Custom software
Custom software development in Costa Rica
We are Link Design, a San José studio that builds custom software for companies that can no longer run their operation on spreadsheets, WhatsApp and workarounds. We do not bend your company to fit a system. We copy how your operation works and turn it into software. Since 2020 we have put 26 projects into production for Costa Rican companies in manufacturing, logistics, healthcare, professional services and retail.
After the first meeting, we send you a written proposal within 5 business days. Free of charge, with no commitment.
- projects in production
- 26
- systems you can try today
- 06
- weeks from the first meeting to a working system
- 8 to 13
This page is for you if
We work with companies that have a real operation and a specific problem. If any of these situations sounds familiar, let's talk.
Your operation lives in spreadsheets that only one person understands. When that person is out, everything stops.
Orders, appointments or quotes come in through WhatsApp, and someone copies them by hand somewhere else, every day.
You bought an off-the-shelf system, and your team keeps parallel spreadsheets because it does not fit how they sell or dispatch.
You have two or more branches, warehouses or teams, and no one can see the inventory or the real state of things across all of them at once.
Your accounting software or ERP works fine for invoicing, but it does not cover the operational side: production, maintenance, routes, commissions, collections.
You need your customers to do something on their own: book, pay, buy a ticket, check the status of their order.
If what you are looking for is a generic app to sell in the app stores, or a product for the mass market, we are not the best option. We will tell you so on the first call.
How we work: we copy your operation, not the other way around
Most software asks the company to change: to enter data the way the system wants, to follow the steps the system defines, to give up the exceptions that make the company work.
We do the opposite. First we understand how your operation really works: who does what, in what order, under which rules and with which exceptions. Then we write the code around that.
Three examples of what that means in practice
- 01
If your warehouse dispatches in batches and your sales reps earn their commission when the customer pays, not at signing,the system dispatches in batches and calculates the commission when the payment comes in. Not the other way around.
- 02
If your wholesale customers have different price lists and payment terms negotiated one by one,those terms live inside the system, not in your sales manager's memory.
- 03
If your clinic schedules by practitioner, by room and by equipment,availability takes all three into account, because that is how your clinic works.
This has a cost: it takes time to understand the operation before building anything. That is why discovery is the first stage of the project, and the most important one.
And it has a benefit you notice on day one: your team adopts the system without pushback, because the system speaks their language.
What we build: systems you can try
Every type of system has a full demo you can browse with sample data. For confidentiality, we do not show our clients' systems. We built these ourselves so you can feel what it is like to use software built around an operation. They are examples, not the result you will receive: every build starts from your operation and is different. Software only: websites and online stores belong to the web side of the studio.
Gym & wellness management system
Members, plans, billing, attendance and classes for a gym chain in a single dashboard, with an AI layer that flags who is about to leave.
For gyms, studios and wellness chains with members, plans, classes and more than one location.
See the system →HRHR management system
Complete employee files, org chart, vacation and leave, recruiting by vacancy and performance reviews, with resignation risk alerts.
For companies with more than 20 employees and an HR area run by hand.
See the system →Scheduling & recordsClinic management software
Scheduling by practitioner, patient records with a dental chart, treatments in stages and the full cycle of treatment estimates, payments and insurance plans.
For clinics and practices that schedule by practitioner and bill by treatment.
See the system →ERPIndustrial ERP
A metalworking shop's work order from end to end, with materials, machine hours and actual cost versus estimate, plus planning by machine, inventory and scrap.
For workshops and plants that produce by work order.
See the system →MaintenanceSubscription-based maintenance system
One system with three sides: management, client and technician, for selling and running maintenance by subscription.
For technical service companies that sell maintenance by subscription, with technicians on route.
See the system →ERPCommercial & inventory ERP
From the customer to the credit note. Quote with margin, order, dispatch and return, with reserved and available stock across six locations.
For distributors with per-customer pricing, several warehouses and in-house dispatch.
See the system →It connects with what you already use in Costa Rica
A custom system does not replace everything you have. It connects to it. These are the integrations we are asked for most often and have already solved in real projects.
Electronic invoicing with Hacienda, Costa Rica's tax authority: the system issues or receives invoices without leaving the operation.
SINPE Móvil, the local mobile payment system, and Costa Rican payment gateways for taking payments online.
WhatsApp Business: orders, confirmations and customer service with a bot and artificial intelligence, integrated into the system.
Your current accounting software or ERP, so the operation and invoicing do not live in separate worlds.
Email, calendar and user accounts from Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace, so your team signs in with the account they already have.
Customer accounts with their own login, for stores and portals where customers serve themselves.
