What should you budget for an AI project?
Standalone AI consultancy and scoping starts from £1,000 + VAT. Typical AI builds start from £5,000 + VAT.
The right investment depends on the problem you want to solve, the information available and how the solution needs to work within your business.
This page explains what those starting points mean, what increases or reduces the work involved, and how to make a sensible decision before committing to development.
Choose a sensible starting point
| Route | Starting investment | Best suited to | What the investment covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI opportunity and scoping programme | From £1,000 + VAT | Businesses deciding where AI could help and what to prioritise | A three-hour working session and written report |
| Focused AI build | Typically from £5,000 + VAT | Businesses with a defined problem and an agreed first phase | Development against a written scope, with testing, training and handover requirements specified in the proposal |
| Wider consultancy or implementation | Quoted against scope | Multiple workflows, teams, systems or more extensive discovery | A programme agreed around the work, dependencies and outcomes |
| Ongoing operation and support | Quoted separately where required | Live solutions needing hosting, usage, maintenance or support | The services and allowances specified for your solution |
Starting prices are guidance, not a fixed price for every project. We agree the deliverables and any recurring costs before you commit. Always On has its own product pricing and should be considered separately from bespoke development.
What does the £1,000+ scoping programme include?
A three-hour working session gives us space to examine your priorities, understand the process and explore where AI could be useful.
The written report brings together the problems discussed, a prioritised opportunity shortlist, an initial view of readiness and the recommended next step. It identifies gaps and dependencies that need resolving before development, alongside suggested success measures.
You leave with something you can use to make a decision. Depending on what we find, that might mean preparing your information, improving an existing process, running a pilot or progressing to a scoped build.
The programme is available on its own. More extensive technical investigation or a detailed implementation specification would be scoped separately if required.
Enquire about AI scopingWhat does a build starting from £5,000 look like?
It usually means keeping the first phase focused: a clear use case, a defined group of users, manageable information sources and limited integration complexity.
A project could involve a tool that helps buyers explore a specific product range, an assistant working with an agreed set of documents or a defined workflow that reduces repetitive activity. These are examples of scope shapes, not promises that every version of those products costs £5,000.
A customer portal with individual pricing, live stock, multiple permissions and several system connections is a different undertaking. The price reflects that additional work.
What pushes the price up or down?
| Cost driver | Helps keep the scope and cost lower | Usually adds work and cost |
|---|---|---|
| Number of use cases | One defined problem and a focused first release | Several workflows with different requirements |
| Data quality | Current, consistent, approved information | Missing fields, duplicate records, conflicting documents or manual clean-up |
| Integrations | Standalone operation or a well-documented connection | Several systems, legacy software or restricted access |
| Integration behaviour | Reading agreed information | Writing records, updating orders or triggering actions that need additional controls |
| Product logic | A limited range with clear selection rules | Many categories, exceptions, compatibility checks or complex approvals |
| User access | One user group with straightforward permissions | Multiple businesses, sites, roles or customer-specific information |
| Channels and languages | One channel and language | Several channels, translations and localised validation |
| Accuracy and consequences | A supporting workflow with straightforward review | Technical recommendations or actions requiring extensive validation and approvals |
| Interface | A focused journey using established components | Several user journeys, dashboards, reporting views or bespoke interactions |
| Scale and reliability | Predictable usage and standard availability needs | High volumes, peaks or demanding service requirements |
| Training and adoption | A small nominated team and agreed training scope | Several roles, locations or extensive change support |
| Decision-making | One owner, available specialists and consolidated feedback | Conflicting requirements and repeated changes after agreement |
Keeping cost under control means choosing the right first phase. Essential testing and appropriate safeguards still need to be included.
Look at the value alongside the price
Start with the cost of the current problem. How often does it happen? Who is involved? What changes if the process improves?
Illustrative capacity calculation: If a workflow saves five colleagues 20 minutes each working day, across 20 working days, it releases approximately 33.3 hours per month. At an assumed fully loaded cost of £35 per hour, that is around £1,167 of monthly staff capacity.
Try your own numbers. This estimates released capacity only; it is not a return on investment or a payback figure.
That is not automatically a cash saving or additional profit. Its value depends on adoption, the work people do with that time and any ongoing cost of the solution. It does, however, give you a more useful basis for discussion than a general promise that AI will improve productivity.
For sales opportunities, assess likely additional gross profit using realistic conversion assumptions. Keep it separate from time saved so the same benefit is not counted twice.
Training and validation belong in the investment discussion
Training and validation affect whether a solution can be used confidently, so they belong in the investment discussion rather than being treated as optional extras.
