Got a process that wants an app?
I'm Balu, a Christchurch Power Apps developer working solo for NZ firms under 20 staff. A small app is $4,000 to $8,000 in 4 to 8 weeks; bigger builds are $10,000 to $22,000. Fixed price, built in your tenant.
Most firms under 20 staff already pay for Microsoft 365. Sitting inside that subscription is a real application platform: Power Apps for the tools no product sells, Power Automate for the approvals and the data shuffling, Copilot agents for the questions your documents already answer. Apps on SharePoint lists and standard connectors run on the licence you already hold; Dataverse and Copilot Studio are licensed and priced separately.
The trap is one wrong connector moving your whole team onto premium licensing. That line is where a developer earns their fee, and it's why the licensing, not the build, is usually the real cost of a Power App. I design around that line and tell you before anything crosses it. Already have a Microsoft partner on the books? See who I work with, and who I do not.
Site inspections, job tracking, leave requests, asset registers. A canvas app shaped to one process, on phones and desktops, living in your tenant.
Requests that route to the right person, remind them politely, and land in the record system without anyone forwarding an email chain. The unglamorous automation that gives hours back.
An agent grounded in your own documents that answers the questions staff ask all day. Built in Copilot Studio, priced by use, not by seat.
Built in someone's spare time, held together by that someone, who resigned. I audit it, fix what's worth keeping, rebuild what isn't, and write documentation for whoever maintains it next.
When the platform grew faster than anyone watched it. Environments, ownership and a shape that survives staff changes, sized for a small firm rather than a bank.
Power Platform is not always the answer, and pretending otherwise gets expensive. I keep a list of when I'd say no, in writing.
A small app for one process typically runs $4,000 to $8,000, in production in 4 to 8 weeks, and often costs nothing extra in licensing because it runs on the seats you already pay for. Bigger builds with approval flows, several integrations or an agent on top run $10,000 to $22,000. If you want the full picture priced against your real processes before committing to anything, the Workflow Review at $3,500 ends in a written plan you keep whoever builds it.
Every build lands in your tenant with source in your accounts, documentation for whoever comes next, training for the people using it, and a 60-day warranty. You own the build and can keep using it without me.
Already have a quote? Get a free second opinion before you sign.
If you are weighing contractor, consultancy or solo, hire a Power Apps developer in NZ prices the four routes. For an example of how I build, see Kove Events (portfolio rebuild, simulated data).
For professional services firms the three builds that pay back first are written up per sector: engineering consultancies, accounting practices and law firms.
A free 30-minute call. Bring one process and I'll say whether it needs an app, a flow, an agent or none of those. The Power Platform page has the longer version of how I work on the Microsoft stack, and if the process lives in an old SQL Server or Access database, SQL and Access migration into Microsoft 365 is the page for that job, and the migration hub shows the mechanics per source.
A small app for one process typically runs $4,000 to $8,000, and often costs nothing extra in licensing because it runs on the Microsoft 365 seats you already pay for. Bigger apps with approval flows, several integrations or an agent on top run $10,000 to $22,000. The trap to watch is licensing, not the build fee: one premium connector can move every user of the app onto a paid Power Apps licence.
Often not. Apps built on standard connectors against SharePoint or Excel run inside most Microsoft 365 Business licences. Premium connectors and Dataverse change that, moving the app onto per-user Power Apps Premium pricing. I design around that line deliberately and tell you before anything crosses it, because it's the difference between free and a real monthly cost per person.
The standard engagement is 4 to 8 weeks to working software, fixed scope, with training and documentation included, and smaller ones land at the short end. The build is usually the fast part. Understanding how the process really runs before building it is what the first fortnight is for.
Yes, this is a regular job. Usually the app grew out of one enthusiastic person's spare time, that person left, and now nobody can touch it. I audit what's there, fix what's worth keeping, rebuild what isn't, and document it so it survives the next departure.
No, I work across New Zealand. Everything runs remotely over video call and screen-share, recorded so nothing gets lost between sessions.
You get one person from the first call to the handover, so what is scoped is what gets built. I am based in Christchurch and work remotely across New Zealand for firms under 20 staff, at fixed prices: $4,000 to $8,000 for a small app, $10,000 to $22,000 for bigger builds. Everything lands in your Microsoft 365 tenant with source in your accounts and a 60-day warranty. If you already have an MSP or Microsoft partner, they are the better first call.
Everything. The solution lives in your tenant from day one, documentation is written for whoever comes next, and nothing about the build depends on me staying around. A 60-day warranty covers the landing period after go-live.