I once attended a discussion panel on start ups, and one insight stuck with me: the most successful start ups are often the ones that bring their ideas to market quickly. But it raises a critical question: how do you achieve that speed? Is it better to opt for custom software development or to leverage pre-built solutions?
Having worked at an IT software development company, I’ve helped many start ups navigate this exact dilemma. Let me break down the pros and cons of custom development and ready-made solutions to offer some insights and help you choose the best path for your business.
What is custom software development?
Custom software development is exactly what it sounds like – you create software from the ground up. This approach is popular among large companies with unique business needs and workflows, often operating in niche industries. They often employ business software development companies to create unique solutions to satisfy their requirements.
What are pre-built solutions?
Pre-built solutions are readily available and prepared for use. They often have standardised functionality that’s suitable for typical use cases. Off-the-shelf software is popular among start ups with standard operational needs.
Custom development vs pre-built solutions: key differences
I put the main differences between both approaches in a table below. You can better understand them through an example of a hypothetical social media app.
| Factor | Custom Development | Pre-Built Solution |
| Core Idea | A custom-built social media app can include unique features such as AI-powered content curation. | Pre-built solutions include essential features like user profiles, chats, and newsfeeds, enabling a quick start. |
| Scalability | Custom development allows you to build a platform that scales with your user base, but scaling requires upfront planning and additional development. | Many ready-to-use solutions are designed for scalability and can easily support the app’s growth with minimal setup and the potential addition of other additional cloud resources. |
| Integration | Custom solutions can integrate seamlessly with analytics platforms, payment gateways, and marketing systems, but creating these integrations can be costly. | Depending on the set of solutions, they can come with integrations for popular tools like Google Analytics, Stripe, or social media sharing, reducing the complexity and time required to connect external systems. |
| Speed-to-market | Developing a custom social media app MVP can take 3 to 6 months or more, and even more for a complete product. | Pre-built solutions allow for rapid deployment, helping you launch an MVP or a complete app up to 50% faster and test your concept quickly. |
From my experience at a leading software development company, combining custom development with elements of ready-made software yields excellent results by bringing the best of two worlds. Look at how my team uses this approach to speed up the development process:
- Proof-of-concept and rapid prototyping – we use DBBS pre-built solutions to speed up prototyping by 30% through ready-to-use storybooks and configurations to set everything up;
- Development planning – the solutions feature software design document templates to accelerate documentation creation by up to 50%;
- Development – our team develops MVPs and complete products up to 50% faster as DBBS pre-built solutions include app generators, reusable UI elements, and ready-to-use plugins for integration.
Tech stack
Custom development offers unprecedented flexibility and freedom to pick a tech stack. You can go for different combinations of languages, frameworks, and tools. Java, Python, Node.js, React, Angular, or others – the world is your oyster.
Pre-built solutions can be somewhat limited in terms of tech stack. Everything depends on the provider. Each set of solutions is bound by its ecosystem, but some are more flexible than others.
For example, our IT software development company uses DBBS pre-built solutions, a repository of tools, nodes, and add-ons. However, it’s unique because we can use and combine individual components of our solutions with custom development, which allows us to streamline the development process. DBBS pre-built solutions include:
- Mobile, web, server-based, serverless, CQRS architecture, and headless CMS app generators;
- Ready-made cloud hosting integrated with AWS;
- Built-in testing tools (Cypress and Playwright for web apps and Detox for mobile apps);
- Code quality instruments (ESLint, Prettier, and SonarCloud);
- Pre-configured 3rd party integrations such as CMS, CRM, authentication, and payment systems;
- Reusable UI components for web and mobile apps.
Costs and ROI
Custom software development requires high upfront costs but delivers long-term ROI. It’s rather simple – you need to invest more into a specific custom solution that addresses complex needs, but it will bring value through long-term scalability and maintainability.
Pre-built solutions are way more affordable. For example, you can appoint fewer people to handle a project as they will use readily available components. You may need one developer to deploy pre-configured architecture instead of three, and this task can be completed in a few hours rather than days. Lower costs and development speed generate fast ROI.
Challenges to consider
Both approaches to software development come with their share of issues. For example, custom software development creates the following challenges:
- High input standards – Developing custom software demands detailed requirements and precise planning. A lack of clarity can lead to scope creep, delays, or even failure.
- Risk of budget overruns – Custom development projects are prone to exceeding initial cost estimates due to evolving requirements
- Dependency on expertise – Custom projects require a highly skilled team. The HR hassle of finding, hiring, and retaining such talent can be cost-exhausting.
- Extended time to market – Building custom solutions from scratch is inherently time-intensive and can delay a launch or limit the ability to respond to market changes.
- Maintenance burden – custom software requires continuous updates and support, which can divert resources and increase long-term costs.
Pre-built solutions aren’t perfect, either. Here are the challenges you need to be aware of:
- Limited customisation – Such solutions often lack the flexibility to meet unique or niche business needs for specific industries.
- Potential scalability constraints – Some pre-built solutions are scalable, while others may lack tools to support business growth.
- Vendor dependence – companies using pre-built packages often rely on vendors for updates, support, and improvements. However, there are open-source options such as DBBS pre-built solutions.
Choosing between custom software development and pre-built solutions
Start ups should consider the following factors when deciding between custom software and ready-made solutions:
- Time-to-market – product launch speed is crucial for start ups. Ready-made solutions enable rapid deployment, boosting market entry speed. However, there is a risk of a lack of unique features. A start up can quickly launch a product with pre-made features to generate revenue but struggle to implement unique and differentiative features later on.
- Budget – start ups usually operate with limited resources. Pre-built solutions come with lower upfront costs, but the price can go up as a business grows due to licensing fees and the addition of new features. A start up might launch with a pre-built CRM, but subscription costs may accumulate while the functionality remains unchanged.
- Scalability and flexibility – start ups evolve, and so do their needs. This is where custom software shines, as you can set scalability and flexibility in the initial design. Pre-built solutions may lack scalability or integration capabilities, leading to inefficiencies.
- Integration with existing systems – you can design custom software to fit perfectly within some ecosystem. With pre-built solutions, you may need to use workarounds or middleware. For example, you may incorporate a ready-made accounting system that doesn’t integrate well with your platform, causing data discrepancies.
- Maintenance and support – at this point, it’s about handling the weight of updates and maintenance by yourself or leaving these activities to vendors. Custom software offers complete control over updates, while pre-built solutions leave you dependent on the vendor’s ability to maintain them.
Conclusion
Start ups should decide between custom software development and pre-built solutions based on their specific needs and priorities. Pre-built solutions offer speed and cost-efficiency, making them ideal for quickly testing concepts or launching. However, as a business grows, custom software provides the flexibility and scalability to address evolving demands.
Many start ups begin with pre-built solutions and transition to custom software as their needs become more defined. The key is to evaluate your long-term strategy, weigh the trade-offs, and align your choice with your business goals to set a strong foundation for sustained growth. If you are not sure where to start, consider consulting with a trusted software development company.
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