/ Cost guide · Web / mobile apps
How much does an app cost?
£8,000 to £150,000+ in the UK in 2026 for a custom app.
- UK price range
- £3,000+
- UK average
- £28,000
- Tiers explained
- 4
- Category
- Web / mobile apps
/ 01
Quick answer: £8,000 to £150,000+ in the UK in 2026 for a custom app.
The UK average for an app in 2026 sits at roughly £28,000. The huge range is because an app isn't one product — it's a category with wildly different tiers, and the tier you pick determines almost everything about what you get.
Below we break it down properly: what each tier gets you, what factors change the price, the hidden costs nobody warns you about, and where a fair, honest price actually lands.
/ 02
Pricing tiers explained
Here's how the UK market for an app actually breaks down in 2026:
- • No-code MVP (Bubble, FlutterFlow) (£3,000–£12,000) — for prototypes, mvps, internal tools You get: Working app, fast, limited customisation.
- • Web app (RIOT) (£8,000–£40,000) — for bespoke saas, internal tools, workflow apps You get: Custom design + dev, auth, database, hosting.
- • Native mobile app (£25,000–£120,000) — for ios + android consumer apps You get: Cross-platform build, App Store deploy, backend.
- • Complex platform (£100,000+) — for marketplaces, multi-user saas, fintech You get: Larger team, security review, ongoing dev.
/ 03
What changes the price
The same tier of supplier can quote wildly different prices depending on scope. Here are the factors that move the number up or down:
- • Number of screens / features
- • Auth complexity (single-user vs. multi-tenant)
- • Third-party integrations
- • Web vs. native mobile vs. both
- • Design polish
- • Payment / subscription handling
/ 04
Hidden costs nobody mentions
Every headline price hides costs that only surface later. Watch for these:
- • Hosting (£10–£500/mo)
- • Database and services (Supabase, Firebase — £0–£300/mo)
- • App Store fees (£79/year Apple, one-off £25 Google)
- • Ongoing maintenance (10–20% of build cost per year)
/ 05
What we charge
Custom web apps from £8,000. Fixed-scope builds — no timesheet billing.
We're a small Colchester studio working with UK SMBs and international clients. Our pricing is fixed, itemised, and includes everything you'd expect from a good agency — without the agency overhead.
/ 06
How to compare quotes fairly
The biggest mistake when getting quotes for an app is comparing headline numbers without checking scope. A £500 quote and a £2,500 quote for what looks like the same thing are almost always for very different things.
Three checks that put every quote on a level playing field: 1) Ask what's included by line item. 2) Ask what happens if scope changes mid-project. 3) Ask what you own at the end (files, code, accounts). If any supplier can't answer those clearly, move on.
/ FAQs
Common questions
Should I build a web app or native mobile?
Web app 90% of the time. Native only if you need camera/GPS/offline/notifications as core features, or the app store is your distribution channel.
How long does an app take to build?
MVP: 4–8 weeks. Full first version: 3–6 months. Enterprise: 6–18 months.
/ Related
How much does a logo cost?
£50 to £5,000+
How much does a website cost?
£300 to £15,000+
How much does an ecommerce website cost?
£1,500 to £30,000+
How much does a Shopify store cost?
£1,500 to £15,000+ to build
How much does Google Ads management cost?
£300 to £3,000+ per month in management fees
How much does SEO cost?
£300 to £3,000+ per month
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