Free tool - What does an integration really cost?
Building in-house is rarely just the build — it’s the maintenance, the iPaaS license, and your engineers’ time. Estimate the real year-1 cost, then compare it to a fixed-bid build.
Your situation
Estimate
Build in-house (year 1)
Green Dolphin — fixed-bid
Estimated difference
$19,800
lower with a fixed-bid build — and no overruns land on you
Get this estimate + a build-vs-buy breakdown in your inbox.
Estimates only. Build hours, rates, and license vary; we give you a real scoped, fixed price on intake.
Build vs. buy — FAQ
How much does it cost to build an integration in-house?
Most integrations take 40–200 engineering hours depending on complexity, plus 15–30% of that per year in ongoing maintenance as APIs and schemas change. At a loaded rate of $120/hr, a single medium-complexity integration is often $12,000+ to build and several thousand more per year to keep running.
Is it cheaper to buy or build an integration?
Once you count maintenance and the opportunity cost of engineering time, a fixed-bid build is usually cheaper and far more predictable — the price and scope are locked up front, and overruns are the vendor’s problem, not yours.
How does Green Dolphin price integrations?
Fixed-bid: one price, scope locked, with a senior architect start to finish. You see the number before anything starts — no open-ended hourly billing.