Pricing and payment policy

How we price

Every project gets a written, fixed-price quote for an agreed scope. The price comes from our rate card: the hours each feature takes at our hourly rates ($36 to $52 an hour), plus design, testing and launch. Because the scope is agreed up front, the price doesn't move unless the scope does.

Open-ended work, such as ongoing support, small improvements or an hourly retainer, is billed by the hour at the same rates, with a monthly statement of what was done.

A quote is valid for 30 days. After that we'll happily refresh it.

Limited-time launch offer. While it runs, our first 5 clients get 50% off the quoted build price. The planner shows the launch price next to the regular one, and your quote will say which applies.

The deposit

A deposit of 25% of the quoted price books your project into the schedule. We start work once it has arrived, and it comes straight off the final balance.

If we haven't started work yet, the deposit is refunded in full if you change your mind. Once work has started, it covers the work done to that point (see Pausing and cancelling).

For small jobs under $2,500, we keep it simple: half to start, half at launch.

When we bill

Payments are tied to milestones you can see and approve, not to dates. For a typical project:

• 25% to start. The deposit, when you accept the quote.
• 45% at design sign-off. Once you've approved the screens or the first working version.
• 30% before launch. When the finished build is ready to go live or be submitted to Google Play.

Longer projects are split into more milestones, each with a clear deliverable, so no single payment is a leap of faith. You always get a short review window (usually 5 business days) to look at a deliverable before its invoice is due.

Ongoing support plans are billed monthly in advance. Hourly work is billed monthly in arrears.

Payment terms

• Invoices are due within 7 days, by bank transfer or card.
• All prices are in US dollars and exclude any taxes that apply to you.
• If an invoice is more than 14 days overdue we'll get in touch, and work pauses until it's settled. No late fees; we'd rather talk.
• Launch and handover of source code happen once the final invoice is paid.

How a project runs

• Discover. We agree the scope, the milestones and what a successful first version looks like.
• Design. Flows and screens you can click through before anything is built, with rounds of feedback.
• Build. Short cycles with regular check-ins and working versions you can try as we go.
• Launch. We deploy, submit to Google Play where needed, and hand everything over.

You'll always know which milestone we're on and what's next. We work in the open, with one point of contact on each side.

What we need from you

Projects run on time when both sides keep pace. We'll ask you for:

• Content, photos, logos and any existing accounts or logins we need, at the agreed points.
• Feedback on each deliverable within 5 business days, from one decision-maker.
• A payment account (such as Stripe) in your own name if the project takes money. Your customers' money never passes through us.
• If you choose to run it yourself: accounts in your name for the services it depends on. We set them up with you on a call, on your screen, and you never share a password with us.

If something is late on your side, the schedule shifts by the same amount, and we'll tell you as soon as it does.

Revisions and changes

Each design stage includes two rounds of revisions. Small tweaks along the way, like wording, colours and spacing, are part of the job and never billed.

Anything outside the agreed scope, such as a new feature, another platform or a change of direction, is a change request. We'll price it in writing before doing it, and you decide whether it goes into this version or a later one. Nothing is added to your bill without your written go-ahead.

What you own

Once the final invoice is paid, the code, designs and content we made for you belong to you, and you receive the source code and the accounts it runs on. Until then we hold them.

That stays true if we host it for you. Whenever you ask, with 30 days' notice, we move everything to accounts in your own name, free of charge. No lock-in.

Third-party parts keep their own licences: open-source libraries, fonts, stock images and services like payment providers. We only use ones whose terms allow your use.

We may show the finished work in our portfolio and case studies. Tell us if you'd rather we didn't, and we won't.

Running costs

Our price covers the build. Keeping software running has its own costs: domain names, hosting, databases, email sending, text-message and AI usage, and app store accounts. You choose how they're handled:

• Managed. We host everything on our accounts and send you one monthly bill. What the providers charge for your project is passed on at exactly what it cost, with no markup: fixed extras (say, $20 a month for a bigger hosting plan) are agreed before they start, and usage is billed as used (if your AI assistant used $18.97 of credit last month, that's the line on your bill). Usage has a monthly cap you set, and these costs are billed from launch.
• Self-managed. Everything is built on accounts in your own name and you pay the providers directly. We don't bill you anything monthly.

Either way, your payment provider (such as Stripe) is always your own account, and its fees are between you and them. You can mix the two, for example keeping your domain in your own name while we host the rest, and you can switch at any time.

We'll tell you what to expect before you commit. For most small business projects it's a few dollars to a few tens of dollars a month, and the planner shows a typical range.

After launch

For 90 days after launch, anything that doesn't work as agreed is fixed at no charge. New features and changes of mind are quoted separately.

After the 90 days, a managed plan keeps it healthy: hosting, security patches and version upgrades, monitoring, backups, fixes, and a set amount of time each month for small improvements. The plan fee starts on day 91, is billed monthly in advance with a card on file, and is cancellable with a month's notice. You can opt out at any time: we move everything to your own accounts at no charge, and from then on you call us when you need something and we bill by the hour.

• Essentials, $59 a month, 30 minutes of changes included. Hosting, monitoring, security patches, version upgrades and backups. Suits a simple website.
• Standard, $119 a month, 2 hours of changes included. Everything in Essentials, a monthly report, and a reply within one business day. Suits a site with booking, a small web app or an automation.
• Plus, $229 a month, 5 hours of changes included. Everything in Standard, Google Play or store upkeep, a quarterly review call, and a same-day reply. Suits an Android app, an online store or an AI feature.

Pausing and cancelling

Either side can pause or end a project with written notice. You pay for the work done up to that point, at the rate card, with the deposit counted towards it, and we hand over whatever exists at that stage. Milestones already approved and paid stay paid.

A project paused for more than 60 days may need a new start date, and a refreshed quote if prices or scope have changed.

About the planner's estimates

The project planner gives price and time ranges from the same rate card we quote from. They are estimates to plan with, not a quote: a person reviews the plan with you and confirms the scope and the final figure in writing before any deposit is due.

Questions

If anything here is unclear, or your project needs different terms, ask. Email hello@lmbtechnology.com. If this policy changes, we'll update this page and the date at the top; projects already under way keep the terms they started with.