Documented endpoints
OpenAPI or GraphQL schema published, so your frontend or mobile team is never guessing at a payload shape.
A backend is where shortcuts compound. A data model chosen carelessly in week one becomes the reason a feature takes three weeks in year two. We spend real time on schema design, because that is the decision you cannot cheaply reverse.
Everything we build ships with API documentation, a test suite around the critical paths, and structured logging — so the system is operable by people who were not there when it was written. That includes your future in-house team.
What we build
- REST and GraphQL APIs with versioning, pagination, filtering, and consistent error shapes.
- Authentication and authorisation — JWT or session, refresh tokens, SSO, and role- or attribute-based permissions.
- Database design — normalised schemas, sensible indexes, and migrations that run safely against live data.
- Background jobs and queues for email, exports, imports, notifications, and anything slow.
- Third-party integrations — payments, shipping, accounting, SMS, WhatsApp, ERP — with retries and idempotency.
- Webhooks, both consuming and publishing, with signature verification and replay handling.
- File handling — uploads, virus scanning, image processing, and signed URLs.
- Observability — structured logs, metrics, error tracking, and alerts that fire before your customers call.
Non-negotiables in every backend we ship
Tests on the critical paths
Auth, payments, and anything touching money or personal data get automated coverage.
Safe migrations
Schema changes that can run against a live database without a maintenance window.
Secrets kept out of code
Environment-based configuration and a secrets manager — never credentials in the repository.
Rate limiting and abuse controls
Because a public API without them is a bill waiting to happen.
Backups you have tested
A backup nobody has restored from is a hypothesis, not a backup.
Key facts
- Languages
- Node.js/TypeScript, Python, PHP/Laravel, Go — matched to your team's future hiring
- Databases
- PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB, Redis; vector stores where AI features need them
- Hosting
- AWS, Azure, GCP, DigitalOcean, or your own servers
- Documentation
- OpenAPI/Swagger or GraphQL schema, plus a written runbook
- Security
- OWASP API Top 10 reviewed before launch
- Ownership
- Repository, infrastructure-as-code, and credentials transferred on delivery
REST or GraphQL?
| REST | GraphQL | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Straightforward resources, public APIs, caching | Many clients with different data needs |
| Caching | Simple, HTTP-native | Needs deliberate work |
| Over-fetching | Common without care | Solved by design |
| Learning curve for consumers | Low | Moderate |
| Tooling maturity | Universal | Strong but narrower |
We default to REST for most business systems and reach for GraphQL when several different clients need different slices of the same data. Either way the choice gets justified in writing, not assumed.
Technology stack
We choose tools for what your team can maintain after handover, not for novelty. Typical stack for this service:
Node.jsNestJSPythonFastAPILaravelGoPostgreSQLRedisDockerAWS
Questions, answered.
Can you build only the backend if we have our own frontend team?
Yes, and it is a common arrangement. We agree the API contract up front — endpoints, payloads, error codes — publish it as OpenAPI or a GraphQL schema, and give your frontend team a staging environment plus mock data so they can build in parallel rather than waiting on us.
Which language and framework should we use?
The one your future team can hire for and maintain. We build in Node.js, Python, Laravel, and Go, and we recommend based on your existing stack, your hiring market, and the workload — not on what we enjoy writing. If you already have a Laravel system, adding a Go service usually costs more than it saves.
Can you fix or scale an existing backend?
Yes. We start with a paid audit covering the data model, query performance, security posture, and deployment setup, and come back with a prioritised list separating what is genuinely urgent from what is merely untidy. Often a handful of indexes and one query rewrite solves what looked like a scaling problem.
How do you handle security?
Reviewed against the OWASP API Top 10 before launch: authentication and object-level authorisation, input validation, rate limiting, secrets management, dependency scanning, and encrypted data at rest and in transit. For regulated projects we can arrange third-party penetration testing.
Will it scale?
We design for a realistic multiple of your expected load rather than for imaginary web-scale traffic, because premature distribution is its own kind of failure. That means proper indexing, connection pooling, caching, queued background work, and a path to horizontal scaling when you need it.
Do we get documentation?
Always — a published API specification, a written runbook covering deployment and common operational tasks, and inline documentation on the non-obvious parts. This is included, not a paid extra.
You do not have to commit to a whole build.
Most people arrive somewhere between “just curious” and “ready to sign”. These are the smaller, fixed-fee ways in — each one useful on its own, and each one credited or extended into a bigger project only if you decide you want that.
Code & architecture audit
You have a codebase — inherited, stalled, or just worrying — and want an honest read before committing to anything.
- Written report on architecture, security, data model and deployment
- A prioritised list separating genuinely urgent from merely untidy
- A straight answer on repair versus rebuild, even when rebuild pays us more
- The report is yours whether or not you continue with us
Fixed fee, agreed before we start
Ask about this →
Scoping sprint
You know roughly what you want but not what it should cost or contain. Turn a vague idea into a specification you could hand to any supplier.
- Process mapping with the people who actually do the work
- A feature-by-feature written specification
- Wireframes of the core screens
- A fixed build price and delivery date at the end
- Fully credited against the build if you go ahead with us
Fixed fee, credited against the build
Ask about this →
Starter build
One workflow, one screen set, live and in use — rather than waiting on a full platform.
- A single working feature deployed to production
- Real infrastructure, not a prototype
- Extends into the larger build later without rework
- Full source code on delivery, as always
Fixed price, scoped small on purpose
Ask about this →
Maintenance retainer
An existing product that needs keeping alive: patches, OS updates, store policy changes and monitoring.
- Security and dependency patching
- iOS and Android release compatibility
- Uptime and error monitoring with a named response window
- An allowance of small changes each month
Monthly, 30 days' notice, no lock-in
Ask about this →
Not sure which fits? Describe the problem and we will tell you — including when the answer is that you do not need us yet.
Six things we put in writing.
Not values on a wall — contract terms. Ask any other supplier to match them line by line.
A price in 24 hours
Send a brief, get a fixed written price and a delivery date the next working day. Free, no obligation, and the scope document is yours to keep even if you go elsewhere.
The price does not move
Fixed, not an estimate. If scope changes we re-quote in writing and you approve before we build it. You will never open a surprise invoice.
Half on delivery
50% to start, 50% when it is live and you are satisfied. You never fund the whole project up front.
Unlimited design revisions
We do not write production code until you approve the screens. Changing your mind at that stage costs nothing.
You own everything
Full source code, design files and credentials on delivery. No licence, no platform fee, nothing that stops another developer taking over.
30 days of fixes included
Free bug fixing for a month after launch, then an optional retainer only if you want one.
Every one of these is in the agreement before you pay anything. See how we evidence our claims →
Free quote
Tell us what you're building.
A paragraph is enough to start. You get a scoping conversation and a fixed written price with a delivery date within 24 hours — free, and yours to keep whether or not you go ahead with us.
- A senior engineer replies, not a salesperson
- Written quote inside 24 hours
- NDA before you send anything sensitive — just ask
- No obligation, no follow-up sequence
Prefer to talk now? WhatsApp +92 300 097 0544 or hello@qalmax.com.
Get the backend right the first time.
Documented, tested, and yours to own. Fixed-price quote in 24 hours.