
  Cost: ₹28 Lakhs

Cloud: ₹40,000/month

Needs serious marketing budget.

Scenario 3: AI-Based SaaS

• AI engineers
• Backend
• DevOps
  Cost: ₹60 Lakhs+

Plus heavy infrastructure costs.

8️⃣ Realistic Budget Planning Formula

Before building SaaS, plan for:

Build Cost

• 12 Months Operating Cost
• Marketing Budget
• Buffer (20%)

If you only budget development cost, you fail.

9️⃣ How to Reduce SaaS Cost Smartly

✔ Start with MVP
✔ Build core features only
✔ Avoid over-engineering
✔ Use cloud managed services
✔ Validate product-market fit early
✔ Don’t hire big team too early

Most SaaS fails not because of bad code — but bad cost planning.

🔟 Is SaaS Worth It?

SaaS is high reward but high risk.

If successful:

• Recurring revenue
• High valuation
• Scalable model

If poorly planned:

• Cash burn
• No traction
• Dead product

You need clear validation before heavy investment.

2026 Cost Summary (India)

SaaS Type	Build Cost	Timeline
Basic MVP	₹5L – ₹12L	3–5 months
Mid-Level	₹15L – ₹40L	4–8 months
Advanced	₹40L – ₹1.5Cr+	6–12+ months

Plus monthly cloud + maintenance.