App Development Cost Calculator (UK)
Estimate what your app will cost to build in the UK, how long it will take and what it costs to run each year. Pick a platform, complexity and features; the estimate updates as you go.
How much does an app cost to build in the UK?
A simple app typically costs £5,000–£15,000, a real product with accounts and integrations £15,000–£40,000, and a complex app with payments or real-time features £40,000–£100,000+. Building for iOS and Android with one cross-platform codebase usually saves 30–40% compared with two native apps.
Estimate your app
Results update as you choose — no button needed.
Estimate only, based on typical UK pricing. For a fixed price, send a brief and get a written scope within 48 hours.
What drives the cost of an app
Screen count matters far less than people expect. Two apps with the same number of screens can differ fourfold in cost because of what happens behind them. These are the factors the calculator uses, roughly in order of impact:
| Factor | Effect on cost |
|---|---|
| Back-end complexity | Often more than half the build: accounts, data, permissions and business rules |
| Platforms | Two native apps cost about 75% more than one; one cross-platform codebase about 30% |
| Integrations | Each external system (payments, CRM, accounting, maps) adds discovery, build and error handling |
| Regulated data | Health or financial data can add 20–40% for security, audit trails and documentation |
| Design | Custom design and animation add time; standard components are faster and accessible by default |
What each budget buys
| Budget | What is realistic | Timeline |
|---|---|---|
| £5,000–£15,000 | A simple single-purpose app or a validation MVP | 4–8 weeks (an MVP Sprint can be 2–4) |
| £15,000–£40,000 | A real product: accounts, database, integrations, custom design | 2–4 months |
| £40,000–£100,000 | Complex: several user types, payments, real-time features | 4–8 months |
| £100,000+ | Platform scale: high traffic, regulated data, native apps, many integrations | 8 months+ |
Running costs after launch
Plan for maintenance of roughly 15–20% of the build cost a year to keep up with iOS and Android releases, plus hosting, app store accounts and paid services. The calculator shows this as the yearly figure under the estimate.
How to bring the cost down
Launch one platform first, or start with a responsive web app if you do not need app store features. Cut scope to the one workflow that proves demand — see MVP development — and use standard components where custom design adds nothing. Our full guide to mobile app development costs in the UK goes deeper.
Frequently asked questions
Typical UK ranges are £5,000–£15,000 for a simple app, £15,000–£40,000 for a real product with accounts and integrations, and £40,000–£100,000+ for complex apps with payments or real-time features. Platform count, integrations and compliance move the price most.
Usually. A cross-platform framework such as React Native or Flutter serves both from one codebase and typically saves 30–40% compared with two separate native apps, though some platform-specific work remains.
It gives a realistic range from the factors that drive cost most, based on typical UK pricing. A real quote depends on your exact scope; ruxox provides a free, fixed-price written scope within 48 hours.
Budget roughly 15–20% of the build cost a year for maintenance and OS-update compatibility, plus hosting, app store accounts (around £80–£120 a year for Apple and Google) and any paid third-party services.
If you do not need the camera, offline use, push notifications or an app store listing, a responsive web app is usually cheaper to build and far cheaper to update. Many products launch on the web first and add mobile once demand is proven.
A focused MVP takes 2–4 weeks with ruxox. A real product with accounts and integrations usually takes 2–4 months, and complex or regulated apps 4–8 months or more.
Want a fixed price for your app?
ruxox builds web and mobile apps to a fixed price agreed before work starts. Send a short brief and get a written scope within 48 hours.