Custom Software Development in Los Angeles, CA
A large share of the calls we get from LA start with a project that already has a history: a freelancer who stopped responding, an agency that changed hands mid-build, a founder who's now paying three different people to argue about whose fault the bugs are. We take over from there, or build new from scratch if that's what the audit actually finds you need. Either way the price sits between $2,500 and $15,000 or more, set after a free audit rather than guessed at over email. We work with LA companies entirely remotely, with on-site visits available on request.
When the project already has three names attached to it
The pattern in LA usually isn't a company that never tried to build software. It's a company on its second or third attempt: a freelancer found on a marketplace, then an agency hired to clean it up, then a different freelancer hired to clean up the agency. Nobody left documentation, the person who understood the database left with the last contract, and every new hire wants to throw it out and start over because reading someone else's half-finished code is harder than writing your own.
We don't start with that assumption either way. An audit of what actually exists comes first: what's built, what's tested, what's documented, and whether the foundation is worth keeping. Sometimes the honest answer is that six weeks of focused fixes gets you further than a rebuild. Sometimes it isn't. See software project rescue for how that audit is structured.
Pricing, in the order people actually ask
Why can't you just quote me a number now?
Because the price for a rescue depends on what's actually in the codebase, not on what anyone remembers being built. A project that's 80% solid and needs targeted fixes prices very differently from one where the foundation has to be replaced, and we can't tell which one yours is without opening it up.
What does the audit itself cost, and what do I get?
The audit is free and takes a few days. You get a written assessment: what's built, what's missing, what's a genuine risk, and a fixed price and timeline for whichever path, patch or rebuild, makes sense.
What does a patch-and-stabilize job usually cost?
$2,500 to $6,000. A handful of real bugs, missing error handling, or one integration that never worked right, fixed against code that's otherwise sound.
What if half the project has to be redone?
$6,000 to $15,000. Some modules kept, others rebuilt, wired back together and tested as one system rather than a patchwork of eras.
And a full rebuild, starting over?
From $15,000, scoped into milestones so you see working software early rather than waiting months to find out if this attempt is different from the last one. New builds with no prior history land in the same three bands.
Small fixes outside a defined project run $150 to $200 an hour, and ongoing support starts at $300 a month. Every number here, and what our other six services cost, is on the pricing page.
What we actually do once the audit is done
Take over an existing codebase
Read what's there, fix what's actually broken, and document it so the next person, whether that's us in a year or your own future hire, isn't starting from zero again.
Build new, when that's the right call
Internal tools, customer portals and integrations built from scratch when there's no prior history to work around, priced and scoped the same fixed way.
Reconnect systems a previous build left isolated
A common failure mode: the last developer built each piece separately and never finished wiring them together. We finish that part.
Private AI on your own documents
An assistant trained on your contracts or production files, hosted under your own accounts rather than a shared one. See the private AI page.
A typical rescue, walked through
An example pattern, not a named client.
A production company hires an agency to build a client-facing project portal. Six months and one deposit later, the agency delivers a login screen, a partial dashboard, and no working way to upload a file, then stops answering emails. The founder is stuck deciding whether to sue, start over, or find someone to finish it. The audit usually finds the same thing in cases like this: the database structure is fine, the missing piece is the actual file handling and the permissions system nobody built yet. That's typically a $6,000 to $15,000 job, six to ten weeks, because it's finishing a known gap rather than discovering new ones every week.
Who calls us in LA
Entertainment & production companies
Project and asset-tracking portals, client review tools, and integrations between scheduling and billing systems built for how a production actually runs.
E-commerce & DTC brands
Custom storefront logic a platform's app store can't provide, inventory integrations, and internal tools for fulfillment and returns.
Law firms
Client portals, intake automation, and private AI trained on case files, plus taking over case-management builds a previous vendor left unfinished.
Clinics & healthcare practices
Scheduling and intake tools wired to existing EHR systems, and patient portals that reduce front-desk call volume.
After the handover
The point of a rescue is that it doesn't need another one. Two tiers cover what comes next.
Monitoring and small fixes
Uptime monitoring, security patching, and a fast response when something breaks. Fits a system that's now stable.
Ongoing development
Everything in Care, plus continuous feature work and DevOps attention, so the next chapter isn't another abandonment.
Serving Los Angeles, honestly
IG Digital Lab doesn't have an office in Los Angeles. We work with companies across the LA area, DTLA, Burbank, Culver City, Santa Monica, entirely remotely, with on-site visits available on request rather than built into the standard process.
For a rescue in particular, remote usually works fine: the audit reads code and configuration, not a room. If a specific milestone genuinely calls for being on-site, that's arranged separately rather than priced into every project by default.
Software is one of seven things we do. For a website or customer-facing app, see web design in Los Angeles. For a native or cross-platform app, see mobile app development in Los Angeles. For AI answering calls or running a workflow rather than software your team uses directly, see AI automation in Los Angeles.
Also in Los Angeles
Start with a free audit
Send us what exists, however incomplete, and we'll tell you honestly what it would take to finish it, fix it, or start over. No sales pressure toward the more expensive option, since we're the ones who have to build whichever path we recommend.
How we buildFrequently asked questions
What LA founders ask after a previous developer didn't work out.
How much does it cost to fix or finish a software project in LA?
It depends on what the audit finds. A project that mostly works and needs a handful of fixes lands in the $2,500 to $6,000 range. One that needs several parts rebuilt or reconnected runs $6,000 to $15,000. A rebuild from the ground up, because the existing code isn't worth saving, starts at $15,000. The audit that tells you which category you're in is free and comes with a written scope either way.
How long does it take to pick up where another developer left off?
The audit itself takes a few days. After that, a small set of fixes usually runs three to six weeks. A partial rebuild runs six to twelve weeks. A full rebuild is scoped into milestones so you're not waiting months for the first sign that this attempt is going better than the last one.
Can you take over a software project another developer or agency left unfinished?
Yes, and that's a large share of what we're asked to do in LA. We start with an audit of what actually exists rather than a blind promise to finish someone else's plan: what's built, what's documented, what's missing, and whether it's worth finishing or starting over. See the software project rescue page for how that audit runs before you commit to anything else.
How do you judge code you didn't write, to know if it's worth fixing instead of starting over?
We run it, read it, and check it against what it's supposed to do, the same way we'd review a teammate's work. The signals that push toward starting over are usually the same three: no tests, no documentation of decisions, and a structure that fights every small change. If it passes that check, we build on top of it and say so in writing.
We've been burned by a contractor before. What's different about how this is structured?
The scope and price are fixed and written down before any code changes hands, the repository and hosting are in your company's name from day one so nobody can hold access hostage, and you see the system running at each milestone rather than waiting for one big reveal. None of that depends on trusting our word twice.
Show us what's already built.
A free audit of what exists, a straight answer on whether it's worth saving, and a fixed price either way. No pressure toward the more expensive option.
Or call and text (916) 618-0502. Office at 3550 Watt Ave, Suite 408, Sacramento, CA 95821.
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Tell us what you need. We reply the same business day.