How to Build a Software Product from Scratch?

Have you been pondering on a software idea you want to build from scratch but know nothing about developing software? What should you do first?  Which programming language or framework to use? Should you pay someone to do it, or should you take the DIY route and do the work yourself? And you probably have many more questions with no answer… yet. We get it; with over 15 years of experience in software development, we can agree that this is no easy thing when you know nothing about this intricate skill. Read further if you want to discover more about how to build software from scratch — whether you need an MVP, step-by-step framework for building your software, development costs, and development duration.

Building the full version right away vs. Building an MVP

When you have a software idea, it may be tempting to jump straight to building a fully-fledged product containing all the features you desire. You feel excited about your startup, so you want it to be perfect. You don’t want to lose credibility by launching something “incomplete” and be considered not valuable enough. While dreaming big and wanting to turn your idea into reality as fast as possible is understandable, this is not the right approach. Especially when you have a startup and don’t know much about creating your own software from scratch. Here’s why:

• Risk of Losing Money and Time: At first, you don’t have any proof or real feedback of what your users may want, so you waste resources on features that are not in demand.
• Missing Out On Market Opportunities: While you spend time continuously adding new features, refining, and adding extra unnecessary functionalities, your competitors could overtake you and be the first to launch a product similar to yours.
• Overload of Technical Work and Complexities: By adding too many features and functionalities right from the beginning, the codebase becomes more and more complex and harder to maintain or develop.
• Very Difficult To Adjust or Change Direction: Having a fully developed product means you already invested a lot of time, effort, and resources, which makes it really challenging to change your approach even if the data and feedback suggest you should.

What’s a smarter approach? – Build an MVP

An MVP is a younger version of your product, with fewer features and capabilities, but it emphasizes the best ones. This will give you the chance to get insights on what your target audience needs and wants… Test if your idea is truly in demand, and take the risk out of the equation. Developing this early version of your product first (MVP) will save you from all of the struggles listed above and help you build top-notch software that people actually need and want to use… While still maintaining the flexibility to adjust or even switch your approach. Want to discover more about whether you need an MVP, how it’s crucial, and how to build one? 

The major part of how to develop software from scratch

Before moving on to the actual software development process, it’s really important to clearly understand and lay out your specific software requirements. This part implies documenting things like project scope, functional requirements, user stories, and any other specifications that will ensure stakeholders have a clear understanding of your project’s needs. If you are not sure what key information you should include when documenting the requirements for your project, you can download our free software requirements specification template.

The step-by-step process for building a software product from scratch 

Further, you will see each step we take for building software, from getting a clear understanding of our client’s idea to creating a well-performing product ready to welcome users.

Step 1: Requirement creation

Whether you choose to work with an MVP software development team or do this by yourself, this step is crucial for making sure the end result will align with your initial vision. This is how we do it:

• Getting a clear understanding of the client’s idea, software requirements, and vision to make sure we deliver up to expectations
• Thoughtfully researching the market, such as competitors, seeing where the product can stand out, and the target audience, seeing how we can best meet their needs.
• Collaborate with stakeholders to clarify the feature request, discuss objectives and roadblocks, and set priorities to ensure everyone is on the same page.

Step 2: Planning

This is where a clear framework of development is created by breaking down the project into smaller manageable tasks, setting deadlines, and setting clear priorities. This phase ensures that steps are not skipped and everything runs smoothly. 

• Identify the most valuable features you want to prioritize, then organize them into smaller milestones with clear deliverables and timelines for each.
• Assign and compose team members to certain tasks for a more effective working flow.
• Predict and plan for potential challenges that could come up during the development process, such as technical, operational, or logistical errors.

Step 3: Architecture the software

Now we are making your software look good and aesthetically pleasing. Here it’s all about creativity and aligning the software design with your initial vision.

• Choose the right technology stack—programming language, libraries, frameworks, and tools that best fit the type of project you have.
• Define how different modules will interact internally with external systems to ensure a seamless data flow.
• Design a working and scalable architecture, including main components, data flow, and interactions between different systems.

Step 4: Development 

Here your software slowly starts to develop and become functional. This involves building the software, integrating any necessary third-party services, and implementing the required features.

• Build upon prioritized features chosen at the beginning of the software development process.
• Start incorporating necessary third-party integration and APIs, such as payment gateways, cloud services, authentication, etc.
• Test and examine the code to spot any issues that need to be fixed before moving forward

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Step 5: Testing

The goal of the testing step is to make sure that your software is secure, runs smoothly, and meets all the established requirements before going live.

• Ensure that all your features, different modules, and any third-party integrations work as intended and interact seamlessly without issues.
• Check if the software’s performance is optimal by testing it under various conditions (such as load testing) and identify any unwanted vulnerabilities or system breaches that may occur.
• Lastly, have some users or stakeholders test your software in real-world scenarios, testing its capabilities and making sure it meets expectations and is ready for launch. 

Step 6: Deployment

It’s time to go live. This step involves preparing and launching your software while making sure it runs smoothly and is stable for usage.

• Now it’s time to make some final rounds of testing to confirm that the user experience will be as intended. Check servers, databases, and configurations.
• Perform some training sessions (onsite, remote, or hybrid) to help users better understand how to use your software effectively and address any questions or issues.
• Keep an eye out for immediate issues or bugs that may appear to ensure continuous stability and user satisfaction.

