In 2026, a simple app typically costs $15,000 to $40,000 (€13,000 to €35,000, £11,000 to £30,000), a mid-complexity app $40,000 to $120,000 (€35,000 to €105,000, £30,000 to £90,000), and a complex platform $120,000 to $400,000 (€105,000 to €350,000, £90,000 to £295,000) or more. The biggest cost drivers are the number of screens and user roles, the integrations you need, and whether you are building for iOS, Android and the web at once.
Prices are in US dollars. Euro and pound figures in parentheses are approximate, rounded conversions. Quotes are issued in the currency of your contract.
"How much does an app cost?" is the first question almost every founder asks us, and the honest answer is "it depends" followed by a very specific list of what it depends on. This guide gives you the ranges we see in 2026, explains what moves a project from one range to the next, and shows you where the money actually goes so you can plan a budget instead of guessing one.
What does an app cost by complexity?
The ranges below assume a professional team, a proper design phase and testing before launch. Prices vary by region and by team, but the relationships between the tiers hold everywhere.
| Complexity | Typical 2026 cost | Typical timeline | What it looks like |
|---|---|---|---|
| Simple | $15,000 to $40,000 (€13,000 to €35,000, £11,000 to £30,000) | 6 to 10 weeks | One platform, 5 to 10 screens, user accounts, one core feature, no complex backend logic. A booking form, a content app, an internal tool. |
| Mid-complexity | $40,000 to $120,000 (€35,000 to €105,000, £30,000 to £90,000) | 10 to 20 weeks | Two platforms or web plus mobile, payments, notifications, an admin panel, one or two third-party integrations. Most MVPs live here. |
| Complex | $120,000 to $400,000+ (€105,000 to €350,000+, £90,000 to £295,000+) | 5 to 12 months | Marketplaces with multiple user roles, real-time features, several integrations, regulated data, analytics, or anything that must scale from day one. |
What actually drives the cost?
Screens and user roles
Every screen has to be designed, built, connected to data and tested. A second user role, such as a buyer and a seller, or a patient and a doctor, often doubles the screens because each role sees a different version of the product.
Platforms
Building native iOS and native Android separately roughly doubles the front-end effort. Cross-platform frameworks reduce that to one codebase with modest compromises. A web platform is a third surface again, though the backend is shared by all of them.
Integrations
Payments, maps, messaging, identity verification, accounting software, shipping providers and legacy systems each add days or weeks. Well-documented services like Stripe are quick. A partner's undocumented internal API is not.
Backend and admin
The part users never see is often half the budget: the database, the API, authentication, file storage, notifications and the admin panel your own team will use every day.
Design
A product with a designed interface and a tested user flow costs more up front and far less later, because it avoids rebuilding screens that users found confusing. Budget roughly 10 to 20 percent of the total for UX and UI design.
Compliance and security
Healthcare, finance and anything handling children's data carry extra requirements for encryption, audit trails and data handling. These are not optional and they add cost and time.
What are the hidden costs after launch?
- Hosting and services. Cloud infrastructure, email, SMS, maps and similar usage-based services. Small at launch, growing with users.
- App store accounts. Apple charges an annual developer fee and Google a one-time fee. Both take a percentage of in-app purchases.
- Maintenance. Operating system updates, library updates, bug fixes and small improvements. Plan for 15 to 20 percent of the initial build cost per year.
- Growth features. The things you learn users want in the first three months. This is a good problem, and it needs a budget.
How can you lower the cost without hurting the product?
- Start with an MVP. Build the one thing that proves the idea. Everything else waits until real users ask for it.
- Pick one platform first. If your users are mostly on iPhones, launch on iOS. If they are at a desk, launch on the web.
- Use cross-platform frameworks where the app does not need deep hardware access.
- Buy, do not build, the commodities. Payments, authentication, chat and analytics all have mature services.
- Make decisions quickly. A team waiting for a decision is a team you are paying to wait.
How does 7L quote a project?
We do not price from a feature list sent by email. We run a short discovery phase first, define the core problem, agree the scope of a first release and then commit to a fixed budget and timeline for it. The discovery work is cheap compared to a quote that was wrong. If you want a realistic number for your idea, tell us about your project and we will give you a range on the first call.
Frequently asked questions
Can I build an app for under $10,000 (€8,500, £7,500)?
You can build a prototype or a very narrow single-feature app for under $10,000 (€8,500, £7,500), usually with a freelancer or a no-code tool. A product that handles real users, payments and support at that price is rare, and the savings are often spent again on a rebuild later.
Why do quotes for the same app vary so much?
Because teams make different assumptions about scope, design, testing and platforms. A quote that is a fraction of the others has usually left something out. Ask each team what is excluded, not only what is included.
Is a web app cheaper than a mobile app?
Usually yes, for a first version. A web app runs everywhere without app store review and is faster to change. Mobile makes sense when you need push notifications, camera, location or offline use.
Does the price include hosting and app store fees?
Rarely. Development quotes cover building the product. Hosting, third-party services and store fees are ongoing costs paid by you. A good partner will estimate them for you before you commit.
How much should I keep in reserve after the build?
Plan for 15 to 20 percent of the build cost per year for maintenance, plus a separate budget for the improvements your first users will ask for.