The Problem
Why teams leave Monday.com
Automation and integration quotas on all plans
Performance degrades with large boards (1000+ items)
Minimum 3-seat requirement inflates small team costs
CRM, dev, and service products are separate paid add-ons
Time tracking and workload require Pro plan
What We Build Instead
Your custom project management tool
Custom work management platform with unlimited automations
Board, timeline, and Gantt views optimized for your data volume
Built-in CRM, resource management, and time tracking
Automations with no quotas or artificial limits
Integrations with your existing tools — direct, not through middleware
The Math
Monday.com vs. custom build
Based on 60 seats at $16/seat/month, with ~10% annual SaaS price increases.
Keep paying Monday.com
Build with 86 SaaS
3-year savings with 60 seats
-$5,484
-14% less than Monday.com
Pricing Breakdown
Monday.com tier pricing vs. one-time custom build
Compare what you pay per seat across Monday.com's tiers against a single investment in software you own forever.
| Tier | Monthly/Seat | Annual/Seat | Key Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Individual | Free | Free | Up to 2 seats, Unlimited boards, 200+ templates, 8 column types |
| Basic | $9/mo | $9/mo | Unlimited viewers, 5GB storage, Dashboard widgets, Prioritized support |
| Standard | $12/mo | $12/mo | Timeline & Gantt, Guest access, 250 automations/month, Integrations |
| Pro | $19/mo | $16/mo | Time tracking, Formula column, 25K automations/month, Private boards |
| Enterprise | $30/mo | $30/mo | Enterprise reporting, Multi-level permissions, HIPAA compliance, Premium support |
| Custom Build by 86 SaaS | $20,000–$40,000 one-time | $0/seat | Unlimited users, full ownership, no recurring fees |
Migration Timeline
From Monday.com to ownership — week by week
A structured migration plan to move off Monday.com in 5-9 weeks with zero downtime.
Discovery & Audit
1 weekMap Monday.com boards, automations, integrations, and dashboard configurations. Identify CRM/Dev module usage.
Architecture & Design
1-2 weeksDesign unified work management platform with board views, automations, and integrated CRM/resource features.
Core Development
2-4 weeksBuild board engine, timeline/Gantt views, unlimited automations, time tracking, and reporting dashboards.
Data Migration & Testing
1-2 weeksMigrate boards, items, automations, and integrations from Monday.com. Verify dashboard accuracy.
Deployment & Training
1 weekDeploy platform, reconnect integrations, train teams, and validate automation workflows.
Total build time
5-9 weeks
Feature Comparison
What you keep, what you skip, and why
A transparent comparison of Monday.com features vs. your custom-built alternative.
| Feature | Monday.com | Custom Build | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Board & Item Management | |||
| Timeline & Gantt Views | |||
| Automations | Unlimited — no monthly quotas | ||
| Dashboards & Reporting | |||
| Time Tracking | |||
| Integrations | Direct API integrations — no middleware limits | ||
| Custom Column Types | |||
| Workload Management | |||
| Monday AI | Intentionally omitted — AI features are nascent and rarely adopted | ||
| App Marketplace | Replaced by built-in features and direct integrations | ||
| Unlimited Automations | No monthly automation caps or quotas | ||
| Data Ownership | Your data on your infrastructure |
Your custom build focuses on the features your team actually uses — typically 15-20% of what Monday.com offers — built exactly for your workflow.
How It Works
From Monday.com to ownership in 5-9 weeks
Free Audit
We analyze your Monday.com usage and identify exactly which features your team actually uses.
Scope & Build
We build your custom project management tool with only the features you need. 5-9 weeks.
Deploy & Migrate
We deploy to your infrastructure, migrate your data from Monday.com, and train your team.
You Own It
Full source code, documentation, and optional maintenance retainer. No vendor lock-in. Ever.