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Maintenance Costs vs Development Costs

publish date: 2026/05/30 21:32:22.823962 UTC

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How do the costs of software maintenance typically compare to the initial development costs?

Maintenance costs are always lower than initial development costs

Maintenance costs are roughly equal to development costs

Maintenance costs are zero if the system was well designed initially

Maintenance costs are often several times the initial development costs

Correct Answer

Maintenance costs are often several times the initial development costs

Explanation

Although maintenance processes are sometimes considered less challenging than original software development, the costs of maintenance are often several times the initial development costs.

Reference

Software Engineering, Ian Sommerville, 9th edition

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