A simple one-platform app takes roughly 80–160 hours of development: about $10,000–$30,000 with a North American agency, $6,600–$21,000 with a North American freelancer or $1,800–$8,800 with a South Asian freelancer (October 2026 estimates). Medium apps start at 160–320 hours, complex ones at 400–800. An AI app builder takes hours to days of your own time plus a monthly subscription, and every route adds store fees ($25 once for Google Play, $99 a year for Apple), hosting and 15–20% a year for maintenance.
How does the calculator estimate cost?
It adds the hours for the base app and each feature you tick, then multiplies by 1.6 for Android plus iOS from one cross-platform codebase, or 0.9 for a web app. Agencies get 25% more hours for project management and testing. Each route then multiplies the hours by the region's hourly rate range. With an AI app builder you describe and test instead of coding, so the calculator counts 3–6% of the development hours, in line with how long it takes to build an app with AI.
How many hours does each feature take?
| Part of the app | Hours, one platform |
|---|---|
| Base app, simple (a few screens, data stays on the phone) | 80–160 |
| Base app, medium (10 to 15 screens, a few user flows) | 160–320 |
| Base app, complex (20+ screens, several roles and flows) | 400–800 |
| Sign-in & accounts | 20–40 |
| User profiles | 10–25 |
| Cloud backend & database | 30–80 |
| Payments | 30–60 |
| Push notifications | 10–25 |
| Chat & messaging | 40–100 |
| Maps & location | 20–50 |
| Camera & photos | 15–35 |
| Admin dashboard | 40–90 |
| Offline mode | 30–70 |
| API integrations (two) | 20–60 |
| AI features | 25–60 |
| Multi-language | 10–25 |
| Search & filters | 10–30 |
| Analytics & crash reports | 5–15 |
| Design polish | 20–60 |
Planning estimates for a typical build, not quotes.
What do app developers charge per hour in 2026?
| Region | Agency, $/hour | Freelancer, $/hour |
|---|---|---|
| North America (US, Canada) | 100–150 | 82–130 |
| Western Europe (UK, Germany, France) | 70–130 | 70–120 |
| Eastern Europe (Poland, Romania, Ukraine) | 35–75 | 40–85 |
| Latin America (Mexico, Brazil, Argentina) | 35–75 | 35–75 |
| South Asia (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh) | 20–40 | 22–55 |
Agency rates follow Clutch's 2026 pricing guide for the US and Canada ($100–$149) and Accelerance's survey of 60 outsourcing partners (Latin America $33–$75, Europe $31–$76, Asia $24–$41, junior to senior), rounded; Western European agencies are our assumption, at or above local freelancers. Freelancer rates are Arc's 2026 regional benchmarks, drawn partly from a survey of 5,302 freelance developers. In lower-cost regions, experienced freelancers can charge as much as an agency.
Which costs do people forget?
- Store accounts: Google Play charges a one-time US$25 registration fee; the Apple Developer Program costs $99 a year.
- Hosting: free tiers such as Firebase's no-cost plan cover many small apps; budget up to about $50 a month as traffic grows.
- Maintenance: 15–20% of the build cost a year is a common rule of thumb for updates and new Android versions.
- Store fees: Google and Apple take a share of in-app purchases and subscriptions.
The ranges match our 2026 app cost guide (agencies from about $20,000 to $150,000 and more); its worked examples are lean single quotes, so they sit in the lower half. Comparing tools? Read no-code vs AI app builder, name your app with the app name generator, or try the APK builder, which builds an Android app from a chat.
Frequently asked
How much does a simple app cost in 2026?
A simple one-platform app takes roughly 80 to 160 hours of development. At October 2026 rates that is about $10,000 to $30,000 with a North American agency, $6,600 to $21,000 with a North American freelancer, and about $1,800 to $8,800 with a freelancer in South Asia. These are estimates, not quotes.
How are the estimates calculated?
Hours for the base app (simple, medium or complex) plus hours for each feature you tick, multiplied by 1.6 for Android and iOS together or 0.9 for a web app. The agency price adds 25 percent for project management and testing, then every route multiplies hours by the hourly rate range for the chosen region.
Where do the hourly rates come from?
Agency rates use Clutch's 2026 pricing guides for North America and Accelerance's 2026 outsourcing survey for Latin America, Europe and Asia, rounded; Western European agency rates are an assumption at or above local freelance rates. Freelancer rates use Arc's 2026 regional benchmarks, which draw partly on a survey of 5,302 freelance developers.
What costs come after the app is built?
Google Play charges a one-time $25 registration fee and Apple's developer program costs $99 a year. Hosting for a small app often runs from $0 on a free tier to about $50 a month, and a common rule of thumb is 15 to 20 percent of the build cost per year for maintenance.
Is building with an AI app builder really cheaper?
For most small and medium apps, yes: the cost is your own time, typically hours to a few days, plus a monthly AI builder subscription. The trade-off is that you describe and test the app yourself instead of paying someone to manage it.
Does Android plus iOS cost twice as much?
Not with one cross-platform codebase such as React Native or Flutter: the calculator assumes about 1.6 times the hours of one platform for the shared code, testing and two store releases. Two separate native apps cost closer to twice.
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