What custom software development costs in Costa Rica
A custom system with us costs between USD 1,500 and 15,000, depending on scope. Most of the projects we quoted in the last twelve months fall between USD 3,000 and 9,000. These are the ranges by system type, calculated from our 2026 proposals.
| System type | Investment (USD)* | Typical timeline* |
|---|---|---|
| Internal tool for a single flow (settlements, commissions, visit tracking) | 1,500 to 4,000* | 4 to 6 weeks* |
| Custom CRM | 2,600 to 8,000* | 6 to 10 weeks* |
| E-commerce with its own logic | 1,600 to 3,500* | 6 to 10 weeks* |
| Booking, scheduling or clinic management | 4,000 to 9,000* | 8 to 12 weeks* |
| Own-brand ticketing | 2,800 to 6,000* | 8 to 12 weeks* |
| Operations & inventory ERP | 4,500 to 8,000* | 10 to 14 weeks* |
| Applied AI automation | 2,000 to 5,000* | 4 to 10 weeks* |
| Full platform or multi-site system | 9,000 to 15,000 or more* | 3 to 5 months* |
* Reference ranges and timelines. Every project is quoted by its scope: we never have a ready-made price, because these are never standardized solutions.
What moves the price within each range
- How many flows and how many different roles use the system. One module with two roles does not cost the same as five modules for management, warehouse, sales and customers.
- Integrations: every external system it has to talk to (invoicing, payments, WhatsApp, your ERP) adds work and testing.
- Data migration: bringing over years of spreadsheets or an old system, then cleaning and validating that data.
- Use in the field: if technicians or sales reps use it from their phones, without signal, with photos.
- Artificial intelligence: reading documents or audio, or automatic classification.
How you pay
The price is fixed by scope before we start. If the scope changes along the way, we quote the change separately and you decide. The schemes we use most: deposit and balance on delivery (30/70), milestone payments by stage, or a monthly fee with support included when you would rather not make a large upfront investment. The project starts with the discovery deposit.
What you pay afterward
The infrastructure is in your name and is paid directly to the provider: between USD 20 and 80 a month for most systems, somewhat more if they use artificial intelligence heavily. Support with agreed response times is optional and is quoted when the project closes.
Timelines and process
From the first conversation to software running in your operation. Four stages with real timelines and a concrete deliverable at each one.
- 01
We understand what you need to solve and check whether a custom build makes sense. Deliverable: a first estimated scope and a date to sit down together.
- 02
We map the real flow of your operation with the people who run it. We define rules, roles, exceptions, integrations and architecture. Deliverable: the map of your operation, the final scope and a proposal with a fixed price and timeline.
- 03
We build the system module by module. Every two weeks your team tests what already works in a test environment and corrects us with real data. Deliverable: working modules, validated by the people who will use them.
- 04
We take the system live, train the team by role and stay close through the first weeks of use. Deliverable: the software running in your operation, with the team working in it.
In total, between 8 and 13 weeks from the first meeting. Multi-site projects, or projects with many integrations, take 3 to 5 months, and you know that from discovery, not halfway through.
What is included and who owns it
The code is yours.
It lives in a repository under your company's name, with documentation. If you want to continue with another team tomorrow, you can.
The infrastructure is yours.
The cloud accounts are in your name and the monthly bill goes to you. We manage it for as long as you want.
Training and follow-up.
We train each team on the system and stay close through the first weeks of use. No manuals: you learn the system by using it, with us beside you.
A one-year warranty on what we deliver.
During the first year we fix any error in what was delivered, at no cost. It does not include changes, improvements or modifications to what was set in the project scope.
Support afterward.
Plans with agreed response times for questions, errors and improvements as the operation changes. Agreed when the project closes. It is optional.
What it does not include.
Third-party service licenses (payment gateways, WhatsApp Business, AI tools), hardware or devices, and the work of cleaning historical data, which we quote separately when needed.
How to choose a software development company in Costa Rica
There are good software companies in Costa Rica, and not all of them are good for the same thing. Before you hire anyone, us included, check these seven things.
- 01Ask to browse something they have built, even if it is a demo.A slide deck does not tell you what using their software feels like. A demo does, even if it is not your system.
- 02Ask who will talk to your team.If the person selling is not the person who will understand your operation, discovery gets lost along the way.
- 03Insist on a fixed price and timeline before starting."It depends" is acceptable on the first call, not in the proposal.
- 04Confirm who owns the code and where it lives.If the code is not yours, you are not buying a system. You are renting one.
- 05Ask what happens the day after launch.Who fixes errors, how fast and at what cost.
- 06Ask for a real reference.A client you can call and ask what working with them was like, and what happens when something breaks.
- 07Be wary if they never say no.A serious company will tell you when an off-the-shelf product serves you better and costs you less.
