I'm Shashikant Shah, a software engineer with a B.Tech in Computer Science and Engineering, and a digital marketing expert in Kathmandu. Backend development is the server side of the software I build: the APIs, databases, logins, payment steps and integrations behind a website or app. It's for founders building a product, businesses whose current system is slow or fragile, and teams that have a frontend and need a proper API behind it. The web development page covers the whole site; this page is the server side alone, part of the work on my software development expert page.

Short answer: backend development in Nepal means designing the database, building the API your website or app calls, handling login and roles, connecting eSewa, Khalti or Fonepay for payment, and wiring in the other tools you use. I build it in Node.js with PostgreSQL or MongoDB, in your repository, on hosting you control, with a written scope and a fixed price first.

When you need this

Usually the frontend exists first. A designer has made the screens, or a website is already live, and the person who built it is gone. Now orders need to be saved, customers need to log in, and the accounts department wants a report that matches the bank.

The other moment is when an existing backend starts to hurt. The admin panel takes twenty seconds to load a list. A Khalti payment confirms on the app but not in the database. Nobody knows which server the code runs on, because the last developer set it up on his own account.

The third case, common in Nepal, is a business that runs on Google Sheets, WhatsApp and memory and has outgrown it. Three people update the same sheet, a customer gets called twice, and the owner hears about a missed order from a Facebook comment.

The problems I see most often:

  • A database with no structure, so the same customer exists four times under four phone numbers.
  • Payment integrations tested once on a sandbox and never checked against real eSewa or Khalti settlements.
  • Passwords stored in plain text and every staff member using the owner's account.
  • An API with no validation, so one bad request from the app crashes the server for everyone.
  • Code that lives on one developer's laptop and a server nobody else can reach.

What I actually do

  • Scoping and data design: I write down what the system has to store and who can see it, then design the PostgreSQL or MongoDB schema around how the data is actually queried. You get a document a second developer could build from.
  • The API: REST or GraphQL endpoints built in Node.js and Express, with validation and error handling on every route, not only the happy path. You get an API your frontend or mobile app can call without guesswork.
  • Login and roles: sessions or tokens, hashed passwords, and role based access so a cashier, a manager and an owner see different things. You get an admin panel you can hand to staff without handing over everything.
  • Payments: eSewa, Khalti and Fonepay integrations checked against real settlements, with a record on your side for every transaction. You get numbers that match the bank at the end of the month.
  • Integrations: WhatsApp and email notifications, a CRM, an accounting export, or the n8n workflows that move data between them. You get one system instead of five that don't talk.
  • Deployment: Docker for consistent environments, a GitHub Actions pipeline that tests and deploys on every push, and hosting on Cloudflare, Vercel or a server in your name. You get a backend you can update without calling me. Technology companies ask for this most, but a hospital or a school with a booking system needs the same thing.
  • Performance and repair: if you already have a backend, I read it, measure it under real load and tell you whether to fix or rebuild. You get an honest answer before you spend.

How it works

First call and scoping. The first thirty minutes are free. You tell me what the system has to do, I ask about the data, the users and what breaks today, and I tell you whether it's a job for me. If you go ahead, scoping produces a written document: the data model, the endpoints, the integrations, the hosting, a timeline in weeks, a fixed price, and what's not included.

The work. The repository is created under your GitHub account on day one, and every commit goes there. A small backend is usually three to six weeks. One with payments, roles and integrations runs longer, and the scoping document says how long. You see a working version early and often, not a reveal at the end.

Reporting, and what you keep. While the build is on you get a short weekly note: what went in, what's next, what I need from you. At handover you keep the code, the repository, the database and the hosting, all in your name, with the environment configuration and deployment steps written down. If we stop, I lose access and you lose nothing.

Proof from backend development work

I haven't published a backend result with numbers yet, and I won't invent one. The full stack work I can name is Kyte Research and AirLyft, two technology companies outside Nepal, where the scope was full stack development alongside SEO. Treebones Resort is the other: the website, the deployment workflow and the Cloudflare setup. All three are on the case studies page under the scope I delivered, with no numbers, because I don't publish a figure I can't show with a baseline and a date.

This website is also proof. I built it, and it passes 15 automated checks on every deploy. A client backend gets the same discipline: tests before deployment, nothing shipped by hand from a laptop.

What backend development costs

A backend is quoted per project after the first call, because the scope decides the price. Everything I build is created in your name, on accounts and hosting you control, so ending the engagement costs you nothing but my access. My published retainer for ongoing work is USD 1,800 a month, about NPR 245,000, and the audit and sprint prices are on the pricing page. The first thirty minute call is free, and if a hosted service or a tool you already pay for would do the job, I'll say so instead of quoting a build.

Questions about backend development

Which database should my project use, PostgreSQL or MongoDB?

It depends on the shape of the data. PostgreSQL suits data with real relationships and rules you want the database to enforce: orders, invoices, stock. MongoDB suits document shaped data that changes often. I'll pick with you during scoping and write down why.

Will I own the backend code and the server?

Yes. The repository sits under your GitHub account, the database and hosting are in your name, and handover includes the environment configuration, deployment steps and documentation. If I disappear tomorrow, another developer can carry on.

How long does a backend take?

A small API with login and a few tables is usually three to six weeks. Add payments, roles, notifications and integrations and it runs to two or three months. The scoping document gives you the weeks for your project before you pay for the build.

What does it cost?

It's quoted per project after scoping, because a booking API and a full ecommerce backend with eSewa and Khalti are different jobs. My retainer for ongoing work is USD 1,800 a month, about NPR 245,000, and the other prices are on the pricing page.

Can you work with a backend someone else already built?

Yes, within reason. I read the code, run it, measure it under real load and tell you whether extending it makes sense or a rebuild would be cheaper over a year. Sometimes the answer is that the code is fine and the problem is the hosting.

When are you not the right person?

If you need the backend written in a language other than JavaScript to match an existing enterprise system, or a team of ten people on site, I'll say so and point you elsewhere. My stack is Node.js with PostgreSQL or MongoDB, and I work best on systems one person can understand end to end.

All services · Website development in Nepal · Frontend development · AI automation with n8n · Software development expert · Pricing.

Tell me about your backend

Send me what the system has to store and who uses it, and I'll name the first thing I'd fix or build, whether or not you hire me. The first thirty minutes are free.

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