Separate cost categories
Break costs into implementation, recurring platform, hosting, integrations, third-party services, support and internal operations.
Platform scope
Compare equivalent licensing and service scope rather than headline package names.
Integration effort
Estimate each CRM, KYC, payment, reporting and connectivity integration separately.
Infrastructure
Include hosting, monitoring, backup, network connectivity and operational tooling.
Change budget
Reserve capacity for post-launch configuration and integration changes.
Internal operations
Technology cost is not only vendor invoices; include staff time for support, reconciliation, risk and administration.
Scenario model
Build base, growth and higher-complexity scenarios so architecture choices can be compared over time.