06
What does it cost per month, once delivered?
La question, mot pour mot
“Once delivered, what does the app cost per month to run — and what grows if I have ten times more users?”
Pourquoi elle compte
A development quote describes one day. Your app lives for years. Server, database, emails and notifications, file storage, third-party services: small at first, then it follows the usage curve.
✅ La bonne réponse
A list of named line items, separating what is fixed from what scales with users. Even without amounts, that list proves they have operated an app, not just delivered one.
⚠️ La réponse qui doit vous inquiéter
"It's free", or "it's negligible". It is, at launch. The question isn't about launch.
07
Who fixes a bug after delivery?
La question, mot pour mot
“After delivery, I report a blocking bug on a Tuesday morning. Who picks it up, within what time, and billed how?”
Pourquoi elle compte
Warranty and maintenance are two distinct things: the warranty covers what should have worked, maintenance covers the life of the app. Plenty of quotes mention neither.
✅ La bonne réponse
A dated warranty period, a written line between fix and new feature, a response time by severity, a named channel. After the warranty, a separate contract signed separately.
⚠️ La réponse qui doit vous inquiéter
"We stay available." Availability is not a commitment. Also look at who decides between bug and new feature: if they decide alone, everything becomes a new feature.
08
What moves the price?
La question, mot pour mot
“What would push this price up, and what would bring it down?”
Pourquoi elle compte
The answer tells you whether they costed your project or copied a template. The real levers are few and always the same: scope, user accounts and roles, payment, offline use, and taking over existing work — the most underestimated of the five, by far.
✅ La bonne réponse
They volunteer what can be cut from version one to hold a budget. Someone who knows how to shrink his own scope knows how to hold it.
⚠️ La réponse qui doit vous inquiéter
Nothing brings the price down. A quote that won't deflate on a single line was not built line by line.
09
Who actually does the work?
La question, mot pour mot
“The person sitting across from me today — do they write the code, or subcontract it? Give me the first names of the people who will work on this.”
Pourquoi elle compte
This is the one that separates a studio from a reseller. Between the price you are quoted and the price paid to whoever produces, there is sometimes exactly the gap you are trying to explain between the two quotes.
✅ La bonne réponse
First names, roles, and the name of your contact when things stall. Subcontracting that is owned and named is perfectly acceptable — it's the unspoken kind that costs you.
⚠️ La réponse qui doit vous inquiéter
"Our team handles it." Ask who, precisely. If the answer stays an undefined plural after two attempts, you have your answer.
10
How do we stop, if we have to?
La question, mot pour mot
“If we have to stop halfway, how does that work — and what do I walk away with?”
Pourquoi elle compte
Nobody signs thinking about this, which is exactly why it has to be read first. A clean exit is the best indicator of a serious contract, ahead of the price itself.
✅ La bonne réponse
A notice period, a settlement on what has actually been done, code and access handed over as-is, and a list of what is transferred. In writing.
⚠️ La réponse qui doit vous inquiéter
No exit clause. Or an exit that leaves you without access until an undefined balance is settled. A confident supplier isn't afraid to write down how you part ways.