The one-page MVP scope template
A one-page MVP scope template founders can fill in before talking to developers, with an example, and the ten questions that prevent scope creep.
By the v1build engineering team · Published · 6 min read
A clear scope is the difference between a fixed price and an open-ended bill. This is the same one-page format we use for every V1 Sprint. Copy it, fill it in, and send it to any developer you are considering.
The template
| Section | What to write | Example |
|---|---|---|
| The problem | One sentence, in your customer’s words | “Clinic managers spend two hours a day confirming appointments by phone.” |
| Users | Each type of user and what they need | Patients book and reschedule. Staff see the day’s schedule. |
| Three core flows | The three things that must work on day one | Book a slot · Get a reminder and confirm · Staff view and edit the day |
| The AI feature (optional) | One job for AI, and how you’ll know it worked | Replies to reschedule requests; correct in 9 of 10 test cases |
| Integrations | Existing tools it must connect to (two at most for an MVP) | Google Calendar, WhatsApp Business |
| Out of scope | What you are deliberately not building yet | Payments, native apps, multi-clinic support |
| Success measure | The number that tells you it’s working after launch | 50% of bookings confirmed without a phone call |
| Deadline | The date and why | Live before the 1 March pilot |
| Budget | A range you are comfortable with | $8,000 – $12,000 |
| Decision maker | Who approves scope changes | Founder, 30 minutes every Friday |
Ten questions that prevent scope creep
- If we could build only one flow, which one?
- What happens when a user does it wrong?
- Who needs to see data that isn’t theirs, if anyone?
- Do we need payments on day one, or can we invoice manually at first?
- Web first, or does it have to be a phone app?
- Which integrations can be a manual export for the first month?
- What does the admin need to do without calling a developer?
- What must be true for us to call this launched?
- What are we tracking from day one?
- What is explicitly not in this version?
Why “out of scope” matters most
Every argument about price during a build comes from something that wasn’t written down. A strong out-of-scope list protects you as much as the builder: it means anything new is priced before it starts, instead of quietly stretching the timeline.
What to do with it
Send the filled-in page to two or three builders and ask each for a fixed price and a week-by-week plan. If someone can’t quote from this page, ask what is missing; that tells you what they’ll get wrong later. Or send it to us and get a fixed price within 24 hours.