Our Buyer Revolution research also finds buyers looking for a balance between speed and accuracy. We use that as a practical reminder to define the quality of the outcome as well as the time saved. Explore the Buyer Revolution
AI pricing questions answered
Grouped so you can go straight to the part you need.
Starting and scoping
Is £5,000 a fixed price for an AI project?
No. It is the typical starting point for a focused build. Your quote reflects the actual requirements, including information sources, integrations, testing, training and handover. The same broad idea can produce very different scopes.
Why is consultancy priced separately from development?
Consultancy helps establish what is worth doing and what the business is ready for. Development delivers an agreed solution. Separating those decisions lets you explore the opportunity without committing to a build before its value and requirements are clear.
Is the £1,000 scoping fee deducted from a later build?
The scoping programme is priced as a standalone service. Do not assume an automatic deduction from subsequent development. Any arrangement linking the fees would be made clear in your proposal.
What could make a scoping programme cost more than £1,000?
Additional workshops, several stakeholder groups, site visits, substantial document reviews or more detailed technical investigation can extend the work. We would agree that additional scope and cost before proceeding.
Can we start small and expand later?
Yes. One product family, one workflow or one team can be a sensible first phase. We consider likely expansion while planning, but additional features and integrations still need their own scope and budget.
What if the project turns out to be unsuitable for AI?
That is a useful outcome of scoping. The recommendation may be to improve the process, prepare the information or use an existing tool. You can act on that advice without commissioning development.
Build complexity
What is the most useful way to reduce the build cost?
Choose one clear problem, provide reliable information and agree what the first release must do. A named decision-maker and timely feedback also help. Reducing unnecessary scope is more effective than removing the testing needed to use the solution confidently.
Will poor data make the project more expensive?
It can. Information may need to be organised, checked or completed before it is suitable for the intended task. We identify that work during scoping and agree whether your team or ours will undertake it.
How much do CRM or ERP integrations add?
There is no responsible flat fee without understanding the system and required behaviour. Reading a documented data source is different from updating several systems with permissions, validation and error handling. Access restrictions and third-party charges may also affect the cost.
Do we need bespoke development at all?
Possibly not. An existing platform, a simpler automation or a change to the process may meet the need. We consider those options during consultancy. A bespoke build is appropriate when the specific requirements justify it.
Could we achieve this with a general AI subscription?
For individual drafting, research or summarising, that may be sufficient. A shared business workflow can also require approved information, permissions, consistent behaviour, integrations, ownership and support. The appropriate investment depends on those requirements.
What happens if we add requirements during development?
We review the requested change, explain its effect on cost and timing, and agree whether it belongs in the current phase. A later phase is often a useful home for ideas that do not affect the first release’s purpose.
Ongoing costs
Are there monthly costs after the build?
There may be. Hosting, AI usage, databases, third-party licences, monitoring, maintenance and support can all carry recurring costs. We set out the applicable costs and charging basis for your solution rather than treating the build price as the entire lifetime cost.
What happens if usage grows?
Higher usage can increase costs, depending on the services involved. The proposal should explain the assumptions, any included allowances and how additional usage is charged. We can discuss appropriate monitoring and limits for the intended workload.
Are training, testing and handover included?
The proposal should specify the work included in each area. The amount needed varies by project, number of users and complexity. Our Plan, Grow, Do approach explains how these activities fit into delivery.
Commercial arrangements
Can you guarantee a return on investment?
No. Commercial results depend on factors including adoption, demand, data quality and how the wider business operates. We can define the intended benefit, make assumptions explicit and agree how to measure progress.
Who owns the software and the data?
Data responsibilities, software ownership, licensing, access and handover arrangements need to be clear in the project agreement. Bespoke development may use third-party components with their own terms. We discuss these points before you commit.
What are the payment terms?
Payment terms and any milestones are set out in the proposal. Larger projects may need a different commercial structure from a standalone scoping session. We do not assume a standard instalment plan without agreeing it with you.
Does this pricing apply to Always On?
Always On is a separate product with its own setup, subscription and service arrangements. The bespoke build starting point on this page should not be read as an Always On package price. Explore Always On and discuss the appropriate route with us.
Are VAT, travel and third-party charges included?
Prices on this page are shown excluding VAT. Any travel, external licences or other third-party charges relevant to your project should be identified in the proposal. Do not assume that an item is included simply because it is needed to operate the solution.
Make the next decision with a clearer budget
You do not need to arrive with a finished specification. Tell us what you want to improve, what happens today and any budget you are working within.
We can help you decide whether a scoping session is the right first step or whether you are ready to discuss a defined build.
What would you like AI to help your business do? Share the challenge and, if useful, an indicative budget. “Not sure yet” is a valid starting point.
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