10 MVP development companies compared for non-technical founders (2026)
Rocketech wrote this comparison of ten MVP software development companies, and Rocketech is one of the ten. Our own figures first: an MVP for $5,000-15,000 in 2-4 weeks at $39-55 an hour, with a $5,000 minimum for a build. So you can check our work, the table is alphabetical, every figure links to its source, and every company gets a trade-off, including us. We checked all the figures on 22 September 2026.
On 22 September 2026 we ran 20 searches a founder might type, such as "MVP development company for startups" and "best MVP development agency 2026". We read nine "top MVP companies" lists from those results and asked ChatGPT, Perplexity and Gemini similar questions. From the companies that showed up, we picked nine: small studios and large firms, in Europe and the US. Then we added ourselves.
What we compared, and how much each part counts
25%
Published price
The MVP price or range on the company's own site, plus its hourly rate. A number you can see before the first call makes planning easier.
20%
Typical timeline
How long the company says a first version takes.
20%
Clutch rating and reviews
The score and the number of reviews on the company's Clutch profile on 22 September 2026.
15%
Minimum project
The smallest project the company takes, from its site or its Clutch profile.
15%
Help for non-technical founders
Whether the company publishes something for founders who don't code: a part-time CTO service, a guide or plain answers to non-technical questions.
5%
Location and time zone
Where the company is based, from its Clutch profile or its site.
We didn't add the weights up into one score. A founder with $10,000 and a founder with $150,000 need different companies. So the table is alphabetical, and the guide below matches companies to situations. The weights show what we paid the most attention to when we wrote that guide.
Every figure links to the page we found it on. Minimum project and hourly rate come from Clutch unless the company publishes its own. "Not published" means we couldn't find the figure on the company's site or Clutch profile. Rocketech's figures link to the prices on our MVP development page.
For a wider view, our MVP Price Index 2026 covers the MVP prices and timelines 95 agencies publish, with the source sentence for every figure.
This isn't a full list of good MVP companies. Others that came up often in our research: Cheesecake Labs, Classic Informatics, Designli, Rootstrap, STRV and SumatoSoft.
The ten companies side by side
Alphabetical order. Figures as published on 22 September 2026. Click a figure to open its source.
Altar.io Lean MVPs from €18,000 in about 2 months, after a paid 15-day planning phase.
Codica $30,000-70,000 on average, at $25-49 an hour on Clutch.
Upsilon $25,000-75,000 on average, in about three months, with the days for each phase published.
You don't have a technical co-founder
Look for a partner who will make technical decisions with you as well as write the code.
JetRockets A part-time CTO for founders without a technical co-founder, plus its own development team.
Rocketech A part-time CTO for 10, 20 or 40 hours a month. For some startups, Rocketech also joins as a co-founder and invests its own money and a team.
Upsilon CTO as a service, written for non-technical founders.
You have $50,000 or more and a bigger product
These companies publish higher budgets, minimums or rates than the rest of the list.
Netguru 400+ people and a $50,000+ minimum on Clutch. MVPs within 12 weeks.
ScienceSoft Published costs by app type, from $40,000 for mobile to $300,000 for SaaS.
thoughtbot Product strategists from day one, at $150-199 an hour on Clutch.
You want a company based in the US
Check how many working hours your day and theirs will share.
Founders who want to see what past MVPs cost before the first call and are ready to pay for a planning phase.
What it publishes
Prices of the MVPs it shipped in the last six months (€18,000 to €350,000), a price table by MVP tier, and a paid 15-day planning phase (€5,000 or €10,000).
For non-technical founders
The planning phase ends with user stories, process diagrams, the reasons for the tech stack and an estimate, so you know what you're buying before the build starts.
Trade-off
A higher entry point: its lean MVP tier starts at €18,000, and Clutch lists a $25,000+ minimum.
Founders with $5,000-15,000 who want a first version live in 2-4 weeks, and founders who want a technical partner that can also invest.
What it publishes
Its MVP development services page lists an MVP for $5,000-15,000 in 2-4 weeks, $39-55 an hour, a $5,000 minimum for a build and a $3,000 discovery sprint that counts toward it.
For non-technical founders
A part-time CTO for 10, 20 or 40 hours a month. For some startups, Rocketech invests its own money and a team as a co-founder, on terms agreed case by case.
Trade-off
The speed comes from a narrow first release. That's how EasySpk and GhostMinutes, two AI apps, each reached the App Store in 2 weeks. If you need many features at launch, the budget and the timeline grow.
Founders building a larger web or SaaS product who want a big company with published cost ranges.
What it publishes
MVP costs by app type, and timelines: 2-4 weeks for a prototype, 2-6 months for an MVP built with low-code tools, and 4-6 months to 2 years for one built from scratch.
For non-technical founders
It names startups as one of its client types. The MVP page doesn't speak to non-technical founders directly.
Trade-off
The highest published starting budget here: $40,000 for a mobile MVP.
Ask every company the same questions, us included, and compare the answers side by side.
What will the first version do, and what will it leave out?Get both lists in writing.
What is the total price, and what does it include?Design, testing, launch and app store setup are sometimes extra.
When can real users try it?Ask for a calendar date.
Who will work on my project, and for how many hours a week?Ask for names and roles.
Who owns the code, the designs and the accounts?You should, from day one.
How often will I see working software?Every week or two is a good sign.
What happens when I change my mind?Ask how changes are priced before you need one.
What happens after launch?Bug fixes, hosting and support: who does them, and what do they cost?
Can I talk to two founders you built an MVP for?Ask them what went wrong and how it was fixed.
If I move to another team later, what do I get?Code, documentation and access to every service the product uses.
Questions founders ask
Published MVP prices among the ten companies here run from $5,000-15,000 (Rocketech) and a fixed $10,000 (Asper Brothers) to $120,000-300,000 for a SaaS MVP (ScienceSoft) and €350,000 for the largest recent MVP at Altar.io. Upsilon and Codica put their averages at $25,000-75,000 and $30,000-70,000. The main driver is how much the first version has to do.
Published timelines here run from 2-4 weeks (Rocketech) and 4-6 weeks (Asper Brothers) to about three months (Netguru, Upsilon) and 2-6 months or more (ScienceSoft). A shorter timeline usually means a smaller first version.
We build MVPs too, so we have a stake, and leaving ourselves out would hide it. The table is alphabetical and every figure links to its source. Our own entry lists a trade-off, like the other nine. Check the links and decide for yourself.
We couldn't find the figure on the company's site or its Clutch profile on 22 September 2026. It doesn't mean the company hides it. Many companies share prices and timelines on a first call.
A short note: who the users are, the one problem the first version solves, the three to five things it must do, your budget range and your deadline. Send the same note to every company so you can compare their answers.
We checked every figure on 22 September 2026, and the date at the top changes when we check again. Prices and reviews change, so open the linked pages before you decide. If a figure here is wrong, write to hello@rocketech.it and we'll correct it.