Tools
App Development Cost Calculator
Get a realistic cost estimate in 60 seconds. Select your app type, features, and complexity level below.
Step 1: What are you building?
Step 2: Project complexity
Step 3: Key features (select all that apply)
Select an app type above to see relevant features.
This calculator provides indicative estimates based on typical project patterns. Actual costs vary based on your specific requirements, team size, timeline, and technology stack. Get an accurate fixed-price quote by scheduling a 30-minute discovery call.
How Much Does It Cost to Build an App in 2026?
At typical market rates, most mobile apps cost between $15,000 and $150,000 to build. An MVP with a core feature set runs $15,000–$40,000 and takes 8–14 weeks. A mid-complexity app with a custom backend, several user types and integrations runs $40,000–$150,000 and takes 16–28 weeks. Enterprise and marketplace apps run $150,000–$500,000 or more over 6–18 months.
| App type | Typical market cost | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| Mobile app MVP | $15,000–$40,000 | 8–14 weeks |
| Mid-complexity mobile app | $40,000–$150,000 | 16–28 weeks |
| Enterprise or marketplace app | $150,000–$500,000+ | 6–18 months |
| SaaS MVP | $40,000–$100,000 | 12–20 weeks |
| RAG chatbot on your documents | $15,000–$25,000 | 4–8 weeks |
What moves the number
Scope drives cost more than anything else. Each extra user type, third-party integration and compliance requirement adds design, build and testing work. Platform choice comes next: Flutter usually costs 30–50% less than building native iOS and Android apps separately, and it suits most products. Discovery and design add 2–4 weeks at the start. Team location also matters, because hourly rates vary by three to five times between regions.
Budget for running costs too
The build is not the whole bill. Plan on 15–25% of the original build cost per year for maintenance, so a $100,000 app costs $15,000–$25,000 a year to keep running. That covers the iOS and Android updates released each year, server costs of $200–$2,000 a month, third-party API fees, crash monitoring and bug fixes. Apps that skip this work can lose App Store eligibility and become more expensive to change later.
How to use this estimate
Use the calculator to compare options and set a budget range, then ask vendors to quote the same scope so you can compare them fairly. Our own fixed-scope packages come in lower: $2,500 for a website, $4,000 for a simple single-platform mobile app, $10,000–$20,000 for a Launch MVP, $20,000–$40,000 for a SaaS MVP and $5,000–$12,000 for an AI chatbot. See custom software development pricing. For the full breakdown, read the mobile app development cost guide or see mobile app development services.
Want a Fixed-Price Quote Instead?
A calculator gives you a range. A 30-minute discovery call gives you a fixed-price proposal with milestone deliverables, team composition, and a delivery timeline.