How Much Does It Cost to Build an App? What Drives the Price

First: do you need an app?

The cheapest app is the one you do not need to build. An app costs more than a website to build and to keep running: it goes through store review, it has to be updated for new operating system versions, and it usually needs a backend of its own. An app earns its cost when users need push notifications, offline use, device hardware or quick repeated access; if they mainly browse, book or buy, a responsive web app often does the job for less. Our guide Mobile app or web app? How to decide walks through the choice.

We do not publish app prices, for the same reason we do not publish website prices: a number without a scope is either too high for a simple app or a promise that cannot be kept for a complex one. What follows is what changes the estimate.

What drives the build cost

1. Platforms: iPhone, Android, or both

Building for both platforms natively means two codebases, written with Apple's and Google's own tools. A cross-platform toolkit such as React Native or Flutter produces both apps from one shared codebase, which is the sensible choice for most business apps. Native is worth the extra cost when the app depends heavily on platform-specific features or demanding graphics.

2. Features and screens

Cost follows the number of distinct screens and flows, and how much logic sits behind each one. A list of items and a detail page is simple; a booking flow with availability, changes and cancellations is not. Some features are larger than they look:

• Offline mode: storing data on the device and syncing it later, including what happens when two people change the same thing.
• Real-time features: chat, live tracking and live updates need a server connection designed for them.
• Payments and subscriptions: see the store rules below, which decide how you can take payment.
• Several user types: customer and staff versions of the same app, with different permissions.
• Connected hardware: pairing with a device over Bluetooth is a project of its own (see IoT development).

3. The backend

The part on the phone is often the smaller half of the work. Most apps also need user accounts, an API the app talks to, a database, push notifications sent through Apple's and Google's services, and an admin dashboard so your team can manage content, users and orders. If you already have a website or system with an API the app can use, that part shrinks. If not, it is built alongside the app.

4. Design

An app that follows the platforms' standard patterns and components is faster to design and build than one with a fully custom look, custom animations and bespoke controls. Either way, a clickable prototype tested on real phones before the build saves money, because changes to a prototype are cheap and changes to finished code are not.

5. Integrations

Each connection to another system (a CRM, booking engine, stock or ERP system, payment provider, maps or analytics) adds work, and the quality of that system's API decides how much.

6. Quality, security and data

Testing on a range of real devices and screen sizes, accessibility, crash reporting, and the handling of personal data all take time and should be named in the quote. Both stores require a privacy policy and ask you to declare what data the app collects. Apple's App Review Guidelines (5.1.1) also say that if your app supports account creation, "you must also offer account deletion within the app", which is a feature to plan for, not discover at review.

Store fees and commissions

These costs are set by Apple and Google, not by whoever builds your app, and they are published. Check the linked pages before you budget, because they change.

Developer accounts

• Apple Developer Program: 99 USD a year, with prices that may vary by region and taxes added. Nonprofits, accredited educational institutions and government entities can apply for a fee waiver if they do not sell digital goods or services in their apps.
• Google Play: a one-time 25 USD registration fee.

Publish under your own business's accounts, so the app, its reviews and its download history belong to you.

When the stores take a commission

Commissions apply to digital goods and services sold in the app, such as subscriptions, premium content or unlocking features. Apple's guidelines (3.1.1) require in-app purchase for these. For physical goods and services used outside the app, such as a meal, a taxi ride or a product you ship, Apple's guideline 3.1.3(e) says you "must use purchase methods other than in-app purchase", so you pay your normal card processing fees instead. An app that sells nothing digital pays no store commission.

• Apple: the standard commission is 30 percent. Under the App Store Small Business Program, developers with up to 1 million USD in proceeds in the prior calendar year, and new developers, pay 15 percent; you have to enroll. For auto-renewable subscriptions, you receive 70 percent of the price in a subscriber's first year and 85 percent after one year of paid service. Different terms apply in some regions, such as the EU.
• Google Play: service fees are changing in 2026. For users in the EEA, the UK and the US (from June 30, 2026) and in Australia and Japan (from September 30, 2026), the fee depends on the type of purchase, whether the user's install is new or existing, and program participation, with a separate billing fee when Google Play Billing is used. In other markets, enrolled developers pay 15 percent on their first 1 million USD of revenue each year and 30 percent above it, and auto-renewing subscriptions are charged 15 percent.

If your app will sell subscriptions or digital content, model these fees in your pricing from the start.

Keeping an app running

An app is not finished at launch. Plan a budget for:

• Platform updates. Both stores raise their minimum requirements over time. Since April 28, 2026, apps uploaded to App Store Connect must be built with Xcode 26 or later. Google Play requires new apps and updates to target a recent Android API level, and existing apps that fall too far behind stop being offered to new users on newer Android versions.
• The developer account renewal with Apple every year.
• Hosting and services for the backend: servers, database, file storage, email and push sending, maps and other paid APIs, which grow with your users.
• Monitoring and fixes: crash reports, bug fixes and security updates to the app's libraries and the server.

An app that is never updated eventually stops being accepted by the stores or stops working well on new phones. Treat upkeep as part of the cost of owning an app, the same way you would for a website.

How to get an accurate quote

A short written brief makes estimates more accurate and easier to compare. Include:

1. The problem the app solves and who will use it.
2. The main things users need to do, written as simple steps.
3. Which platforms you need at launch.
4. Must-have features for the first version, and what can wait. Our guide What is an MVP and how to scope one helps you decide.
5. Existing systems, websites or APIs it must connect to.
6. Whether it will sell anything, and if so, digital or physical.
7. Your timeline and a budget range, so the proposal can fit it.

Our guide to writing a brief for a software project has a template you can adapt. Then ask each developer what is included and excluded (backend, admin dashboard, store submission, testing devices), how changes are priced, who owns the code and the store accounts, and what care looks like after launch.

Frequently asked questions

Why don't you give a price range for apps?

Because "an app" covers anything from a simple companion to a website to a system with its own backend, payments and real-time features. We give a written estimate after a short call about scope, and explain what would make it higher or lower.

Do I pay Apple or Google a commission on every sale?

Only on digital goods and services sold in the app, such as subscriptions, premium content or unlocked features. Physical goods and services used outside the app are paid through a regular payment provider, as Apple's guidelines require.

What does it cost to publish an app in the stores?

The Apple Developer Program is 99 USD a year (prices may vary by region) and Google Play has a one-time 25 USD registration fee. Nonprofits, accredited educational institutions and government entities can apply for an Apple fee waiver if they sell no digital goods or services.

Planning an app? See how we approach mobile app development and web applications, browse our other guides, or email info@creahive.com with your brief.