Outsourcing software
development, UK.
Magora is a London software company that builds products for UK businesses as an outsourced team. Our engineers are our own staff, not subcontractors, prices are published and the code and IP are yours. Free working prototype in 5 to 10 working days; an MVP from £10,000; developers from £49 an hour.
Outsourcing software development,
in one paragraph.
Outsourcing means handing the building of your software to an external team instead of hiring in-house. Magora does this from its office in Shoreditch, London, delivering software since 2010. You can outsource a whole product for a fixed price, or add a monthly team to your own. We are a UK (onshore) team, not a nearshore or offshore vendor; if you are still weighing those, our nearshore vs offshore vs UK comparison sets out rates, time zones, data protection and tax.
Our engineers, not subcontractors
The people you meet before the contract are the people who build your product.
Code and IP are yours
NDA on day one, code in your repository, IP transferred on payment.
Three ways to outsource,
one UK team.
Pick the model that matches how much of the management you want to keep.
A whole product, fixed scope
We take a defined product from idea to a live service for an agreed price. See MVP development and bespoke software.
A dedicated team, monthly
Engineers, QA and a tech lead or Product Owner working only on your product. See dedicated development teams.
Senior engineers for your team
One or more engineers inside your backlog and your code review. See IT staff augmentation.
Web platforms and APIs
Web applications, portals and integrations. See web application development and API integration.
Support after launch
Fixes, updates and monitoring once the product is live, from £1,000 a month.
UK, nearshore or offshore:
what changes for a UK buyer.
The hourly rate is only one line of the budget. The others are product ownership and QA time, your own staff's time managing the team, rework from misunderstood requirements, and the tax and data effects below. Full detail and sources are in the nearshore vs offshore vs UK guide.
| UK (onshore) | Nearshore | Offshore | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hourly rate | Highest | Middle | Lowest |
| Time-zone overlap | Full | Full or most | Partial or none |
| UK GDPR transfers | None | None inside the EU; safeguards elsewhere | Safeguards and risk assessment |
| R&D tax relief on contractor cost | Usually claimable | Generally not | Generally not |
| NHS data | Simplest | EEA allowed; check buyer rules | Specialist advice; often excluded |
| Contract | English law | Choose English law | Choose English law; enforcement harder |
Source: Magora's nearshore vs offshore vs UK guide, 2 November 2026, which cites the ICO, HMRC and NHS England guidance and the Accelerance 2026 rates guide. Magora's own rates are on the pricing page.
How an outsourced project
runs with us.
Every step ends with something you can see, and you hold the repository from the first commit.
Free prototype
5 to 10 working daysYour core idea as working code, built from your brief before any paid work.
Discovery
2 weeksScope, architecture, team size and a fixed price for the build.
Build in sprints
6 to 8 weeks for an MVPTwo-week sprints with weekly demos, automated tests and QA, in your tracker if you have one.
Launch and handover
Launch weekRelease, documentation, and accounts and repositories in your company's name.
Support
MonthlyFixes, updates and new features after launch, or hand the product to your own team.
What outsourcing to a UK team
costs.
Our 2026 prices in GBP, excluding VAT, published on our pricing page. Comparing quotes? Send us your brief and the quotes you have, and we will tell you honestly whether a UK team is worth the difference for your project. More on the real cost of outsourcing in how to outsource software development.
Your core idea as working code in 5 to 10 working days.
Two weeks: scope, architecture, estimate and a fixed price for the build.
A first release in 6 to 8 weeks.
A production system, typically 3 to 6 months.
A full team with QA and product ownership; a single developer is from £49 an hour, about £390 a day. Minimum four weeks, then monthly rolling.
Support, fixes and updates once the product is live.
Products we have built
for clients.
Four projects delivered by our London team: personal finance, live events, pharmaceuticals and card payments.
MoneyWiz
- Problem
- A personal-finance product had to work the same way on iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Mac.
- Built
- A suite of Swift apps for mobile, watch, Mac and tablet, with Fastlane and Jenkins automating certificates, provisioning and builds, and features such as reports, a widget dashboard, cloud sync and data import.
- Outcome
- One product across four Apple platforms: mobile, watch, Mac and tablet.
Interprefy
- Built
- iOS, Android and web apps for a cloud platform that streams event audio to interpreters and translated audio to the audience.
- Result
- Up to 100 languages and 400 interpreters during one event; used for UEFA EURO 2020 press conferences and UN sessions.
Pharm Card (EGIS)
- Problem
- Each medical rep filled in hundreds of Excel files on pharmacy visits, and management had no live view of sales and contract performance.
- Built
- A native iOS app for iPad and a web application for senior staff, with a database of pharmaceutical products, GPS pharmacy lookup and an offline mode that syncs automatically.
- Outcome
- In daily use by the client's staff, and we continue to add features as the company's needs change.
Abacus Pay
- Built
- iOS and Android apps for taking card payments with mPOS devices, plus an administration system for devices and transactions.
- Budget
- £80k to £120k, typically 5 to 8 months.
Related: dedicated development teams, IT staff augmentation, how to choose a software development company, contractors vs outsourcing teams. All projects →
Outsourcing software development
questions.
At Magora, a developer costs from £49 an hour (about £390 a day) and a full team with QA and product ownership £65 to £70 an hour. A first release (MVP) costs from £10,000 in 6 to 8 weeks and a full production system £25,000 to £60,000. Figures exclude VAT.
Onshore means a team in your own country, for a UK company a UK team. Nearshore means a team in a nearby country with a similar time zone, usually elsewhere in Europe. Offshore means a distant country with a large time difference, such as India or the Philippines. Our comparison guide has rates, data protection and tax for each.
No. Magora is a UK software development company with its office in Shoreditch, London. Our engineers are our own staff, not subcontractors, and you meet the people who will work on your product before you sign.
It can. For accounting periods from 1 April 2024, payments to contractors and externally provided workers for R&D done overseas generally do not qualify, and EU countries count as overseas too. See our guide to R&D tax credits for software development and check your own position with an adviser.
You do. We sign an NDA on day one, the code lives in your repository from the first commit, and source code, designs and IP are transferred to you on payment.
Send us your brief, and the quotes you already have if you are comparing suppliers. We build a free working prototype of your core idea in 5 to 10 working days, then a two-week Discovery sprint from £3,000 turns it into a scope, architecture and fixed price.
Comparing
suppliers?
30-minute call with a senior Solution Architect. Bring your brief and any quotes you have, and we will tell you whether a UK team is worth the difference for your project.