Sometimes an off-the-shelf tool or plugin cannot do what your business needs. That is where a custom web application comes in: software shaped around your workflow, your data and your users. We design and build secure, maintainable web applications with a full-stack approach, from database to interface, and we make sure you own every line of code.
Who it is for#
- Founders who want to validate a product idea with a working prototype or minimum viable product.
- Businesses replacing spreadsheets and email chains with a proper internal tool.
- Organisations that need a client or partner portal with logins, documents, status updates or self-service features.
- Teams with data to explore who need interactive dashboards and visualizations rather than static reports.
- Products that could benefit from AI or machine learning features, such as smart search, classification or recommendations, applied with privacy in mind.
What is included#
- Discovery workshop to map users, workflows, data and success criteria.
- Technical specification covering features, architecture, data model, integrations and hosting.
- UX flows, wireframes and interface design for the key screens.
- Back-end development in modern PHP 8 with a relational database and well-documented REST/JSON APIs.
- Front-end development using semantic HTML, accessible components and lean JavaScript, adding a framework only where it clearly helps.
- Authentication, user roles and permissions.
- Integrations with third-party services and APIs relevant to your scope.
- Dashboards and data visualization where your application needs them.
- Security designed in from the start, guided by the OWASP Top 10: input validation, output escaping, secure sessions and least-privilege access.
- Automated tests for critical logic and a staging environment for review.
- Deployment to hosting in your name, with backups and monitoring configured.
- Technical documentation and handover, including source code in version control.
Process and timeline#
Most custom applications take eight to sixteen weeks for a first release, depending on complexity. We usually work in phases so that you see working software early and can adjust priorities as you learn.
- Discovery and specification (1–2 weeks): we agree what the first release must do, and what can wait.
- Design (1–3 weeks): user flows, wireframes and interface design for the core screens.
- Iterative development (4–10 weeks): features built in short cycles and demonstrated on staging, with regular check-ins.
- QA and hardening (1–2 weeks): functional, accessibility, performance and security testing.
- Launch and handover: deployment, monitoring, documentation and training.
Our process page explains how these phases fit together.
What we need from you#
- A clear description of the problem you want to solve and who the users are.
- Access to people who understand the workflow day to day, for discovery and feedback.
- Example data, existing spreadsheets or documents the application will replace.
- API credentials and documentation for any systems we need to integrate with.
- A product owner who can make decisions about priorities.
Optional add-ons#
Quoted individually:
- Clickable prototype for user testing before development begins.
- Machine learning features, including in-browser inference where privacy matters.
- Advanced data visualization with Canvas or WebGL for large datasets.
- Additional integrations, such as payments, accounting or CRM.
- Ongoing development and support after the first release.
Try the estimator on our pricing page for an indicative starting range.
Further reading#
Curious about the language behind many of our back ends? Read Modern PHP 8: Features That Changed How We Build Web Apps, or explore practical machine learning in the browser. Then contact us to talk about your idea. We will reply within one business day.
