MVP & Software Development for Startups
We help non-technical founders and early-stage teams turn an idea into working software: a focused MVP, tested with real users and built on foundations you can keep growing.
Startup Challenges We Solve
Starting a software company is hard enough without the technical unknowns. We handle the build and the technical decisions so you can focus on customers and product-market fit.
Challenge: No Technical Co-Founder
Our Solution: We act as your senior technical partner: we turn your idea into a scoped plan, make the technology decisions with you, explain the tradeoffs in plain language, and build it. You work directly with the engineer writing the code.
Challenge: Limited Budget & Runway
Our Solution: We build the smallest product that tests your core idea, and list what we deliberately left out. Every proposal splits the work into phases with fixed hours and a fixed price, so you know what each step costs before it starts.
Challenge: Pressure to Move Fast
Our Solution: A focused MVP with one core workflow can launch in about 8 weeks. You see each milestone on a staging or live site, with five business days to review it, so you can change course early instead of at the end.
Challenge: Unclear Technical Direction
Our Solution: We help you choose a stack that fits the product and the budget, decide what to build first, and get the decisions that are expensive to undo right the first time: the data model, sign-in and user roles.
Startup MVP Development and Beyond
MVP development for startups is where we usually start. From a first prototype to the product you keep growing after launch, you keep one point of contact who knows the whole codebase.
MVP Development
A launch-ready first version of your product, built to test your core idea with real users.
- About 8 weeks for a focused MVP; most take 2-4 months
- One core workflow, no feature bloat
- Sign-in, user roles and an admin view
- Database and API set up properly once
- Deployment, hosting setup and analytics
Senior Technical Partner
A technical partner for startups without a technical co-founder: fractional CTO support, billed as project or hourly work.
- Technology and architecture decisions
- Roadmap and scope planning
- Reviews of estimates and vendors
- Help hiring your first developers
- A technical voice with investors
Investor & Due Diligence Support
Working software and clear technical documents for investor meetings.
- A working product demo, not slides
- Architecture overview
- Technical documentation
- Security review
- Answers to due diligence questions
Product Iteration
After launch, keep improving the product in small releases based on what users actually do.
- New features as fixed-price phases
- Analytics and user feedback
- A/B tests where traffic supports them
- Performance improvements
- Hourly support or a monthly plan
Scalable Architecture
Foundations that grow with your user base, so early success doesn't force a rewrite.
- A data model built for what comes next
- Managed cloud hosting
- Database indexes and query tuning
- Caching where it pays off
- Uptime and error monitoring
Team Augmentation
Add experienced developers from our network as you grow, or hand the codebase to your own hires.
- Flexible engagement
- Full-stack developers
- Code reviews and pairing
- Documentation and knowledge transfer
- Mentoring for junior developers
Why Startups Choose Web Wizard Dev
MVP Experience
In a previous role, our head engineer built a smart-energy MVP for national utilities, with iOS, Android and web apps, in four months from kickoff. We know how to balance speed, quality and cost when the budget is your runway.
Transparent Pricing
Our MVP builds typically run $8,000 - $20,000, split into phases with fixed hours and a fixed price and usually paid in four 25% milestones. No surprise invoices.
A Senior Technical Partner
Senior technical guidance without a full-time CTO hire. You work with the engineer building your product, not an account manager, and we bring in trusted developers when the work needs more hands.
You Own What We Build
Once the final payment is made, the code, designs and database structure are yours. Your domain is in your name, and hosting is billed to you directly.
Our Startup Tech Stack
The tools we use to build secure, scalable software for your industry.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about working with us.
How much does it cost to build an MVP?
Our MVP builds typically run $8,000 - $20,000. A focused web app with one core workflow sits at the lower end; payments, connections to other systems, real-time features or native mobile apps push it higher. Every proposal splits the work into phases with fixed hours and a fixed price, so you know the cost before work starts. Hosting is billed to you directly by the providers, usually about $100-$250 a month for a web app with a database and email.
How quickly can you build my MVP?
A focused MVP with one core workflow can launch in about 8 weeks; most take 2-4 months, depending on scope. We can usually start within 3-5 business days of approval. If you're working toward a fixed date, like an investor demo, tell us up front and we'll plan the scope around it.
What if I need to pivot or change features?
Startups pivot, and we plan for it. Revisions you ask for at a milestone review are part of the process. Bigger changes are agreed in writing before the work starts, with their effect on cost and timeline, so your budget never changes by surprise.
Who owns the code for my MVP?
You do. Once the final payment is made, the code, designs, database structure and other deliverables belong to you. Your domain is registered in your name, and hosting, database and email are billed to you directly. If a project starts on our accounts for convenience, we move it to yours whenever you ask. We may feature non-confidential parts of the project in our portfolio.
Will you sign an NDA?
Yes. Confidentiality works both ways: we keep your idea and your data private, and we're happy to sign your NDA before you share the details.
Can you help me prepare for investor meetings?
Yes. We can prepare a working demo, an architecture overview and technical documentation, answer technical due diligence questions, and join technical conversations with investors. A working product with real users gives investors something concrete to evaluate.
What happens after the MVP is launched?
Bug fixes are on us for at least a month after launch, and longer for bigger builds. After that, keep building with us in new fixed-price phases, get hourly support as needed, or choose a monthly plan from $375 for 5 hours. When you hire your own developers, we hand over the codebase with documentation.
Do you take equity instead of payment?
Not in place of payment. Like most development studios, we work on a paid basis, because building a product has real costs from day one. For a small number of early-stage projects we may consider a reduced rate combined with equity. That's decided case by case, after we've looked at the business, the founding team and how the project is funded, and it's always set out in a written agreement.
Web Wizard Dev is a Philadelphia-based software development studio serving clients nationwide.

