Start by assuming ready-made is the right answer
For most standard processes — accounting, email, basic CRM, project tracking — a mature ready-made product is cheaper, faster to start, and supported by a team larger than any single developer could offer. We say this even though it means less work for us, because recommending custom software you do not need is a bad way to start a relationship.
The actual test for when custom is worth it
The workarounds have a real, ongoing cost. Duplicate spreadsheets, manual re-entry between two systems, and staff time spent patching gaps are the clearest signal — if that cost, measured honestly, exceeds what building something would cost over a couple of years, custom starts to make sense.
Your process is the differentiator. If how you handle approvals, pricing, or production is part of what makes your business work, forcing that into someone else's software usually means bending the process to fit the tool — backwards from what you actually want.
Per-user pricing stops making sense at your scale. Some ready-made products price per seat in a way that becomes the more expensive option once a team grows past a certain size.
What we tell you either way
During scoping, if a ready-made product covers your requirement without workarounds, we say so — including when that means less work for us.