$ cat pricing.md

Straightforward rates. No surprise invoices.

Every engagement starts with a signed Statement of Work and a deposit before any code gets written. Below are the two ways I price work: a flat rate for defined projects, or hourly for open-ended and Change Order work. Hosting and ongoing support are priced separately — see hosting and retainer.

Fixed-Price Projects

Small Business Site

Single-page, custom-coded, no framework bloat

$1,500–2,500
  • Custom-coded, responsive single page
  • Working contact form (backend, not a 3rd-party widget)
  • One milestone, one acceptance window

25% deposit · balance on delivery

most common

Internal Application

Custom backend, database, multi-milestone build

$4,500–12,000
  • Go backend, Postgres schema, HTML front end
  • AI/vector integration where applicable
  • Multi-milestone SOW with defined acceptance criteria

25–50% deposit · milestone-gated balance

Enterprise / Complex Systems

Distributed infra, custom AI pipelines, high compliance load

$15,000+
  • Multi-node deployment architecture
  • Custom AI/inference pipeline design
  • Scoped individually — quote after discovery call

25–50% deposit · milestone-gated balance

Hourly Rates

Discovery Call

Initial scoping conversation

Free

General Development

Standard feature work, Change Orders

$75/hr

In-Depth Development

AI integration, distributed infra, orchestration

$110–125/hr

Emergency Support

Outside normal support hours, uncontracted

$125/hr

Any work outside a signed SOW's defined scope is billed at the General Development rate under a signed Change Order — no verbal or messaged approval authorizes new work.

How Payment Works

01

A non-refundable 25–50% deposit is due before any repository is touched or code is written.

02

The remaining balance is billed against defined milestones in the SOW — schema, API beta, front end, final deploy.

03

Production deployment and code transfer happen only after the final invoice clears.