How much does an app cost? App development costs at a glance

“How much does an app cost?” is one of the questions we hear most often – and the honest answer is: anywhere from the mid five figures to six figures in euros, depending on what the app needs to do. This guide shows the price ranges you can realistically expect, which factors drive the effort and which costs are missing from many estimates. As of September 2026.

What an app costs according to our cost model

To give you an initial orientation, we calculated typical projects with the same cost model that underlies our project cost calculator and compared the results with published market prices of German agencies. On this basis, a simple app for iOS and Android costs about €21,000–38,000. An app with sign-in, back end and an integration costs about €50,000–89,000, and extensive native apps about €150,000–270,000. All prices are net and include project management and quality assurance.

If you first want to test an idea, you can get there for less: according to our cost model, a clickable prototype costs about €7,000–13,000, an MVP for first pilot customers about €27,000–50,000 and a market-ready product about €70,000–125,000. The ranges are deliberately wide. Two apps that look similar on a smartphone can differ many times over in effort, because most of the work often remains invisible.

What determines the price of an app

Scope accounts for most of the effort: the number of screens, workflows and special cases. An app that displays content is quick to build. An app in which users capture, edit, approve and temporarily store data offline needs many times more logic and testing.

An app almost always comes with a back end: a server that stores data, manages users and synchronises devices. On top of that, there is usually a web interface that staff use to maintain content or process cases. In the service app we developed for the Stuttgart-based pump specialist Stenger, the technicians' service reports go straight to the back end; the office processes them there, and the orders are reconciled with the merchandise management system. Users see none of this, but in the budget it is a significant item.

The same example shows how much goes into a seemingly simple app. In the digital service report, technicians record findings, pump data, working hours and spare parts from the merchandise management system's item master, along with annotated photos, scanned documents and the customer's signature. The system imports new orders from the ERP every night, and because technicians do not have reception everywhere, the app also works offline. Each of these requirements is manageable on its own; together they determine the scope.

Further cost drivers are integrations with ERP, CRM or accounting, device features such as the camera, Bluetooth or offline mode, and roles and permissions. Design matters too: if a design system already exists, that saves time; if the interface first has to be designed and tested with users, that effort is added – and it usually pays for itself through fewer changes during development.

Native, cross-platform or web app?

Native apps are developed for each platform in its own language, for example with Swift and SwiftUI for iOS and with Kotlin and Jetpack Compose for Android. They offer the best user experience and the most direct access to device features, but mean two codebases. Cross-platform frameworks share much of the code between iOS and Android and can reduce the effort, but reach their limits sooner with features that work closely with the device.

Sometimes you do not need an app from the store at all. A progressive web app runs in the browser, can be added to the home screen and reaches every device with a single codebase. Our own product Stundenplan-Digital is built exactly this way. Which option fits depends on how heavily the app uses device features and how important a presence in the app stores is. This decision should come first, because it shapes both budget and architecture.

Costs missing from many estimates

To publish an app, you need developer accounts on both platforms. Apple charges 99 US dollars per year for the Apple Developer Program, while Google charges a one-time fee of 25 US dollars for a Play Console account. If the app sells digital content or subscriptions, the stores also keep a commission. In Apple's Small Business Program, it is 15 percent for developers with up to one million US dollars in annual proceeds. For many business apps, this does not matter: according to Apple's guidelines, apps that sell goods or services consumed outside the app must in fact “use purchase methods other than in-app purchase”.

More significant is that an app is not finished at launch. Apple and Google raise their minimum requirements regularly. Since April 28, 2026, apps uploaded to App Store Connect must be “built with Xcode 26 or later” using the SDK for iOS 26. On Google Play, new apps and updates must target Android 16 from August 31, 2026. Every update therefore requires that the app can be built with current tools. On top of this come servers, monitoring and security updates for the back end. How to plan for these running costs is explained in our guide Ongoing software costs.

How to keep your budget under control

The most effective lever is a clear focus. Instead of packing every idea into the first version, it pays to start lean with the features that deliver the greatest benefit. A prototype or MVP lets you test assumptions early, before the large budget is committed. It is just as important to include existing systems: if there is already a customer database or a merchandise management system with an interface, the app does not have to manage this data itself.

Reliable estimates at this early stage are ranges, not fixed prices. A range is not a sign of uncertainty but of honesty: it narrows the more precisely the requirements are described. When you receive quotes, ask which assumptions they are based on, whether the back end, admin interface and store publication are included and how maintenance after go-live is handled. Looking at the total cost over several years gives you a fairer comparison of quotes than the development price alone. For a broader view of software budgets, see our guide How much does custom software cost?.

Conclusion: the price follows the purpose

An app costs as much as the processes behind it are complex. The visible screens are usually the smaller part; the back end, integrations, testing and ongoing operation make the difference. If you plan for this from the outset, you will not face any unpleasant surprises after launch.

At 4eB, we develop native apps with SwiftUI and Jetpack Compose, including back end and admin interface – for clients such as Stenger as well as for our own product Inventary, which we run ourselves on iOS, Android and the web. If you would like to know what your app would cost, the project cost calculator gives you an initial range in just a few minutes. For a specific quote, talk to our app development team – free of charge and without obligation.

Sources

• Apple: Apple Developer Program, accessed September 17, 2026
• Google: Get started with Play Console, accessed September 17, 2026
• Apple: App Store Small Business Program, accessed September 17, 2026
• Apple: App Review Guidelines, section 3.1.3(e), accessed September 17, 2026
• Apple: Upcoming Requirements, accessed September 17, 2026
• Android Developers: Meet Google Play's target API level requirement, accessed September 17, 2026