Build vs buy

Build, buy or white-label: what a telehealth platform really costs.

A custom telemedicine and pharmacy platform costs about $120,000–$180,000 and takes 9–14 months to build, by our estimate. Doccure projects start from $5,000, and a standard white-label platform goes live under your brand within a week.

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Three routes

Build from scratch, white-label, or both

What each route costs, how long it takes and who carries the work afterwards.

CompareBuild from scratchDoccure white-labelDoccure + custom development
Upfront costAbout $120,000–$180,000From $5,000, quoted to your scopeQuoted per project
Time to your first patient9–14 monthsSet up in minutes, live within a weekAgreed in the scope
Hosting and security patchesYour teamHosting in the US, Europe or Asia on requestOur hosting, your cloud or on-premise
Upgrades and new featuresYour roadmap and budgetPlatform updates from the Doccure teamPlatform updates plus your own features
Compliance groundworkYou design itHIPAA-ready and GDPR-ready platform, BAA signedSame, plus your custom work
Who owns whatYou own all the codeYour brand, your data, your patientsSource code licence options

Build figures are Dreams Technologies' estimate for a comparable custom telemedicine and pharmacy platform, based on projects we have scoped. Your own figure will differ. HIPAA-ready and GDPR-ready. We sign a BAA. HIPAA and GDPR have no official certificate.

Calculator

Estimate what building it yourself would cost

Pick what you need. Every assumption is shown and you can change it.

Your platform

Included in every estimate
Add modules

More than one site adds multi-branch work.

Assumption: a small team (developers, QA, design) at about $13,000 a month in total.

Assumption: about 20% a year for fixes, updates and hosting work.

Your estimate

Build it yourself–
Time before your first patient–
Three years, including upkeep–
On DoccureFrom $5,000, live within a week
Get a quote for this plan

The build estimate is months of work multiplied by your team's monthly cost. Telehealth and records take 7.5–11.5 months; each module adds 1–2.5 months; more than one site adds 1–1.5 months. Doccure quotes depend on your scope and custom work.

The costs that come later

What a build-it-yourself budget leaves out

  • Hosting and backups

    Servers, backups, monitoring and someone on call when it breaks.

  • Security patches

    Every library and framework needs updates, for as long as the platform runs.

  • App and browser changes

    Video, push notifications and payments change with each browser and phone update.

  • AI costs

    AI providers bill per use. On Doccure you choose the provider, or switch AI off. AI outputs are suggestions reviewed by a licensed clinician. Not a medical device.

  • Compliance work

    Audit trails, consent records, access control and the paperwork for HIPAA or GDPR.

  • Staff turnover

    A custom platform depends on the people who built it.

Get a quote for your plan

Tell us what you want to launch. We send your calculator inputs with the request and reply within one working day.

    What happens next

    1. We reply within one working day with times for a 30-minute call.
    2. A demo on your workflow, with the modules you picked.
    3. A written quote and a launch plan for your scope.

    See the prices

    White-label, custom development and Enterprise, and plans for clinics in India.

    See pricing

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    FAQ

    Build vs buy questions

    Is it cheaper to build our own telehealth platform?

    Rarely in the first three years. A comparable custom telemedicine and pharmacy platform costs about $120,000 to $180,000 and 9 to 14 months to build, by our estimate, before hosting, security work and upkeep. Doccure projects start from $5,000.

    What does "from $5,000" cover?

    It is the starting point for a white-label project on Doccure. Your quote depends on the modules, integrations, custom work and hosting you choose. We confirm it in writing after a demo.

    How long does a Doccure launch take?

    Setting up your platform is automated and takes minutes. Most standard white-label launches go live under your brand within a week. Custom features add time, which we agree with you when we scope the project.

    Do we own the code?

    On a white-label project you own your brand, your data and your patient relationships, and Doccure stays our platform. Enterprise deployments can include a source code licence, on-premise or in your private cloud.

    Can we start on Doccure and add our own features later?

    Yes. Our team builds custom modules and integrations on top of Doccure, or, with a source code licence, your own developers can extend it.