“How much does an app cost?” has no answer until you know what the app must do. Here are the three levels that cover most projects, what makes the price vary within each, and the costs that arrive after publishing.
The three levels of app and their price
| Level | From | Usual timeline | Typically |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essential | From MAD 8,000 | 4 to 6 weeks | Catalog, information, appointment booking, up to 8 screens |
| Complete | On quote | 8 to 12 weeks | Customer accounts, in-app payments, notifications, admin area |
| Custom | On quote | Depends on scope | Complex business logic, offline mode, multiple integrations |
These prices cover iOS and Android at once. We develop with Flutter: one codebase runs natively on both platforms, which avoids paying twice for the same app.
What makes the price of an app vary
- The number of screens. Every screen is designed, developed and tested: it's the most readable unit of work.
- Native features: payment, geolocation, camera, notifications, offline mode. Each adds development and testing.
- The admin area, where you manage products, users and orders without going through us.
- Connections to what exists: your website, your stock, your ERP, a payment gateway.
- Design: a custom design costs more than an adapted template, but it's what makes people want to reopen the app.
- Languages: an app in French, Arabic and English needs three versions of every text, and Arabic reads right to left.
The costs after launch
The development price isn't the total cost. Three lines come back, and they stay modest as long as you plan for them.
- Developer accounts: Apple charges 99 dollars a year to publish on the App Store, Google 25 dollars once for Google Play. The accounts are opened in your name.
- Server hosting, if the app has accounts, orders or shared data.
- Maintenance: iOS and Android release a new version every year, and an app that isn't updated eventually stops working properly.
Do you really need an app, or a website first?
An app makes sense when your customers come back often: repeat orders, loyalty, delivery tracking, regular bookings, a customer area. If your customer comes once, looks around and calls, a fast mobile website does the same job for a fraction of the price, and it's found on Google, which an app isn't.
How to get a reliable price
- Describe what the user does, step by step, from download to the action that earns you money.
- Separate the features needed at launch from those that can wait for a second version.
- Show two or three apps whose workings you like.
- Ask for a firm quote, broken down by screen and feature, with the timeline and what's included after publishing.