Key takeaways
- App cost in India is driven by features, user roles and integrations far more than by screen count.
- Flutter or React Native usually lowers the cost of covering both Android and iOS.
- Budget 15 to 25% of the build cost each year for hosting, updates and fixes.
- A tight first version, launched and tested with users, is the cheapest way to build the right app.
"How much will my app cost?" is the first question almost every client asks us, and the honest answer is "it depends" – which is useless if you are trying to plan a budget. So this guide breaks the cost down the way we do when we write a quote: feature by feature, with the decisions that push the number up or down.
What actually drives the cost
Screens are a poor measure. A settings screen and a live order-tracking screen might look equally simple in a mockup, but one takes a day and the other takes two weeks. The real cost drivers are:
- User roles. A food delivery app is really three apps: customer, delivery partner and restaurant, plus an admin panel. Every extra role adds screens, permissions and testing.
- Integrations. Payment gateways, maps, SMS, WhatsApp, shipping APIs and accounting software each need setup, error handling and testing.
- Real-time features. Chat, live tracking and live notifications need extra server work and careful testing on slow networks.
- Platforms. Android only, iOS only, or both. Cross-platform tools such as Flutter reduce the gap considerably.
- Design depth. A clean design system is affordable; custom illustrations and complex animation add time.
A feature-by-feature view
These are the building blocks we price most often. Effort is shown in developer-weeks, because rates vary between agencies and cities; multiply by the weekly rate you are quoted to sanity-check any estimate.
| Feature | Typical effort | What makes it bigger |
|---|---|---|
| Login (OTP, Google, Apple) | 0.5 – 1 week | Multiple roles, referral codes |
| Product or service catalogue | 1 – 2 weeks | Variants, filters, search |
| Cart and payments (UPI, cards) | 1.5 – 3 weeks | Wallets, refunds, split payments |
| Maps and live tracking | 2 – 4 weeks | Route optimisation, geofencing |
| In-app chat | 1.5 – 3 weeks | Media sharing, read receipts |
| Push notifications | 0.5 – 1 week | Segmented campaigns |
| Admin panel | 3 – 6 weeks | Reports, staff roles, payouts |
Typical budget bands
Pulling those pieces together, most projects we see fall into three rough groups. Treat these as orientation, not a quote:
- Simple apps such as a catalogue, booking form or company app with an admin panel: usually in the low lakhs.
- Mid-level apps with payments, user accounts, notifications and a richer admin: commonly several lakhs up to the low teens.
- Complex platforms such as multi-sided marketplaces, fintech or live-tracking apps: higher, and best built in phases.
Costs people forget
The build is not the whole bill. Plan for these from the start:
- Apple developer account (yearly) and Google Play account (one-time).
- Cloud hosting, database and file storage, which grow with users.
- Third-party fees: SMS, maps, payment gateway charges, email.
- Updates for new Android and iOS versions, usually once or twice a year.
- Marketing: an app with no launch plan rarely finds users on its own.
A useful rule of thumb is to keep 15 to 25% of the original build cost aside each year for maintenance and improvements.
How to spend less without cutting corners
The biggest saving is not a cheaper developer. It is building less in version one. Pick the one journey that makes your business money, such as "customer finds a product and pays", build that properly, and launch. Real usage data will tell you what to add next far better than a long wish list.
Choosing Flutter or React Native over two separate native apps also saves money for most business apps. And using proven services such as Firebase for notifications and a standard payment gateway is cheaper and safer than building those pieces from scratch.
Getting an accurate quote
Bring three things to your first call: who the users are, the main thing each one needs to do, and any apps you like the feel of. With that, an experienced team can give you a realistic range in one conversation and a firm quote after a short scoping session.
Frequently asked questions
Specialist pages from the Core I-Solutions family that cover this topic in more detail.