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Fig. 01Guides, 2026 prices

An app instead of Excel.When does itpay off?

Excel is fine to start with. The trouble begins when several people share one spreadsheet and you call your staff to find out where a job stands. I count what Excel, an off-the-shelf tool and a custom app cost over three years.

Patryk DomałecznyOctober 2026, 7 min read
Drawing of a crumpled spreadsheet with sticky notes and an arrow leading to a phone and a tablet with a job list
In short
the answer in 3 numbers
Excel
€0plus the time spent retyping and calling
Off-the-shelf tool over 3 years
from €2,1605 seats, monday.com Standard
With me
from €3,000once, no per-seat fees
In this guide7 parts
  1. Cost over 3 years
  2. The hidden cost of Excel
  3. What is included
  4. When Excel is enough
  5. Questions before you order
  6. What it costs with me
  7. Common questions

Fig. 02Cost over 3 years

What an app costs over three years.

I count the cost for a business where five people use the tool. An off-the-shelf tool is cheaper to start, but you pay for every seat for as long as you use it.

monday.comWork Management Standard, 5 seats
€2,160
monday CRMCRM Standard, 5 seats
€3,060
Agencysimple business tool, build only
€5,000–15,000
Kambolab
from €3,000 once, hosting separate
Prices without VAT over 36 months, billed yearly, October 2026. The agency figure is the build of a simple business tool, without hosting or maintenance. Sources are monday.com and lunidev.com.

Fig. 03The hidden cost of Excel

Excel is only free on the invoice.

You pay no subscription for a spreadsheet. You pay with the time you and your staff spend retyping and looking for information.

Retyping
A job comes in by email, goes into Excel, then into the calendar and onto the invoice. Every copy takes a few minutes and is a chance to make a mistake.
Several versions
The spreadsheet sits on someone's computer or goes around in several copies. Nobody knows which one is current.
Calls about status
To find out where a job stands, you call your staff. Your customer calls you with the same question.
One person knows it
Only one person understands the formulas. When they go on holiday, the business slows down.
Count your time
If three people lose an hour a day to this, that is over 700 hours a year. At €25 an hour that is around €18,000 a year.
Work in the field
Your crew will not open a spreadsheet on site. They write on paper and someone retypes it in the evening.

Fig. 04What is included

What you get for the money.

An off-the-shelf tool is convenient, but you adapt to it. A custom app does what your business does. This is the difference in practice.

With meExcelOff-the-shelf toolAgency
Cost to startfrom €3,000, once€0from €12 per seat a monthfrom €5,000
Fee per personnone, add accounts freelynoneyes, for every seatnone
Code and datayours from day oneyoursstay with the vendordepends on the contract
Fit to your businessfull, the app does what you doyou build the sheet yourselfyou adapt to the toolfull
When the team growsthe same price, no extra feesmore copies and mistakesanother fee for every persondepends on the contract
On a phone in the fieldyes, I design for phones firstawkwarddepends on the tooldepends on the contract
Who you talk tome, from start to finishnobodysupporta project manager

Fig. 05When Excel is enough

Excel or an off-the-shelf tool is often enough.

Not every business needs a custom app. This is how I judge it before I quote.

One or two people
If you run the jobs yourself and nobody else opens the spreadsheet, Excel is enough. An app would be wasted money.
A few jobs a week
With a handful of jobs, retyping takes minutes, not hours. An app will not pay for itself.
Standard sales
Contacts, quotes, follow-up reminders. An off-the-shelf CRM does that well and right away.
Your own way of working
Quotes built from several inputs, crews in the field, schedules, stock. With an off-the-shelf tool your business bends to the tool.
A growing team
In an off-the-shelf tool every new hire is another monthly fee. In your own app you add an account with no extra fee and no higher plan.
An app for years
A subscription runs for as long as your business does. Your own app, after launch, costs only hosting and the changes you ask for.

Fig. 06Questions before you order

Five questions before you order an app.

Ask them of anyone who offers you an app, including me. If an answer is vague, ask for it in writing. My answers are next to the questions.

Ask the provider

My answer

  • Will I pay for every new employee?No. You add as many accounts as you need, with no extra fee.
  • Will the app take over the data from my spreadsheets?Yes. Before launch I move your customers, jobs and price lists over from your sheets.
  • Can my crew use it on a phone without installing anything?Yes. The app runs in the browser on a phone and a computer.
  • What if I need a new feature a year from now?I add it. Every change is quoted before I start.
  • Who owns the code and the data?You do, from day one. Any developer can take the app over.

Print this list and take it to every meeting with a provider.

Fig. 07What it costs with me

An app from €3,000, usually from two weeks.

I start with the one thing that takes up most of your time, such as jobs or the schedule. Design, a phone version, staff accounts and moving your data from Excel are included. You pay for hosting directly, with no markup. Describe how you work today and within 48 hours you get a first draft with a price.

no obligation and no sales call

How you pay

  1. 30%to start
  2. 40%at the clickable version
  3. 30%after launch
Bug fixes after launch
3 months included
Support and growth, if you want it
€25–95/month

Fig. 08

Common questions

Do I have to drop Excel straight away?
No. At first the app takes over one part of the work, such as jobs. We move the rest once you see it works.
Will my staff learn to use it?
The app has only the screens you need, with your own names for things. At launch I walk the whole team through it.
Will it connect to invoicing or accounting?
Yes, if your invoicing tool allows it. I quote these connections before we start.
What if the business grows?
You add accounts with no extra fee. I build the app to handle more people and more jobs without changing the price. At most your hosting bill grows, with no markup from me.
What if you get ill or disappear?
The code, the data and the logins are yours from day one. Any developer can take the app over without my permission, and in the meantime it keeps running on its own.

Free first draft in 48 hours

Describe how your business works. I'll show you how it could.

Write or record what your day looks like. Within 48 hours you get one page with what to build, three screens, a price and a date.

I reply within 48 hours. No obligation and no sales call.