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What does it cost to build an app?

App quotes vary more than any other kind of software quote, and usually not because one developer is expensive. They vary because two firms are quoting different halves of the job. Here is what an app actually costs, and the question that explains most of the gap.

$40k – $200k

First version to full product

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15–25%

Of build cost, per year, to keep it

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The question that explains most of the price gap

Ask every developer quoting: is the backend in this price?

An app is a window onto something. Behind it sits accounts, a database, business
rules, notifications, file storage, and the admin screens your own staff will
need. That server side is frequently larger than the part that runs on the
phone.

A quote covering only the app can look forty percent cheaper and be for half the
job — and you discover the missing half in month three, when it is too late to
compare prices.

Get it itemised:

  • The API the app talks to.
  • The database behind it.
  • Hosting, and who pays.
  • Accounts, login, password reset and account deletion.
  • Push notification infrastructure.
  • Admin screens for your staff.
  • File and image storage, if the app uploads anything.

If a developer says your existing systems will provide it, ask who is building
the layer between those systems and a phone on a mobile connection. Something
has to.

Be honest about whether you need an app

An app costs three to five times a mobile website doing the same job, then asks
your customer to visit a store, download it, and keep it installed. That is a
real price and it should buy you something.

Worth it when you need: push notifications people will act on, offline use,
background location, the camera as a working tool, Apple Pay or Face ID, or a
home screen place for something opened weekly.

Not worth it when the app would mostly display information, take a booking,
or accept a payment. A good mobile site does all three, costs far less, needs no
approval, and updates the moment you change it.

There is a middle option worth asking about: a progressive web app installs to
the home screen and works offline, without app stores. For a great many business
apps it does the job at a third of the price.

Ask each developer whether they think you need an app. The answer tells you a
lot about them.

One codebase or two

Cross-platform — React Native or Flutter — produces both apps from one
codebase, typically 30 to 50 percent cheaper than two native builds. For
ordering apps, portals, booking apps, field tools and most business software
your users cannot tell.

Native still earns its cost when the app is your product rather than a
channel, when you need brand-new platform features on the day they ship, or when
heavy graphics and animation are part of what you are selling.

The wrong reason to choose either is that the agency only does one. Ask what
they would build it in and what would change if you went the other way.

What the first quote always underestimates

Testing on real devices. Android runs on hundreds of handsets. Emulator
testing is cheaper for a reason, and you find out when a customer with a
five-year-old Samsung cannot check out.

Store submission. Apple reviews every app and every update. Rejection is
normal rather than a disaster, and it costs time that belongs in the plan.

Offline behaviour. If the app goes into a van, onto a farm or into a
basement, it will lose signal. What it does then is a design decision that
materially changes the price — decide it deliberately rather than discovering
it.

The admin screens. Somebody at your end will need to look up a customer,
resend a notification or refund an order. If that is not in the quote, it gets
done in the database by a developer at $200 an hour.

Own your own accounts

The Apple Developer account and the Google Play account belong in your company's
name, on your card, with your people as administrators and the agency added to
them.

Set the Apple one up early — organisations are verified, and for a New Zealand
company that can take a fortnight. These accounts own your app's identity, your
ratings and your install base. Holding them yourself is what makes changing
developer a decision rather than a negotiation.

Year two is not free

Budget 15 to 25 percent of the build cost annually. It is not optional
maintenance in the way a website's is:

  • Apple ships a major iOS version every September.
  • Google raises its minimum Android requirement each year and stops
  • New device sizes appear.
  • Your backend needs hosting, monitoring and patching.

An app nobody has touched for two years usually needs real work before it will
pass review again.

Getting five quotes

Describe who will use the app, the three things they must be able to do, whether
it must work without signal, and what it needs to connect to. Up to five
developers can respond, free, with no obligation.

Then compare scope before price. Where two quotes differ by a factor of two, one
of them has usually left out the backend — and that is the conversation to
have.

What it costs

First version, one platform

A focused app doing two or three things well, with a small backend, submitted to one store.

$40k – $90k

Both platforms, cross-platform build

One codebase producing iOS and Android, with accounts, notifications and a backend.

$50k – $120k

Full consumer product

Accounts, payments, notifications, offline behaviour, admin tooling and the server side behind it.

$100k – $200k

Complex or regulated

Health, financial or field products with security review, deep integrations and long support.

$200k+

Common questions

How much does it cost to build an app in New Zealand?

A first version on one platform, with the backend it talks to, is $40,000 to $90,000. A cross-platform build covering iOS and Android is $50,000 to $120,000. A full consumer product with accounts, payments and notifications is $100,000 to $200,000. Regulated products start around $200,000. Add 15 to 25 percent of build cost each year to keep it working.

Why do app quotes vary so much?

Usually because one includes the backend and the other does not. An app is a window onto something — accounts, data, business rules, notifications, admin screens — and that server side is frequently larger than the app itself. A quote covering only what runs on the phone can look forty percent cheaper and be for half the job. Ask every developer to itemise whether the API, database, hosting and admin screens are included.

Do we need an app, or would a website do?

You need an app if you genuinely need push notifications, offline use, background location, the camera as a tool, or a home screen place people return to weekly. If it would mostly show information and take a booking or a payment, a well-built mobile website does that for a fraction of the cost with no app store, no download step and no update cycle. A progressive web app sits between the two and is worth asking about.

iOS first, or both?

For a New Zealand consumer product, iOS-first is often right — iPhone share is high and those users spend more. If you know you need both, a cross-platform build in React Native or Flutter is typically 30 to 50 percent cheaper than two native apps and is good enough for most business apps. If the app is for your own staff, buy one platform's worth of handsets and build for that properly.

What does it cost after launch?

Budget 15 to 25 percent of the build each year. Apple ships a major iOS version every September and Google raises its minimum Android requirement annually, so an app left untouched stops working or stops being distributed. Add backend hosting from $50 a month, the Apple Developer Program at USD 99 a year, and the second version that every used app generates within a month of launch.

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