Methodology and sources.
What this site is, what the cost ranges mean, where the figures come from, and what we do not do. The page is the destination for citation backlinks across the site; every figure on every other page traces here.
What this site is.
Independent reference. Not affiliated with any KYC vendor, regulator, or industry body. Published by Digital Signet for fintech operators pricing a vendor RFP, building a per-customer onboarding budget, or sanity-checking a quote.
The site is a reference document, not a sales asset. There is no email gate on the calculator. There is no chat widget. There is one advisory CTA in the footer; it is contextual and disclosed.
What the cost ranges mean.
Cost figures are presented as low / mid / high ranges. Low assumes mid-tier vendor pricing on a committed-use basis, efficient ops with junior-analyst-led case work, and conservative monitoring cadence. Mid assumes published-rate vendor pricing, industry-typical ops efficiency, and standard monitoring cadence. High assumes premium vendor pricing on a non-committed basis, less-efficient ops with higher senior-MLRO involvement, and aggressive monitoring cadence.
Per-customer figures are fully loaded: vendor checks plus screening cycles plus ops labour plus EDD overlay weighted by risk mix plus the year-one share of ongoing monitoring on the active book. Annual recurring figures are calculated against the active customer base size separately.
Sources, dated.
What we do not do.
No vendor ranking. Vendor names appear in descriptive context only. The site does not publish a "best KYC platform" list.
No paid placement disguised as editorial. Where an affiliate relationship exists with a partner, it is disclosed at the point of mention.
No cost figures sourced from a single vendor blog and presented as neutral benchmarks. Vendor figures are cited as such and used illustratively.
No cosmetic date-bumps. The site updates when statutory or regulatory references change, when major industry benchmarks publish a new edition, or when vendor pricing materially shifts.
Updates policy.
Updated when statutory or regulatory references change. Updated when LSEG, PwC, Fenergo, or Lucinity publish a new edition. Updated when a major vendor materially shifts published pricing. Not updated for "freshness" date-bumps.
All cost data lives in a single centralised file (src/data/kyc-costs.ts) so figures can be revised across the site without editing components.
The privacy boundary.
Every KYC programme also generates GDPR exposure: identity documents, biometric templates, and PEP-screening results are personal data with their own processing and retention rules. The cost of getting that wrong is not bundled into KYC vendor pricing. See gdprcompliancecost.com for the privacy-cost side of the same operating model.
Disclaimer.
Independent reference. Not legal or regulatory advice. Consult a qualified compliance specialist for advice specific to your jurisdiction and risk profile. Cost ranges are illustrative; vendor and audit firm pricing is negotiated and varies materially with volume, risk profile, and contract terms.