Hyvä costs: items, drivers and a worked example

1. Hyvä costs at a glance: why there is no flat rate

Anyone who asks about Hyvä costs rarely gets a single figure. The reason lies in the structure of the project: Hyvä replaces the frontend, but not the shop behind it. How large the effort is depends on how many extensions with a visible interface your shop uses and how individual the design should be.

It helps to separate one-off and ongoing items. One-off items are license, building the theme, adapting extensions and testing. Ongoing items are maintenance and care, which are often lower with a lean frontend than with a heavy one.

This guide sorts the items and shows where the levers are. Whether the switch pays off at all is described in the guide Switching from Luma to Hyvä.

2. The individual items of Hyvä costs

The table below shows the usual items and what matters for each.

In Hyvä costs the license is the smaller and better plannable part. The effort sits in the adaptation. Clarify early which extensions are critical, then Hyvä costs can be estimated reliably.

3. What drives Hyvä costs up or down

Four factors determine the effort. First, the number of extensions with an interface: the more of them without Hyvä support, the higher the Hyvä costs. Second, the design ambition: a plain design is cheaper than an elaborate one with animations and special layouts.

Third, the condition of the previous theme. A shop with many individual adjustments in the old frontend must rebuild these functions in the new theme. Fourth, checkout: it matters most for revenue, and adjustments there need especially much checking.

You can save by tidying up before the project. Remove unused modules, prioritize functions and rely on proven building blocks in the design. Every removed function is one test less.

An often underestimated point is the number of page types. Besides home page, category and product page there are search, customer account, wish list, comparison, content pages and email templates. Every type has to be checked and adjusted in the new theme. Whoever defines in advance which page types are really needed shrinks the scope and thus the invoice without the customer missing anything in the shop.

4. Worked example: how Hyvä costs add up

An example shows the logic without inventing market prices. Suppose a provider bills 30 euros net per hour, as we do. Analysis and concept take 6 hours, building the theme 30, adapting extensions 14, checkout 10, testing and go-live 10 hours. Together that is 70 hours, so 2,100 euros net, plus the license from the vendor.

The example serves only as illustration. Your shop may need considerably more or fewer hours, especially with many extensions or elaborate design. It does show how Hyvä costs are built: one part is fixed, one part variable.

Ask therefore for a quote with separate items and an upper limit for the variable parts. Further hints on cost structure and budget are in the guide Magento costs.

5. Checklist: seven points to plan Hyvä costs

With this list you know the drivers of Hyvä costs before the first draft quote arrives. That makes comparing several providers much easier.

6. What the switch saves: keep an eye on operating costs

Hyvä costs are only one side. A lean frontend often saves effort in operation because adjustments are simpler and fewer dependencies have to be maintained. Load time also affects revenue because faster pages are abandoned less often. How strong the effect is for you cannot be said in general. Time is a factor too: the less custom work in the frontend, the faster new functions can be built later and the lower the effort for version updates.

If your shop stands out mainly because of speed, first check the remaining causes in the guide Magento shop too slow.

7. Common misconceptions about Hyvä costs

The first misconception: the license is the main item. It is one item but usually not the largest. The second misconception: Hyvä is a finished product you switch on. Without adapting design and extensions the shop is not finished. The third misconception: a fixed price without analysis is safe. Without a look at the extensions it is a risk surcharge or a trap.

The fourth misconception: maintenance disappears after the switch. The frontend still needs care even if it is leaner. Updates and security remain tasks. More in the guide Magento maintenance contract.

The fifth misconception: all providers calculate alike. Some price testing and aftercare generously, others leave them out to push the price down. So compare not the total but the items, and ask of every quote what is not included.

8. How we bill Hyvä costs

We are a web agency in which fixed freelancers work together, all remotely from home offices. In a Hyvä project we start with an analysis of your extensions and then state scope and effort in writing, with separate items. The hourly rate is 30 euros net, see the pricing page. You pay the theme license to the vendor, and we name the current price on request.

More about our approach is on the page about Hyvä. This article is general orientation and not legal advice. For an assessment of the Hyvä costs of your shop please use our contact page.

9. Summary

Hyvä costs consist of license, design, adaptation of extensions, checkout, testing and maintenance. The variable part lies in the extensions, so an analysis before the quote is worthwhile.

Note: This article offers general information and does not replace legal advice in individual cases.

10. FAQ: Hyvä costs