SaaS Development Company: SaaS Product Development Services

Updated September 2026 · Written and maintained by the Progression Agency strategy team

Progression Agency builds SaaS products from first MVP to scaling platform: multi-tenant architecture, subscription billing, onboarding, roles and permissions, integrations, admin tools and the analytics that tell you what customers actually use. Because we are also a growth marketing agency, we help you launch the product and acquire its first customers, not just ship the code.

What is SaaS development?

SaaS development is building software-as-a-service: applications hosted in the cloud and sold on subscription, where one platform serves many customer organizations. It adds multi-tenancy, subscription billing, self-service onboarding and continuous deployment to ordinary application development.

SaaS vs traditional software development

Traditional software is often built for one organization or installed on each customer’s systems. SaaS is built once, run centrally and improved continuously for every customer, so architecture, security and operations carry more weight from day one.

Our SaaS development services

SaaS MVP development

We scope the MVP to the single workflow your first customers will pay for, then build it with the foundations that will not need rebuilding: tenancy, authentication, billing and analytics.

SaaS architecture and cloud engineering

Multi-tenant data models, background jobs, caching, observability and infrastructure as code on AWS, Azure or Google Cloud, following the AWS SaaS Lens principles.

Subscription billing

Plans, trials, seats, usage-based pricing, invoicing and tax with platforms such as Stripe Billing.

Enterprise readiness

SSO via SAML and OpenID Connect, role-based access, audit logs, data export and the controls needed for security reviews and SOC 2 audits.

Mobile and web front ends

A fast web application and, where customers need it, a cross-platform mobile app on the same API.

AI features for SaaS

In-product assistants, summarization, smart search and automation — see AI app development.

Multi-tenant architecture explained

Multi-tenancy means one software platform serves many customers while keeping each customer’s data isolated. The three common models are a shared database with tenant IDs, a separate schema per tenant, and a separate database per tenant, trading cost efficiency against isolation.

Our SaaS development process

1. Discovery: customers, the paid workflow, pricing hypothesis.
2. MVP scope: must-have features and foundations.
3. Design and clickable prototype tested with target customers.
4. Architecture: tenancy, data model, auth, billing, infrastructure.
5. Sprint development with working releases every two weeks.
6. Beta with design-partner customers.
7. Launch with analytics, onboarding and acquisition campaigns.
8. Iterate from usage data; add integrations and enterprise features.

SaaS development best practices

• Scope every query by tenant, and test that isolation automatically.
• Choose managed services for auth, billing and email rather than building them.
• Instrument activation and retention events from the first release.
• Design roles and permissions before customers ask for them.
• Automate deployment and keep environments reproducible.
• Plan for data export and deletion requests.
• Keep pricing logic configurable so plans can change without code releases.

SaaS metrics we build in

We instrument the product so you can see monthly recurring revenue, activation, churn, customer acquisition cost, lifetime value and net revenue retention, and connect product analytics to your marketing so you know which channels bring customers who stay.

How much does SaaS development cost?

As a planning range, a SaaS MVP commonly costs roughly $60,000-$150,000 over three to six months, a growth-stage platform roughly $150,000-$400,000, and enterprise-grade platforms more. Hosting, third-party services and ongoing development are recurring costs.

Why choose Progression Agency as your SaaS development company?

• Product, engineering and growth marketing under one team.
• MVPs scoped to what customers will pay for first.
• Foundations for tenancy, auth and billing done right from the start.
• You own the code, cloud accounts and billing accounts.
• Go-to-market support through our startup marketing and AEO teams.
• Headquartered in New York City, working with founders nationwide.

Types of SaaS products we build

SaaS spans very different products. The type shapes architecture, pricing and go-to-market.

B2B SaaS

Software sold to businesses, usually with team accounts, roles, integrations and annual contracts. Sales cycles are longer and enterprise features matter sooner.

B2C SaaS

Subscription software for consumers, where onboarding, pricing pages and mobile experience drive conversion and churn.

Vertical SaaS

Software built for one industry — clinics, contractors, restaurants, law firms — with workflows and integrations specific to it.

Horizontal SaaS

Software serving one function across many industries, such as scheduling, invoicing or project management, where differentiation comes from experience and integrations.

Internal SaaS platforms

Multi-tenant platforms that large organizations run for their own divisions, franchises or partners.

SaaS pricing models and how they affect the build

The pricing model decides what the billing system must measure. Choose it early, keep it configurable and expect to change it.

Flat-rate pricing

One price for everything; simplest to build and explain.

Tiered pricing

Plans with different feature sets; requires feature flags per plan.

Per-seat pricing

Price per user; requires seat management and proration.

Usage-based pricing

Price per unit consumed; requires accurate metering and reporting.

Freemium

A free tier with paid upgrades; requires limits, upgrade prompts and abuse controls.

Our SaaS technology stack

SaaS security and compliance

SaaS customers trust you with their data. We build tenant isolation, encryption, least-privilege access, audit logging, backups and incident response in from the start, and prepare the evidence SOC 2 auditors and enterprise security questionnaires ask for.

Onboarding: the feature that decides churn

Most SaaS churn happens before customers reach first value. We design onboarding around the shortest path to that moment: sample data, guided setup, templates and timely emails, measured with activation events.

Integrations and APIs

Customers expect your product to connect with the tools they already use. We build native integrations with the most requested platforms and a documented public API with webhooks for the rest.

Migrating installed software to SaaS

Businesses with installed or single-tenant software can move to SaaS gradually: centralizing hosting first, introducing multi-tenancy for new customers, then migrating existing ones. We plan data migration and customer communication so the transition is smooth.

SaaS for startups vs established software companies

Startups need the smallest product that proves customers will pay; established software companies need modernization, scale and enterprise features without disrupting existing customers.

Video: SaaS and MVPs explained

Explainers from IBM Technology and SaaS founders on the SaaS model and building a first version.

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  Software as a Service (SaaS) Explained in 5 mins
  IBM Technology · 2021-04-02

• 

  What Is SaaS? Software As A Service Explained (In 5 Minutes)
  Rob Walling · 2022-02-21

• 

  How To Create An MVP (Minimum Viable Product) – STEP BY STEP
  Rob Walling · 2024-03-10

• 

  What is a Minimum Viable Product – MVP?
  Online PM Courses – Mike Clayton · 2020-02-05

Frequently asked questions