How much does a mobile app cost?

React Native or native

We build most mobile apps in React Native. One codebase serves iOS and Android, the apps feel native to users, and changes ship to both platforms at once. For a first version this is almost always the right choice: it costs less, ships faster, and a single team can maintain it.

Native Swift and Kotlin make sense when the app lives on heavy device features: real-time audio or video processing, complex Bluetooth hardware, advanced AR, or graphics-heavy games. We have shipped native apps for these cases, and we will tell you on the first call if yours is one of them. Going native roughly means building two apps, so expect the large end of the range or above.

What store releases involve

Apple and Google review every release. A first submission needs store listings, screenshots, a privacy policy, data-use disclosures, age ratings, and test accounts for reviewers. Apple reviews typically take one to three days and can reject for reasons that need design changes, such as sign-in options or subscription wording.

Our price includes preparing and submitting both store listings, handling review feedback, and setting up your developer accounts in your company's name. You pay Apple's and Google's own account fees directly.

What moves a mobile quote

• Payments add $2,500. Digital goods sold inside the app must use Apple and Google in-app purchase, which changes both cost and margin. Physical goods and services can use Stripe.
• An admin panel adds $3,500, usually as a web back office.
• An AI feature adds $4,500.
• Integrations add $3,000 each, for example wearables, maps providers, or a CRM.
• Offline mode and background sync push a lean app toward standard.

Worked example: a fitness coaching app

A coach wants clients to follow workout plans, log sessions, and chat. Two user types (coach and client) and chat make this standard: $19,000. Subscriptions sold in the app add $2,500. Total time is about 8 weeks to both stores. We shipped a larger version of this pattern for Fitzee, which now has 200,000 registered users.

Worked example: a field service app

A services company wants technicians to see jobs, capture photos, and get signatures on site, with an office team assigning work. Technicians use the mobile app; the office uses a web back office. That is a lean mobile app at $11,000 plus an admin panel at $3,500, and offline capture for basements and rural sites. If it must sync with the company's accounting tool, add $3,000.

How you pay

Every fixed-price build is paid in four equal milestones, each tied to something you can see and use:

1. Plan signed. Scope, screens, and the delivery calendar are agreed in writing. The first payment starts design.
2. Design approved. You click through the full design on your phone before a line of production code is written.
3. Working build. The app runs on your devices with real data, and you test it against the agreed scope.
4. Launch. The app is live in the stores or on your domain, the code is in your repository, and handover is done.

If a milestone slips because of us, the next payment waits. You never pay ahead of the work.

Before your first call

You get a firmer number faster if you bring three things: who the first users are, the one job they must be able to do on day one, and any outside system the app has to talk to. Sketches, screenshots of apps you like, or a spreadsheet you want to replace all help. On the call we place your idea in the table above, name the extras it needs, and tell you what we would leave out. You leave with a written range the same day and a fixed quote within two business days.

Questions founders ask