If you’ve started researching what it would take to move your Access database to Power Apps, you’ve probably noticed that nobody wants to give you a number. Consultants say “it depends.” Microsoft’s documentation doesn’t mention pricing at all. Forum posts from five years ago quote figures that may or may not reflect today’s reality.
This post gives you real numbers — and more importantly, explains exactly what drives them so you can make an informed decision before you talk to anyone.
The honest answer: it depends on four things
Before the ranges, you need to understand what actually determines the cost of a migration project. Every legitimate quote you receive will be driven by these four factors.
The complexity of your data model. A database with five clean, well-normalized tables linked by proper relationships migrates quickly. A database with thirty tables, redundant fields, calculated values stored instead of derived, and relationships enforced informally through application logic takes significantly longer to redesign and migrate properly.
How much VBA code exists. This is where most Access databases hide their real complexity. The forms and tables are visible. The VBA code sitting behind every form, module, and report is where the actual business logic lives — validation rules, automation, integrations with Outlook or Excel, custom calculations. Every line of VBA needs to be understood, documented, and rebuilt in Power Automate, Power Fx, or a combination of both. The more VBA, the more cost.
The number and complexity of forms and reports. A simple data entry form takes a few hours to rebuild in Power Apps. A form with cascading dropdowns, conditional visibility, subforms displaying related records, calculated totals, and custom navigation takes considerably longer. Reports are often underestimated — Access reports built over years to exact specifications require careful reconstruction in Power BI or Power Apps.
The state of your data. Clean, consistent data loads into Dataverse quickly. Data with duplicates, nulls in required fields, inconsistent formatting, and broken relationships requires cleanup before it can be loaded — and that cleanup takes time. Most legacy Access databases have data quality issues that weren’t visible because the application worked around them.
Real cost ranges
These figures reflect professional consulting rates for a developer who knows both Access and Power Platform well. They assume a Power Apps canvas or model-driven app on Dataverse as the destination.
Simple migration: $6,000 – $12,000
Five to ten tables with clean relationships. Basic data entry forms — no heavy VBA, no complex conditional logic. A handful of standard reports. Data that is reasonably clean. Fewer than five external integrations or none at all. At this level, the project typically runs four to eight weeks and the primary work is rebuilding the UI in Power Apps and migrating the data into Dataverse.
Moderately complex migration: $12,000 – $30,000
Ten to twenty-five tables with a mix of clean and messy relationships. Meaningful VBA automation that needs to be rebuilt in Power Automate. Forms with subforms, conditional logic, and calculated fields. Multiple reports that users depend on regularly. Some data cleanup required. One or two external integrations — QuickBooks, Outlook, SharePoint, or similar. These projects typically run two to four months.
Complex migration: $30,000 – $75,000+
Twenty-five or more tables, often with years of organic growth and a data model that needs redesign rather than just migration. Extensive VBA — hundreds or thousands of lines across multiple modules. Heavy reporting requirements. Significant data quality work. Multiple external integrations, possibly including legacy systems with no modern API. These are projects measured in months, sometimes exceeding six, and they require close collaboration with the people who know how the current system works.
What’s usually included — and what isn’t
A professional migration quote should include discovery and documentation of the current system, data model design for the new platform, data migration and validation, rebuilding forms and workflows in Power Apps and Power Automate, user acceptance testing, and a defined period of post-launch support.
What is often not included: ongoing support and maintenance after the initial warranty period, training beyond a basic handoff session, Power BI report development (this is typically scoped separately), and future enhancements or new features requested after the project closes. Ask specifically about each of these before signing a contract.
Why cheap quotes should worry you
You will find people willing to migrate your Access database for $1,500 or $2,000. Occasionally that reflects a genuinely simple system and an efficient developer. More often it reflects one of three things: the developer hasn’t fully assessed the complexity and will need change orders to finish, the migration will be a literal copy of the old system’s problems into a new environment without proper redesign, or the work will be done by someone learning Power Apps on your project.
A migration that looks cheap but replicates your current data model problems, skips data cleanup, and doesn’t properly rebuild the business logic will cost you more in the long run than a thorough project done right the first time.
The question nobody asks but should
Most conversations about migration cost focus on the development cost. The more important question is what the current system is costing you — in staff time spent on workarounds, in errors caused by data that multiple people can edit simultaneously, in the inability to access records from a phone or outside the office, in the compliance risk of data sitting in a file with no audit trail and no row-level security.
When you add those costs up, a $20,000 migration that eliminates them often pays for itself within the first year.
How to get an accurate quote
The most important thing you can do before approaching a consultant is document what you have. Count your tables and note the record volumes. List your forms and flag the ones with complex logic. Write down every automation the system performs — emails sent, calculations run, data exported. Note every external system the database touches.
The more clearly you can describe what exists, the more accurately any competent consultant can scope the work. Vague descriptions produce padded estimates with contingency built in. Detailed documentation produces tighter, more competitive quotes.
If a consultant quotes you without asking detailed questions about your VBA code, your data volume, your integrations, and your reporting requirements — that’s a red flag. Those questions aren’t bureaucratic box-checking. They’re the only way to give you a number that reflects your actual project.
Ready to get a real number?
At AccessEvolved, we specialize in exactly this kind of work — moving legacy Access databases to Power Apps and Dataverse, done right, with transparent pricing. We’ll assess your current system, give you a detailed scope, and tell you exactly what the project will cost before any work begins.
Reach out at accessevolved.com to start the conversation.
Ready to talk through your options? Reach out to Anthony at AccessEvolved — email anthony@accessevolved.com or call 212-951-1010. No sales pitch, just a straight conversation about what makes sense for your situation.