How much does it cost to build an app in 2026?
The honest answer is somewhere between €5,000 and €500,000. Because that range is too wide to be useful, let's look at what actually drives the price.
The short version
If you need a rough framework:
| What you're building | Realistic cost | Timeline | |---|---|---| | Landing page with sign-up or booking | €3,000–€7,000 | 1–2 weeks | | Simple app (3–5 features, one user type) | €5,000–€15,000 | 2–4 weeks | | Full product (user accounts, payments, dashboard) | €10,000–€25,000 | 4–6 weeks | | Complex platform (multiple user types, integrations, APIs) | €20,000–€50,000+ | 6–12 weeks |
These are realistic figures for a competent small team or agency. If you're quoted €500 or €250,000 for the same scope, something is wrong.
What actually drives the cost
Complexity, not "number of screens"
People often think about apps in terms of screens. "It's only five screens, how expensive can it be?" Very, depending on what those screens do.
A screen that displays a list is cheap. A screen that handles real-time booking with availability checks, payment processing, and confirmation emails is not. The logic behind the interface is where the money goes.
Integrations
Every third-party service adds cost. Stripe, Google Maps, Twilio, OAuth — each one has its own quirks, the documentation quality ranges from excellent to criminal, and they all need error handling for when the service goes down.
Budget roughly €1,000–€3,000 per integration.
User types
An app with one type of user is straightforward. Add a second type (vendors, admins, moderators) and the complexity roughly doubles. Not because of the screens, but because of the permissions, the workflows, and the edge cases that multiply when different roles interact with the same data.
Design
You can ship with clean, functional design for €1,000–€3,000. Custom illustration and animation can push that past €10,000. For most MVPs, functional beats beautiful. You can always make it pretty after you've proven the thing works.
Platform
Web-only is cheapest. Adding iOS and Android roughly doubles the cost for native apps. Cross-platform frameworks like React Native or Flutter help, but not as much as people expect.
For new products: start with the web. Add mobile when your users actually ask for it.
The costs nobody mentions upfront
Hosting
Your app needs to run somewhere. Expect €20–€200/month depending on traffic. AWS, Google Cloud, or Vercel cover most needs.
Maintenance
Software isn't a painting you hang on the wall. Dependencies need updating, APIs change, bugs surface once real users start clicking around. Budget 15–20% of the build cost per year.
Iteration
Your first version won't be perfect. The founders who do best budget for two or three rounds of changes after launch, usually another 20–40% of the initial cost over six months.
Hourly vs. fixed price
Most agencies bill hourly, with rates running from €50/hour offshore to €200+/hour at top-tier shops in Northern Europe or the US. The problem: the final number is a guess until the project is done.
A four-week project at €100/hour with one developer sounds like €16,000. But scope creep and unexpected complexity can push it past €25,000. You don't find out until the invoices show up.
Fixed-price contracts work differently. You know the total before anyone writes a line of code. If the agency underestimated, that's on them. If you add features mid-project, you renegotiate. You're never surprised by the bill.
The trade-off is that fixed-price agencies build the risk into their pricing. But for most non-technical founders, knowing the number upfront is worth the premium.
How to spend less without getting burned
Start with the smallest useful version. Not "phase 1 of the grand vision," but the smallest thing a real person would pay for or use.
Write down what the app should do, not how it should look. A clear feature list is more useful than a 40-page spec with wireframes.
Pick one platform. Web first.
Ask for references. Not portfolio links — actual clients you can email.
Get a fixed price. If an agency won't give you a number, they're either unsure about the work or planning to bill for that uncertainty.
What different budgets actually get you
~€5,000: A booking page for a service business. Customers pick a time, fill in their details, get a confirmation. Admin dashboard shows all bookings. Done.
~€10,000: A web app with user accounts, a core workflow (project tracker, CRM, that kind of thing), and Stripe payments. Clean design that works on phone and desktop.
~€20,000: A multi-sided platform. Buyers browse, sellers list, admins moderate. Search, messaging, payments, separate dashboards for each user type.
~€50,000+: Complex SaaS with real-time features, multiple integrations, advanced reporting, and different user roles. Usually involves compliance requirements or custom infrastructure.
Getting a quote
If you have an idea and want to know the cost, here's what to do.
Write a one-page description of what the software should do. Focus on the user — what can they accomplish with it? List the features you think you need and star the ones you can't launch without. Mention any integrations (payments, email, maps). Send it to a few agencies and ask for a fixed-price quote.
Compare the numbers, but also compare how they communicate. The cheapest quote isn't always the best deal. The agency that asks smart follow-up questions usually builds the better product.
At Datahivemind, we build custom software at fixed prices. Starter projects from €4,900 (2 weeks), full products from €9,900 (4 weeks), complex platforms from €19,900 (6–8 weeks). You own the code. Get a free quote →