Software projects often start with the mindset of "build it fast, ship it, we'll fix it later". The product goes live, users arrive, sales happen and... nobody goes back to those "to be fixed later" things. Months pass, and when you want to add a new feature you get the answer "we can't, we'd break the existing structure". This is exactly the point where the bill for technical debt starts to come due. In this article, we explain what technical debt is, why it accumulates quickly and paralyzes the project, and how you as a client can take precautions from the start.
What is technical debt?
Technical debt is the future cost arising from choosing a short-term quick solution instead of the long-term correct one. Just like financial debt:
- It provides quick money at first (fast delivery).
- Interest accrues on it (every new feature has to be added to the old "temporary solution").
- Over time it becomes impossible to pay off (the need to rewrite the system from scratch).
Ward Cunningham (1992), who introduced it as a software metaphor, described the future correction cost of quickly written code as "debt". Today this is still the most accurate definition.
How does technical debt accumulate?
There are five typical ways it accumulates:
1. Rushed delivery pressure
Code written under the pressure of "let it be live by Friday evening" ends up lacking tests, documentation and architectural planning. Every rushed delivery leaves unpaid debt for the future team.
2. Wrong technology choice
A technology chosen 5 years ago because "this framework is old but we know it" is like a car that can no longer find spare parts today. The maintenance cost continuously increases over the years.
3. Copy-paste coding
If the same business rule is repeated in 10 different places in the project, one day a single change has to be made in 10 places at once. Guess what: it gets forgotten in one of them and starts producing wrong results.
4. Lack of tests
In code without automated tests, no change can be made safely. The developer does not touch it out of fear of "breaking it"; the system fossilizes.
5. Undocumented "magic" code
Code snippets commented with "don't remove this line, it stops working, I don't know why" are common in real life. When the person who knows leaves, control of the project is lost.
The measurable costs of technical debt
The concrete costs reflected in the business when debt is not paid are:
Decline in development speed
While adding a new feature takes 2 days at first, after 1 year the same type of feature comes to take 2 weeks. Code complexity increases not linearly but exponentially.
Increase in the number of bugs
While one area is being fixed, two other places break. Regression bugs eat away at the product's reliability; customer loss begins.
Collapse of team morale
Talented developers do not want to work with "spaghetti code"; the team leaves one by one. The replacement has to spend 3-6 months understanding the system.
Business decisions become impossible
When you say "let's launch a mobile app in 3 months", you get the answer "our infrastructure doesn't allow it". Software turns into an obstacle in front of business decisions.
How can you prevent technical debt as a client?
You are not the software developer; but as an investor, you are the overseer of technical decisions. Here are 7 concrete approaches:
1. Don't fall into the "let's do it once and be done" trap
Software is a living product, not a one-time project. Always set aside an annual maintenance/improvement budget alongside the development budget. A good estimate: 15-25% of the initial development cost per year.
2. Make the "acceptance criteria" clear in the contract
"It seems to work" is not an acceptance criterion. Test coverage, documentation and code quality standards should be written in the contract. Professional development companies already propose these criteria themselves.
3. Make sure you own the code
Source code, database, dependencies — you should have full access to all of them. The "it runs on their server, they won't give it to us" scenario is the worst dependency trap.
4. Question the technology choice
Don't hesitate to ask "Why this framework?". An active community, long-term support and the team's expertise should be the selection criteria. Choose based on sustainability, not trends.
5. Plan regular "debt repayment" rounds
Allocate 15-20% of development cycles to technical improvement. Adding a "this time let's fix that old bad part" plan in each new feature period keeps debt continuously under control.
6. Request code reviews
In professional teams, every line of code written is reviewed by at least one other developer. Single developer, double check is the most economical quality control in the software world.
7. Have a third-party audit done
Once a year, have a technical audit done by an expert independent from your project. Problems the current team does not see or does not want to see are revealed.
Is there "good" technical debt too?
Yes. Conscious, planned, temporary technical debt is sometimes the right decision:
- Testing the market with an MVP (Minimum Viable Product) — to see whether the idea catches on.
- When there is an urgent business requirement — for example, a Black Friday campaign, a seasonal product.
- In new projects with high uncertainty — refactored later when the "correct" architecture becomes clear.
What matters is knowing that this debt is taken on consciously, that when it will be paid is planned, and that it is tracked by the team. Otherwise, "good debt" also turns into "bad debt".
Frequently asked questions
How do I know if there is technical debt in my current system?
Three signs: adding a new feature takes months, small changes break different places, the team says "let's not touch this part". Even one of these three signs is a signal of technical debt.
Rewrite from scratch or improve the existing one?
General rule: the cost of rewriting from scratch is 2-3 times the estimate, while the cost of refactoring is more controlled. To decide to rewrite from scratch, you need to be sure that "we won't be able to keep even 50% of the existing system even after 6 months".
Is there a technical debt difference between open source and custom development?
Open source (WordPress, Magento) lowers the technical debt risk at the start because there is a ready infrastructure. But when excessive plugins and customizations are made, debt begins to accumulate. Custom development is more expensive at the start; if managed correctly, debt accumulation is lower in the long run.
How much should the maintenance cost be?
In industry terms, 15-25% of the initial development cost as an annual maintenance budget is healthy. In projects below this, technical debt accumulates rapidly.
Conclusion: Technical debt is invisible but inevitable
Every software project accumulates a certain amount of technical debt; the question is not "will it happen?" but "will we be able to manage it?". As a client, your strongest weapon is to question your development partner not only on business requirements but also on code quality, testing, documentation and long-term sustainability.
At Şimşek Software, we build every project with a long-term ownership mindset: including tests and documentation, with the code ownership yours and the technology choice explained. If you are not sure about the health of an existing system, you can request a technical audit and we can plan together which steps should be taken.
