You will not be allowed to compare more than 4 products at a time
View compareThe Finance Library
Buy vs Build
Decision Calculator
What is the Buy vs Build decision? Every organisation regularly faces a fundamental make-or-procure question: should you buy an existing solution — software, a piece of equipment, a service, or a capability — or should you build it yourself? Buying is fast and predictable: you pay a recurring fee or upfront purchase price and get something that works immediately. Building is slower and costlier upfront, but if the solution is used long enough, the absence of recurring fees means total costs eventually drop below the buy option. The financial question is simple in principle: at what point does the cumulative cost of building fall below the cumulative cost of buying, and is that breakeven point reached within a realistic timeframe? But the real-world decision also involves non-financial factors — control, customisation, strategic fit, opportunity cost of your team's time, and the risk that requirements change. This calculator handles the financial model rigorously, and flags the qualitative considerations alongside the numbers.
What kind of decision is this? (Optional — changes the terminology and hints)
🛒
Buy / licence
One-time costs to get started — onboarding fees, implementation, training, or purchase price. Enter 0 if there is no upfront cost (e.g. monthly SaaS with no setup fee).
$
The ongoing licence, subscription, or rental fee. Enter the full cost for the period you select below (e.g. monthly fee, or annual fee).
$
Additional ongoing costs (optional)
Any other annual costs associated with the buy option — internal IT management time, integration maintenance, vendor support add-ons, etc.
🔨
Build / make
Upfront build costs
All costs incurred to create the solution — use the detailed builder below, or enter a single total if you have an estimate already.
The number of employees (or contractors) dedicated to building this solution.
mo
Gross salary + benefits + overhead. A common rule: multiply gross salary by 1.3–1.5 to account for employer taxes and overhead.
$
Additional overhead beyond salary — office space, tooling, equipment, management time, recruiting. Typically 20–40% on top of direct salary costs.
%
Other one-time build costs (optional)
Tools, licences, hardware, external consultants, testing, or any other fixed cost to complete the build.
Annual maintenance & running costs
The ongoing cost of keeping the built solution running each year — staff time for maintenance, hosting, support, updates, etc.
How many person-days per month are spent maintaining the solution.
days
Cost per working day including overheads. Approx. monthly salary ÷ 20.
$
Other annual running costs (optional)
Cumulative total cost over time — buy vs build
Year-by-year cost breakdown
Breakeven sensitivity — how overrun affects the decision
Build projects frequently cost more than estimated. This table shows at what overrun % the breakeven year changes — helping you understand how robust the "build" decision is.