Guides / Guide
How much does it cost to build an app in 2026?
Domus Design Team · Updated October 8, 2026 · 7 min read
Most app pricing articles are written for startups with investors. If you run a restaurant, a clinic, a gym or a delivery service, the numbers look different: you need sign-in, bookings or orders, payments, and a store page, not a 12-person engineering team. Here's what that costs in 2026, and the yearly costs that come with it.
The short answer
A simple business app for iPhone and Android costs $8,000–$30,000 from a small studio or experienced freelancer in 2026. Agencies usually start at $40,000 and go to $90,000 for the same scope. Apps with real-time features, marketplaces or custom integrations run $50,000–$200,000 and beyond.
| Type of app | Typical price in 2026 | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Simple (up to ~12 screens) | $8,000–$30,000 | Bookings, a loyalty card, a menu with orders, a members' area |
| Medium | $30,000–$120,000 | A marketplace, chat between users, a map with live locations, subscriptions |
| Complex | $120,000–$500,000+ | Payments between users, video, AI features, many third-party integrations |
| Web app instead of a store app | About half the price of the same mobile app | Works in the browser on any phone, no store review, no download |
What makes an app expensive
- Screens. Count every full view: welcome, sign-in, home, detail, checkout, profile. Each one is designed, built and tested on two platforms.
- Sign-in and accounts. Email, Google, Apple or Facebook sign-in, password reset and account deletion are required for the stores and take real work.
- Payments. Card payments through a provider like Stripe are standard; marketplace payments between users are a different tier.
- Live features. Chat, notifications and live maps need a server that is always on.
- The stores. Apple and Google each review your app, ask for privacy details and screenshots, and can send it back. Publishing is usually a separate fee.
- Two platforms. iPhone and Android are built together with modern tools, but still tested separately.
The costs after launch
- Apple Developer Program: $99 a year. Google Play: $25 once.
- Server and database: $0–$100 a month for a small app, more as it grows.
- Updates: Apple and Google change their rules every year; apps that aren't updated get removed. Budget 15–20% of the build cost per year for upkeep.
- Store page: the icon, screenshots and description need a refresh when the app changes.
Do you need an app at all?
If your customers find you once and rarely come back, a fast website with online booking is cheaper and ranks on Google, which an app never will. An app earns its price when people use it weekly: memberships, repeat orders, a schedule, a community, or a tool they open on the job. A web app, which installs from the browser without the stores, is often the right middle step.
What Domus charges
Our Mobile App package covers iPhone and Android with up to 12 screens, sign-in, payments and your store page design, built in about 14 weeks with 10 revisions included. A web app with half the screens costs about half and takes half the time. Publishing to the App Store and Google Play is a separate fee, and the stores' own fees are paid to them. Create a free account to see every price.
Every app we build starts with a brand manual, so the app, the website and your social media match. Once it's paid in full, the code is yours.
Questions people ask
Can I build an app for $5,000?
A web app with a few screens, yes. A native app on both stores with sign-in and payments for $5,000 usually means a template with your logo on it, and a rebuild later.
How long does an app take?
A simple app takes 10–16 weeks including store review. Medium apps take 4–6 months. The brand manual and the content (your menu, your rules, your prices) should be ready before design starts.
iPhone or Android first?
Both at once. Modern tools build one codebase for the two platforms, so building only one rarely saves money and always loses customers.
Who owns the app?
You should. Ask for it in writing: the source code, the store accounts in your name, and the design files.
Not sure if you need an app or a web app? Tell us what your customers would do with it, and we'll say which one fits, with a quote and a delivery date, in writing.