Custom software
MVP stands for Minimum Viable Product. It’s the smallest version of your software that real users can actually use, and it shows whether the idea holds up in the market. It isn’t a half-finished product. It’s a deliberately narrow first round: the core function is in, everything else stays out.
Eric Ries popularized the term with the Lean Startup methodology. The core idea is simple: most products don’t fail because the code is badly written, they fail because nobody wants them. That’s exactly the risk an MVP addresses. Find out cheaply whether there’s demand first, and only then build out the full system.
In practice, this means the first phase of development answers a single question: will the target audience actually use it (and ideally pay for it)? Every feature that doesn’t serve that question can wait.
Let’s take an example. Say you want an appointment booking app for your service.
The MVP includes:
Left out, because it can wait:
Everything on the second list is useful. The thing is, none of it is needed to find out whether customers will actually book with you online. If they do, you plan the expansion with revenue and real usage data already in hand.
We run into two misconceptions most often.
The first: “an MVP is a slapped-together beta.” It isn’t. The few features it has still need to work reliably, because the experience of those first users decides whether they come back. Narrow scope, proper quality. That’s the right balance.
The second: “an MVP is only for startups.” Our experience is the exact opposite. With internal company systems too, the MVP approach is what protects you from spending two years on development only to discover at the end that your colleagues work differently than the spec assumed. We cover this in more detail in our article on custom software instead of Excel.
On the Hungarian market, a decent MVP typically runs between 3 and 8 million HUF (roughly €7,500 to €20,000), with a development time of 6 to 10 weeks. The spread comes from the number of features, the integrations, and how demanding the design is. Web MVPs tend to sit at the lower end, mobile apps closer to the top, because publishing to the app stores eats up time too. We break down the detailed numbers in our articles on mobile app pricing and web app pricing.
A useful comparison: the same product built with its full feature set on the first attempt would easily run to 15 or 20 million HUF. If the idea doesn’t work, the MVP is what saved you the difference.
At ZNiTech, every MVP project starts with three questions, and as a client you can work through them in advance:
We find that in about half of all inquiries, these three questions redraw the feature list, and they almost always bring the price of the first round down.
An MVP isn’t a final destination, it’s a decision point. It has three possible outcomes: expansion (there’s demand, so bring on the next feature set), a change of direction (there’s demand, but for something other than what we thought), or stopping (there’s no demand, and we found that out cheaply). All three are good outcomes, because all three rest on data, not gut feeling.
What’s the difference between an MVP and a prototype? A prototype is a clickable mockup with no code behind it, good for demonstrating the concept. An MVP is working software with real users. A prototype comes together in days, an MVP in weeks, and only the latter gives you real market feedback.
How long does it take to build an MVP? Typically 6 to 10 weeks, depending on the scope. If a quote gives a significantly longer timeline for an MVP, too many features have probably crept in.
How much does it cost to build an MVP? On the local market it lands somewhere between 3 and 8 million HUF (roughly €7,500 to €20,000). For a web product, count on the lower band, for a mobile app the upper one.
What happens if the MVP succeeds? Further features get built onto the existing base on a schedule, now guided by real usage data. With good architecture, the MVP code isn’t throwaway, it’s the first layer of the final product.
Got an idea and want to find out cheaply whether it works? Drop us a line and in 30 minutes we’ll map out what fits into the first round: get in touch.