App Cost Calculator Built for 2026
Answer 28 quick questions and get a realistic app development cost estimate for iOS, Android, and web — tuned from 200+ apps we’ve shipped. Most people finish in under 3 minutes.
What kind of app are you building?
Pick the closest match — we'll tune the estimate to it.
How our app development cost calculator works
We map your inputs against actual project pricing from the 200+ apps we’ve shipped — instead of guessing from a generic "hours × hourly rate" formula like most calculators.
Answer 28 quick questions
Tell us what kind of app you want, who it's for, which devices, and what features matter. Plain English, no jargon.
We match against real builds
Each answer adds a cost delta calibrated from our shipped projects. The model knows that a marketplace costs more than a SaaS tool, and that live video adds more than push notifications.
Get your estimate in seconds
See the cost range (±12%), expected timeline, and a side-by-side with typical agency pricing. Click through to get a fixed quote if you want to actually build it.
App development cost by app type
Typical price range at Make An App Like vs typical agency, plus the timeline most clients land on. Numbers below are the same ones the calculator above produces for a "popular features" build of each type.
| App type | Examples | Make An App Like | Typical agency | Timeline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marketplace app | Etsy, Depop, Whatnot | $5,500 – $10,500 | $11,000 – $21,000 | 7-14 days |
| On-demand service | Uber, DoorDash, Instacart | $7,000 – $14,000 | $14,000 – $28,000 | 10-21 days |
| Social / Community | Instagram, Discord, Reddit | $5,000 – $10,000 | $10,000 – $20,000 | 7-14 days |
| Streaming / Media | Netflix, Spotify, TikTok | $6,500 – $13,000 | $13,000 – $26,000 | 10-21 days |
| Dating / Companion | Tinder, Bumble, Replika | $4,500 – $9,500 | $9,000 – $19,000 | 7-14 days |
| SaaS / Business | Notion, Linear, Slack | $4,000 – $8,500 | $8,000 – $17,000 | 7-14 days |
| Fintech / Crypto | Robinhood, Cash App | $7,000 – $14,000 | $14,000 – $28,000 | 10-21 days |
| Health & Fitness | Calm, MyFitnessPal, Strava | $5,000 – $9,500 | $10,000 – $19,000 | 7-14 days |
| Education / Learning | Duolingo, Coursera | $4,500 – $9,000 | $9,000 – $18,000 | 7-14 days |
| AI / Generative | Character.AI, Candy AI | $5,500 – $11,500 | $11,000 – $23,000 | 7-14 days |
Prices include iOS + Android + admin panel + deployment. Subject to ±15% based on final feature scope. Use the calculator above for an estimate tuned to your specific project.
What affects mobile app development cost?
Eight factors drive 95% of the price difference between a $3,500 build and an $18,000 build. Knowing them upfront helps you trade scope for budget where it matters most.
Platforms (iOS, Android, web)
Each platform adds engineering hours. Cross-platform code (React Native) keeps cost lower than two fully native codebases.
App type & feature scope
A marketplace needs vendor onboarding + payment splits; an on-demand service needs live tracking and a driver app. The bigger the surface, the higher the floor.
Design quality
Templates are fastest and cheapest. Custom design from scratch (Figma → pixel-perfect implementation) is where the premium-feel projects spend.
Real-time features (chat, video calls)
One-to-one chat is cheap. Group chat needs different infrastructure. Video calls require a media server (Twilio, Agora) which adds both setup and runtime cost.
Maps & location
Address pickers are nearly free. Live tracking on a map (an Uber-style driver pin moving in real time) is one of the more expensive features.
Payments & monetization
Stripe Checkout is fast to add. Recurring subscriptions, in-app wallets, and splitting payments across multiple sellers each layer cost.
AI features
Adding a Claude-powered chatbot is straightforward. AI image generation, voice cloning, smart recommendations, and auto-moderation each have their own integration and runtime costs.
Compliance & sensitive data
Storing names + emails is standard. HIPAA (US health), PCI (cards), and GDPR all add audit, encryption, and access-control requirements.