If your process is standard, fewer than five people will use the system and you do not need to integrate it with anything, a well-configured off-the-shelf product may be the best decision. We tell you so in the first meeting.
Systems that bring order to companies that produce, transform or process, where the day to day runs on planning, costs and shipping on time.
- metalworking
- manufacturing
- textiles
- food production
- meat processing
- agribusiness
Systems that bring order to companies that move products, manage stock and sell to other businesses, where the day to day runs on orders, deliveries and collections that cannot fail.
- wholesale distributors
- importers
- logistics operators
- freight carriers
- sales agencies
- B2B sales
Systems that bring order to centers and practices where everything revolves around the patient, the schedule, the practitioners and the quality of follow-up.
- medical clinics
- dental practices
- physical therapy
- medical aesthetics
- veterinary clinics
Systems that bring order to firms and companies where the main asset is people and hours, and where the quality of the work depends on how clear each project is.
- law firms
- accounting firms
- consultancies
- IT companies
- architecture
- engineering
Systems that bring order to companies that provide technical services to other businesses, where the day to day runs on coordinating technicians, contracts and responding on time.
- HVAC
- industrial maintenance
- electrical installations
- electromechanical
- networking
- professional cleaning
Systems that bring order to centers where everything revolves around members, recurring subscriptions, class schedules and the client experience.
- gyms
- wellness centers
- yoga
- pilates
- crossfit
- boxing
- aesthetics
Systems that bring order to institutions where everything revolves around cohorts, teachers, attendance and the student experience.
- private institutes
- language schools
- technical schools
- professional training
- corporate training
Who we are
We are Link Design, a design and software development studio in San José, Costa Rica. Since 2020 we have built websites and systems for companies in Costa Rica and, under our Nolõ brand, for companies in Argentina. Today we also have clients in the United States, Mexico and Spain. We are one team covering design, development, quality assurance and architecture, working together on every project, with no intermediaries and no subcontracting.
We run on our own software: the system we use to track every proposal, every meeting and every client was built by us, under the same rules we apply to yours.
Where we work
We are based in San José and work with companies across the Greater Metropolitan Area: San José, Heredia, Alajuela and Cartago, with in-person meetings when they are needed. With companies in the rest of the country we work remotely, and discovery happens on site when the operation requires it. We also work with companies outside Costa Rica: today we have clients in the United States, Mexico and Spain.
Reach us at hola@linkdesign.cr or +506 7232 5943. We are available Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm. Saturdays and Sundays, we rest.
Frequently asked questions
Between USD 1,500 and 15,000, depending on scope. Most of our projects fall between USD 3,000 and 9,000: a custom CRM runs around USD 2,600 to 8,000 and an operations and inventory ERP around USD 4,500 to 8,000. These are reference figures: we never have a ready-made price, because these are never standardized solutions. The price is fixed by scope before we start. The full table by system type is above.
Between 8 and 13 weeks from the first meeting for most systems: 2 to 4 weeks of discovery, 5 to 8 of development and 1 for launch. Multi-site projects, or projects with many integrations, take 3 to 5 months.
With a free 30-minute meeting where you tell us how your operation works today. If it makes sense, we send you a written proposal within 5 business days. The project starts with the discovery deposit.
Yes. It lives in a repository under your company's name, with documentation, and the infrastructure is in your name too. You can continue with another team whenever you want.
Yes. We connect with your accounting software or ERP, with electronic invoicing, payment gateways, WhatsApp and your team's Microsoft or Google accounts. During discovery we define what gets integrated and how.
We migrate them. Before launch, we move your historical data into the system, clean it and validate it with you. If there are years of messy information, we quote that separately and tell you how much is worth recovering.
Yes. Within the Greater Metropolitan Area we meet in person when needed. With the rest of the country we work remotely and do discovery on site if the operation requires it. And outside Costa Rica too: today we have clients in the United States, Mexico and Spain.
During the first year we fix any error in what was delivered, at no cost. The warranty does not include changes, improvements or modifications to the project scope: those are quoted separately. After that you can hire a support plan with agreed response times, or call us only when you need an improvement.
Deposit and balance on delivery (30/70), milestone payments by stage, or a monthly fee with support included. We agree on it in the first conversation, based on what works best for your company.
Mainly Angular for the screens, Node for the server and Azure for the infrastructure and database. We also use Python, React and other tools when the project calls for them. The final decision is made during discovery.
We tell you. If your process is standard, you have few users and you do not need integrations, a well-configured off-the-shelf product may be better and cheaper. We do not take projects that make no sense as custom builds.
Yes, as examples. We built the six demo systems above ourselves so you can feel what it is like to use software built around an operation: the level of detail, the speed and how we solve flows similar to yours. They are not what you will receive: every build is different, because it starts from your operation and not from a template.