Step 7: Maintenance and continuous development

Your job is not finished. While monitoring your software performance, continuously keep it up to date by making improvements, collecting user feedback, and adding new features that are in demand.

• Monitor your software’s performance daily, ensuring there are no issues that may disrupt your users.
• Collect user feedback and learn more about what your market needs and wants to discover new opportunities for features and improvements.
• Make sure you regularly provide user support to ensure their positive experience while using your software.

How much does it cost you to build custom software from scratch?

Giving an exact estimate of the expected investment can be almost impossible. The price range can vary widely, each project being unique. Here are some of the main criteria that impact your project’s estimated price:

• Development Team: Freelancers, in-house, or outsourcing — if you want to have a cost-effective solution, choose freelancers or outsourcing; if you prefer long-term control and deeper alignment,, we suggest choosing in-house teams.
• Platform: Depending if you want a web software, mobile app, or desktop platform, the cost will be slightly different as each requires different integrations and complexities.
• Features: The more advanced, numerous, and complex the features are, the higher the investment will be.
• Other Factors: Project size, integrating APIs, specific design, post-launch maintenance, etc.

Knowing all these, it can still be complicated to evaluate the estimated price of your entire software development process… But we created a free quiz that will help you with that. If you want to know how much it costs to build software, you can get a more accurate estimation for your specific project by taking our free software project estimation quiz.

How long does it take to develop software from scratch?

Estimating time can be slightly easier than calculating the costs, but it can still vary widely based on several factor — from the complexity of the project and expertise of the development team you choose to work with to details like the tech stack, the number of specific project requirements, and the difficulty of each. Each aspect can add a considerable amount of time and effort to the development process. To get an idea of the estimated time it will take you to develop your software, here’s a general breakdown of timelines for different types of software projects:

1. Simple Applications (2-3 months)

• Basic mobile apps, small websites, or simple-to-build tools.
• Projects that have limited functionality, few features, and a minimal user interface design. 
  

2. Moderate Complexity (4-9 months)

• E-commerce websites, content management systems, or a feature-rich mobile app.
• Projects involving a more extensive feature set, integration with third-party services, and moderate design complexity.

3. Complex Applications (9-18 months)

• Enterprise software, large-scale web applications, or custom CRM systems.
• Projects with complex business logic, extensive database management, high-security requirements, and integrations with multiple systems.

4. Highly Complex Systems (18+ months)

• Multi-platform enterprise systems, cloud-based services, and large-scale SaaS products.
• Large systems that require continuous development, scaling, and iteration, often involving multiple teams and ongoing updates.

Factors Affecting Development Time

• Requirements Clarity: Clear and well-defined requirements can speed up the process, while changes and ambiguity can cause delays.
  
• Team Size and Expertise: Larger or more experienced teams can handle complex tasks faster, though larger teams also require more coordination.
  
• Technology Stack: Some technologies may allow for faster development due to existing libraries or frameworks, while others might be more time-consuming.
  
• Project Management: Efficient project management practices can significantly reduce delays and improve time estimates.
• Ongoing Development: Many software projects require ongoing development after the initial launch for maintenance, bug fixes, updates, and new feature development. This can extend the timeline significantly, sometimes indefinitely.
• Agile and Iterative Approaches. Many teams use Agile methodologies, breaking the project into sprints of 2-4 weeks and delivering increments of the software. This allows for ongoing development and adaptation but can make it challenging to pinpoint a final “completion” date.

How to develop software from scratch: Final Words

These are the basics you need to know about how to build software from scratch…

The bad news is that learning how to build software from scratch can be harder than it looks… You keep bumping into problems such as defining clear requirements, communicating with your team, choosing the right technology stack, and many more. Especially when you never had contact with anything related to software development before.

However, imagine finally having the product you initially envisioned become a reality and having real users benefit from what your software has to offer. We can all agree that having your software a click away is something magical. If you choose to take on the challenge yourself, we wish you good luck!  While your process may be very demanding and things may not go the way you want, having your own software helping people is worth it. If you think you would rather invest this time and energy into other business or personal life aspects and would prefer having an experienced software development team take this burden off of you.

We are here to help you! From listening and clearly understanding your special requirements to bringing your idea to life by building and launching your software to the market. Minimal efforts from your side. 

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Feel free to ask any additional questions you might have. Our experts will be glad to assist you.

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Pavlo Boiko

CEO

Questions? Answers!

Why is it so difficult to build the correct software?

Many people end up building the wrong software due to unclear requirements or a change of direction during the development process. This miscommunication often leads to misalignment and makes it hard to create the wanted software.

How can I develop my own software?

Building your own software consists of several key steps. First of all, you need to clearly define your idea and goal for the project, conduct a structured plan, market research, followed by the actual development and design of the software. In the end, carefully test and improve the software to prepare for release. Once released, ensure it gets regular maintenance and support.

How to develop software faster?

Speed comes with a well-organized plan, good automation, and effective communication within the team. Clearly outline your goals and prioritize tasks; set up existing tools and automation to help you fast-track the testing and deployment process; and maintain clear communication within your team, each member knowing when, how, and what he has to do.

How do I validate my software idea before building software from scratch?

This can be done by building a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) that only prioritizes the most essential features. This will help you get real feedback from real users and see whether your software is in demand, what to improve, and what features you should add. This will avoid all the risks that come with jumping straight to full-package software, such as losing money, time, and time-to-market.