Short answer

For a small or mid-size business in 2026, productized AI runs roughly $1,500–$5,000 in setup plus $300–$600 per month. Concretely, at Arrow: GEO (AI visibility) is $1,500 + $299/mo, custom AI systems start at $2,500 + $299–599/mo, and AI content production is $1,500 + $499/mo — each live in two to six weeks, always after a free scoped audit.

"How much does AI cost?" is one of the most-asked questions in every buying conversation — and one of the least answered. Most vendors hide pricing behind a demo call, which makes budgeting impossible and comparisons meaningless.

This guide does the opposite: it publishes real numbers — Arrow's own public prices — and explains the pricing model behind them, so you can evaluate any AI proposal with a clear framework, whether you buy from us or not.

Arrow AI GEO illustration for AI search visibility and answer engine optimization Setup

The build: $1,500–$5,000

Design, integration, and launch — a fixed one-time scope. Anything quoted far above this range should come with a very specific reason.

Arrow AI custom AI systems illustration for workflow automation and internal software Monthly

The operation: $300–$600/mo

Monitoring, model updates, evaluation, iteration, and reporting. This is what keeps an AI system valuable instead of decaying.

Arrow AI Studio illustration for content and creative production systems Timeline

The wait: 2–6 weeks

From scoped proposal to production. Months-long AI projects are usually a scoping problem, not a technology one.

Why AI is priced setup + monthly

Serious AI services converge on the same model: a fixed setup for the build, and a monthly fee for the operation. The setup pays for design, integrations, and launch. The monthly pays for the part most buyers underestimate — models change, engines change, and content goes stale. A system nobody operates loses value within months.

The practical rule: be suspicious of pure one-off builds with no operation plan, and of monthlies with no named deliverables. Both hide the same problem from different directions.

Real 2026 numbers, published

Arrow publishes its prices, so here they are as concrete data points: GEO (AI visibility: entity work, answer-ready pages, schema, citation tracking) is $1,500 setup + $299/mo, live in 3–5 weeks. Custom AI systems (intake, drafting, CRM workflows with human review) start at $2,500 + $299–599/mo, live in 2–6 weeks. AI Studio (content agent, prompts, ads, landing pages) is $1,500 + $499/mo, live in 2–4 weeks.

Self-serve tooling is cheaper still: visibility platforms run $0–$199/mo — Arrow GEO's own plans are free, $49/mo (Pro), and $199/mo (Agency). The full list is on the pricing page; combined engagements get bundled in a scoped proposal.

The four hidden costs to name before signing

First, integration: connecting your CRM, docs, and tools is often half the work — a proposal that doesn't name your systems hasn't scoped them. Second, API usage: token costs are small at SMB volume but should still be owned explicitly. Third, human review time: someone on your team approves outputs; budget the hours. Fourth, re-evaluation: when models update, someone must verify quality didn't shift.

None of these are dealbreakers. All of them are questions a serious vendor answers in writing before you pay.

Arrow — Public pricing 2026
GEO....................$1,500 + $299/mo
AI Systems....................$2,500+ + $299–599/mo
AI Studio....................$1,500 + $499/mo
platform....................$0 / $49 / $199 mo
audit....................free

Buying principle

Judge ROI on one number per system.

Automation: hours saved per week. Visibility: citations earned per month. Content: assets shipped per month. If the number doesn't clearly beat the monthly cost, the scope is wrong — fix the scope, not the budget. And never pay anything before you've seen a fixed, written plan: that is what a free audit is for.