APIs and business objects
Platforms, business objects, field mappings and operations determine the scope. Reads, writebacks and two-way sync need separate assessment, beyond endpoint counts.
Pricing
Scope the API project before estimating cost
API integrations are assessed by workflow and deliverables. The tiers below apply to content distribution and monitoring systems; other API projects are scoped separately. Platform and third-party fees are additional.
What to prepare for an API estimate
Provide target API documentation, existing software, access methods, redacted input and output samples, expected volume and sync frequency. Identify failure cases and who confirms business outcomes so development, integration, migration and maintenance can be assessed separately.
Use the development service scope to identify modules and the delivery process to agree evidence at each stage. Platform capabilities require actual access and integration validation.
Reference pricing for content systems
The existing tiers and starting prices below cover the stated system scopes. They are not universal single-API prices. Timelines are planning references; platform review, missing inputs and scope changes require separate assessment.
Starter
One platform, one workflow: prove the publishing loop.
$7k+
Timeline 3–4 weeks
- 1 platform (e.g. RED) authorization and publishing
- Notes / video / articles, simple scheduling
- Admin dashboard and authorization page
- Deployment, source code and documentation
- 30 days of post-launch fixes
No multi-account matrix or dashboards
Most common
Standard
4–6 platforms, multi-account matrix and basic indexing monitoring.
$21k+
Timeline 6–10 weeks
- 4–6 platforms, multi-account matrix
- Client / project isolation and scheduling queue
- Publish retries and review callbacks
- Baidu indexing checks and platform metrics
- Self-hosted deployment and roles
- 6 months of platform adaptation
Extra platforms from $2k–3.5k each
Enterprise
A planned scope of up to 36 platforms, assessed individually, plus citation monitoring, white-label and integrations.
$55k+
Timeline 3–5 months
- Up to 36 platforms, assessed individually
- Question bank, content variants, multi-step approvals
- AI citation monitoring and white-label reports
- SSO / CRM / BI integration
- High availability, monitoring and audit logs
- 12 months of platform adaptation
Prices exclude tax. Servers, bandwidth, model APIs and platform qualifications are billed separately.
Compare
Scope comparison
| Item | Starter | Standard | Enterprise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Source code | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Deployment | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Planned platforms | 1 | 4–6 | Up to 36, subject to assessment |
| Client / project isolation | — | ✓ | ✓ |
| Account matrix | — | ✓ | ✓ |
| Indexing checks | — | Basic | Full |
| AI citation monitoring | — | — | ✓ |
| White-label reports | — | — | ✓ |
| Existing system integration | — | On request | ✓ |
| Platform adaptation | 30 days | 6 months | 12 months |
Factors
Four things drive the price
Client and account scale
Multi-tenant isolation, permissions and per-client settlement change the data model and the admin surface.
Data handling and recovery
Historical imports, incremental sync, deduplication, reconciliation and operator review affect effort. Monitoring also needs agreed sources, sampling and reports.
Integration and hosting
SSO, CRM, BI, private deployment and audit requirements add time and review cycles.
Pricing FAQ
Pricing and scope questions
Do these tiers also price a single API integration?
The tiers below are reference scopes for content distribution and monitoring systems, not minimum prices for every API project. Single integrations, data sync and business workflows are assessed using documentation, access conditions, samples and acceptance requirements.
Can we do monitoring without publishing?
Yes, but it is rarely worth it: without a publishing pipeline you can only watch existing content. The common middle ground is “your current publishing flow + monitoring”.
Can you lower the price?
We can reduce scope, not quality. Typical cuts: fewer platforms in phase one, manual reports for the first months, white-label in phase two. Do not cut retries, logging or permissions — those are what you miss when things break.
Are servers and platform fees included?
No. Servers, bandwidth, SMS, model APIs and third-party data sources are billed to you; we recommend specifications. Platform accounts and qualifications are yours to apply for.
Do we have to renew care?
No. Source, documentation and deployment scripts are complete, so your team can take over. Care mainly covers platform API changes; usually 12–18% of project value per year.
Get a quote for your project
A 30-minute call and a one-page scope, free of charge.