SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT

Software Development Agreement

A development agreement between Northwind Studio and Acme Co covering the design, build, and delivery of custom software.

PREPARED FOR

Acme Co

PREPARED BY

Northwind Studio

DATE

August 18, 2026

Northwind Studio

SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT

Parties and Project

This agreement is entered into by Northwind Studio (the "Developer") and Acme Co (the "Client") for the software described below. Replace the sample details with the specifics of your product, target stack, and delivery milestones before signing.

SPRINTS

Two-week sprints from kickoff to launch, with demos each Friday.

ENVIRONMENTS

Development, staging, and production, deployed via CI/CD.

DELIVERY

16 weeks

From kickoff to production launch and handover to the Client's team.

Recitals

The Client wishes to engage the Developer to design, build, and deliver a custom software product for internal or external use. The Developer has the engineering, product, and infrastructure capabilities to deliver that product on the schedule agreed below. On acceptance, the Client owns the deliverables produced under this contract, with the Developer retaining rights to any pre-existing tools and libraries it uses to build them.

Northwind Studio

SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT

Scope of Work

The engagement runs across three phases. Each closes with a demo, written acceptance criteria, and a review meeting before the next begins.

PHASE 1 · DISCOVERY AND ARCHITECTURE

Discovery and technical design

Product workshops, prioritized backlog, technical architecture document, and an initial system diagram covering data model, APIs, third-party integrations, and infrastructure. Ends with a signed-off scope for the build phase.

PHASE 2 · BUILD AND ITERATION

Build, review, and iterate

Feature development in two-week sprints with demos, sprint notes, and a running staging environment. Automated tests cover critical paths, and code is pushed to the Client's repository so review is possible at any time.

PHASE 3 · LAUNCH AND HANDOVER

Launch and handover

User acceptance testing, production deployment, monitoring configuration, and a handover package that includes runbooks, credentials transfer, and a 30-day warranty period for defect fixes at no additional cost.

What is included

Product discovery, backlog, and technical architecture document
Frontend, backend, and integration development against the agreed scope
Automated tests, CI/CD pipeline, and staging environment
Production launch, monitoring, and runbooks for the Client's team
30-day post-launch warranty for defect fixes on delivered features

Not included: ongoing hosting fees, third-party service subscriptions, mobile app store submissions, and net-new features requested after the scope is signed off. New scope can be added in writing at any time.

Northwind Studio

SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT

Fees and IP

The engagement is a fixed-fee build billed against the three phases. Line items below map to the phases in the scope of work.

Item	Rate	Qty	Amount
Discovery and technical design	$12,000	1	$12,000
Build and iteration (8 sprints)	$72,000	1	$72,000
Launch and handover	$8,000	1	$8,000
Total			$92,000

Payment Schedule

Milestone	Share	Amount
On signature	25%	$23,000
End of discovery	15%	$13,800
Bi-weekly build invoices	50%	$46,000
On production launch	10%	$9,200

Intellectual Property

On full payment, all custom code and deliverables produced under this contract are assigned to the Client. The Developer retains ownership of pre-existing tools, libraries, and general know-how and grants the Client a perpetual, royalty-free license to use them as embedded in the deliverables.

Northwind Studio

SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT

Acceptance

To proceed, complete the fields below and sign. This agreement is valid for 30 days from the date on the cover.

PRODUCT NAME OR CODE

e.g. Client Portal v1

TARGET LAUNCH DATE

e.g. March 15, 2027

I confirm I am authorized to approve this build on behalf of the Client.

CLIENT

Sign here

Acme Co

DEVELOPER

Sign here

Northwind Studio

About this template

The Software Development Agreement template is a five-page document for putting a build engagement on paper before code is written. It carries a project overview with stat cards, recitals, a three-phase scope of work, a fixed-fee investment table, and an acceptance page with inputs and signatures.

It is intentionally simple: rename what needs renaming in Bonsai, list your actual milestones and stack, and set the price. Merge fields handle the developer and client details, and the last page collects the product name, target launch date, and both signatures.

Details

Format: Doc · 5 pages

Recipients: Client + Provider

Signature: Client + Provider

Merge fields: Sender, Receiver, Date

Software Development Agreement Template

Software Development Agreement Template