Comparison · In-house dev vs BackToMe
Build the withdrawal button in-house, or plug in BackToMe?
Having your developers code the button, the form, the acknowledgement of receipt and the archiving is possible, and it is sometimes even the right choice. But it is not a one-day project: you have to build the complete chain, guarantee that the proof holds up on the day of a dispute, then maintain it at every change to the text. The real comparison is not "code vs subscription", it is "a project to run and maintain vs a tool ready to plug in".
The head-to-head, line by line
| Criterion | bespoke | BackToMe |
|---|---|---|
| A visible button on the site | ||
| Label compliant with the applicable national text | if well done | |
| Acknowledgement of receipt by email (that the customer keeps) | to build + maintain | |
| Archiving that cannot be altered, that holds up in a dispute | possible but to be proven | |
| Retained for 5 years, hosted in France | your infrastructure | |
| Monitoring: alert if the button disappears | to develop as well | |
| Works on all your platforms from one account | coded for one stack | |
| Tracked updates if the regulation changes | your team must follow the law | |
| Time to compliance | 3 to 6 weeks | 5 minutes |
| Maintenance | on you, ongoing | zero |
| Cost | 15 to 40 k€ TCO over 3 years | 25 € excl. VAT/month |
Comparison at the level of the category of solution, not a named product. Established from the criteria of Directive (EU) 2023/2673 and Directive 2011/83/EU and common practice; subject to change.
When in-house development is justified
- •You have a mature tech team and a comfortable timeline (> 3 months).
- •You have complex business rules (multi-vendor marketplace, bespoke pro-rata) that require deep integration.
- •You want to avoid any external dependency and you accept carrying the regulatory watch for life.
- •You are a large retailer with a proprietary IT system and a substantial compliance budget.
When you need BackToMe
- You want to be compliant this week, not in two months.
- You do not want to tie up your developers on a regulatory subject.
- You want proof that holds up, ready to use, not to rebuild.
- You do not want to be responsible for the legal watch and the updates.
The verdict
A year of BackToMe costs less than half a day of development. Bespoke makes sense if you already have the team, the time and atypical business needs. Otherwise, you pay for the development AND the lifelong maintenance to obtain again what BackToMe already provides, ready to plug in, updated, and monitored, in five minutes.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a withdrawal button built in-house cost?
Reckon on 3 to 6 weeks of development for the complete chain (button, two-step form, acknowledgement of receipt by email that the customer keeps, dated archiving), then ongoing maintenance (regulatory updates, dependencies, monitoring). The total cost of ownership over 3 years commonly runs between 15 000 and 40 000 €, not counting the risk if one link is not compliant.
Is in-house development "safer" than a SaaS?
Not necessarily. The tricky point is not the button, it is the robustness of the proof (a date that can no longer be changed, proper retention) and keeping up with changes in the law. In-house development has to rebuild all of that, prove it, then maintain it. BackToMe already provides it, with locked archiving, verifiable by a third party.
Can you build on one platform and plug BackToMe into the others?
Yes. Nothing stops a hybrid approach. But in practice, as soon as you have several sites or several platforms, BackToMe (a single account, a single line of code, everywhere) avoids multiplying the developments and the maintenance.