FREE CALCULATOR · ~60 SECONDS
CUSTOM AI BUILD VS
AGENCY SUBSCRIPTION.
Most AI automation agencies charge $3,000–$15,000/month. A custom build with direct API costs (BYOK = bring your own key) is usually a one-time fee plus your actual OpenAI/Anthropic bill. This calculator shows the break-even month.
Typical AI automation agency retainer is $3k-$15k/mo
Typical custom AI agent build: $5k-$20k
OpenAI / Anthropic / Twilio at published rates. Typical: $15-$400
Vercel + Postgres for a typical AI agent
Maintain plan covers updates + bug fixes. Set 0 if you don't want one.
/THE MATH
AGENCY MONTHLY
$5,000
CUSTOM MONTHLY (BYOK)
$120
MONTHLY SAVINGS
$4,880
BREAK-EVEN MONTH
Month 3
/FIVE-YEAR TOTAL COST
Agency total
$300,000
Custom (BYOK) total
$19,200
5-yr difference
$280,800
/WHY BYOK?
Most agencies bundle the AI provider cost into their monthly fee with a 2-5x markup. That makes the math opaque and locks you in — if you want to leave, you lose the system.
BYOK (Bring Your Own Key) means your OpenAI/Anthropic/Twilio accounts are yours. We build the system, you pay providers directly at published rates, and you can revoke our access on day 91 if you want.
The catch: BYOK doesn't fit every scope. High-volume customer support agents can rack up $400-$1,000/mo in API costs. We tell you honestly which scopes are BYOK-friendly and which aren't.
MAKE THE MATH REAL
30-minute discovery call. We'll scope your AI agent, give you a fixed quote, and tell you BYOK API cost estimates based on your actual volume.