Make An App Like vs typical agency vs freelancer
Same scope, three providers. The line items below come from the briefs we’ve been quoted alongside.
| Feature | Make An App Like | Typical agency | Freelancer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Typical project cost | $3,500 – $18,000 | $20,000 – $80,000 | $5,000 – $30,000 |
| Timeline | 7 – 21 days | 8 – 12 weeks | 6 – 16 weeks |
| iOS + Android included | Yes | Usually charged separately | Often charged separately |
| Lifetime source-code ownership | Yes | Yes (usually) | Sometimes |
| Daily progress demos | Yes | Weekly status reports | Inconsistent |
| Fixed-price guarantee | Yes — no scope creep | Rare — billed hourly | Rare |
| Post-launch support | 3 – 12 months optional | Hourly retainers | Often none |
| Refund if timeline missed | Yes | No | No |
Real apps we’ve built at these prices
Every clone in our catalogue ships at the price shown — with working demos, screenshots, and the actual feature list. Click through to any one to see the exact build.
Uber Clone
Rider + driver app, live tracking, card payments, ratings.
Tinder Clone
Swipe UI, in-app chat, subscriptions, push notifications.
Whatnot Clone
Live-selling video, real-time bidding, payments, vendor onboarding.
Candy AI Clone
LLM chat, image generation, subscriptions, age gate.
Zepto Clone
Sub-15-min grocery, rider app, live inventory, payments.
Mrsool Clone
Pickup-anything platform, bidding model, two-sided.
App cost calculator — frequently asked questions
Answers to the questions we hear most often after someone gets their estimate.
How accurate is this app cost calculator?+
The estimate is tuned from our 200+ shipped apps and lands within ±15% of the final quote in roughly 9 out of 10 cases. The remaining 10% are edge cases (heavy compliance, on-prem deployment, exotic hardware integrations) where we lock the number after a 15-minute discovery call.
What is included in the estimated app development cost?+
iOS app, Android app, admin panel, and the server backend — all in one fixed quote. Source code is yours, with a lifetime license. Deployment to the App Store and Play Store under your developer accounts is included. App Store and Play Store developer fees ($99/year + $25 one-time) are NOT included.
How much does it cost to build an app like Uber, Instagram, or Tinder in 2026?+
Using Make An App Like, an Uber clone typically lands at $8,400 (shipped in 11 days), an Instagram-style social app around $6,400 (9 days), and a Tinder-style dating app around $5,200 (8 days). The same builds at a typical agency would cost $14,000–$24,000 and take 8–12 weeks.
Why is your pricing so much lower than typical app development agencies?+
Three reasons. First, we maintain a library of 50+ pre-built clone apps — we reuse 60–80% of the codebase instead of building from scratch. Second, no agency overhead: small team, no account managers, no sales pipeline. Third, fixed-scope projects with a 7-day default timeline — engineers stay focused instead of context-switching across long retainers.
Can I get a fixed quote instead of just an estimate?+
Yes. After the calculator, click "Get a fixed quote in 2 hours" — share your brief and we reply with a fixed price, fixed timeline, and the engineer who would lead the build. The fixed quote is honoured for 14 days; if our calculator estimate ends up off by more than 20% after the discovery call, we eat the difference.
What is the minimum app development cost?+
The absolute floor on this calculator is $2,400 — that's a single-platform web MVP with no payments, no chat, no AI, template design, and no integrations. Realistically, most paying users land between $5,000 and $13,000. We don't take projects under $2,400 because the discovery and ops overhead alone consumes that.
Does the estimate include both iOS and Android development?+
Only if you picked them both in the calculator. Each platform adds about $1,400 to the build (we use a shared codebase with React Native + native modules for performance-critical paths). Web is $900 because the marketing site work tends to be much smaller. Most clients pick iOS + Android + a thin web admin and land around $11,000–$13,000.
What ongoing costs should I budget for after the app is built?+
Three buckets. Infrastructure: $30–$300/month depending on user count (we host on AWS / GCP — you own the account). Third-party APIs: Stripe (2.9% + 30¢ per charge), Twilio SMS (~$0.0075/message), push notification service (free up to ~1M sends/month). Maintenance: optional, $400/month if you want us to handle bug fixes, OS updates, and store re-submissions.
Can I see real apps you have built at these prices?+
Yes — browse the catalogue at /buy-white-label-apps. Every clone there ships at the price shown, with a working demo, screenshots, and the actual feature list. We also publish detailed cost breakdowns for popular apps in our Costing category at /category/costing.
Ready to turn that estimate into a real, fixed quote?
Drop a one-line brief — we reply within 2 hours with a fixed price, fixed timeline, and the engineer who would lead the build.