# CRM Cost Calculator: Build vs Buy | Napnix

> Work out whether building a custom CRM or paying per seat costs less over 3 to 5 years. Open assumptions, no email required.

Source: https://napnix.in/tools/crm-cost-calculator

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## CRM cost calculator: build or buy?

Enter your team size and horizon. The tool compares a custom build against a flat-rate CRM and a per-seat CRM, and shows the year at which building becomes the cheaper option — if it ever does. Every assumption is listed below the result, and nothing is gated.

A single pipeline, one user role, reporting, and email or WhatsApp follow-up. Typical range $4,706–$14,118, about 8–14 weeks.

In INR. Put in the real quoted rate rather than a list price — the two are rarely the same.

### Over 3 years, for 5 people

$9,412 build + $4,235 maintenance over 3 years

$79/month, covers up to 5 team members

$24/user/month × 5 seats

**Cheapest over 3 years: Napnix CRM.** Building does not become cheaper within a ten-year horizon at this team size. Seat count moves this more than scope does: a subscription scales with people, a build mostly does not.

### How this is calculated

- **Napnix CRM** prices come from the same source as our [pricing page](https://napnix.in/napcrm/pricing), so they cannot drift. Tiers are per workspace, not per seat; the tool picks the cheapest tier whose team-member limit covers your number.
- **Build cost** uses the midpoint of the bands published in our [cost guide](https://napnix.in/blog/cost-of-custom-crm-2026), which are our own quoted figures for an Indian development team. The range is shown above so a midpoint is not mistaken for a quote.
- **Maintenance** is 15% of the build cost per year — dependency and OS upgrades, fixes, small changes. Not new features.
- **Per-seat comparison** is whatever you enter. We do not default to a named competitor, because their list prices change and a stale comparison is worse than none.

### What it deliberately ignores

Three costs are missing, and they matter:

- **Your own people’s time** for migration, training and administration. It lands on both options and it is heavier on a build. Budget two to four weeks of someone internal either way.
- **Discounts and negotiated terms.** Annual commitments and enterprise rates can move a per-seat figure substantially.
- **What the system is worth.** The reason to do either is usually revenue that stops leaking, not software spend — and no calculator can tell you what that is for your business.

If the numbers above say subscribe, subscribe — including if that means not buying a build from us. The cases where a build genuinely wins are large seat counts and a process that is actually yours, and both are visible in this chart.

**Using this tool somewhere?** It is free to link to or quote — no attribution required, though a link back is appreciated.

https://napnix.in/tools/crm-cost-calculator

### Want the number for your actual process?

A 20-minute call, and we will tell you which side of this chart you are on — including when the answer is that you do not need us.