Quick numbers
- Simple app (5–8 screens, no payments) — ₹2.5L to ₹5L
- Mid-complexity (accounts, payments, admin panel) — ₹5L to ₹12L
- Marketplace / on-demand — ₹12L and upward
App quotes in Bengaluru vary more wildly than website quotes, and for one dominant reason: most cheap quotes silently exclude the backend. The screens a user taps are perhaps half the work. The server, database, admin panel, and APIs behind them are the other half — and they are where projects quietly overrun.
Here is what apps actually cost, itemised the way an honest proposal should be.
Cost by app complexity
| Complexity | Example | Cost range | Timeline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Simple | Catalogue, booking form, content app | ₹2.5L – ₹5L | 6–10 weeks |
| Mid-complexity | Accounts, payments, notifications, admin | ₹5L – ₹12L | 3–5 months |
| Complex | Marketplace, live tracking, multi-role | ₹12L – ₹30L | 5–9 months |
| Enterprise | ERP-integrated, offline sync, compliance | ₹25L+ | 8 months+ |
Where the money actually goes
For a typical ₹8,00,000 mid-complexity app, the effort splits roughly like this. Note how little of it is the part clients usually picture:
| Work item | Share of budget | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Frontend (app screens) | 30–35% | UI build, navigation, state, animations |
| Backend & APIs | 25–30% | Server, database, auth, business logic |
| Admin panel | 10–15% | Web dashboard to manage users and content |
| UI/UX design | 10–15% | Wireframes, visual design, prototypes |
| QA & testing | 10% | Device testing, bug fixing, store prep |
| Project management | 5–10% | Coordination, demos, documentation |
The single most useful question to ask any agency: "Does this quote include the backend, the database, and an admin panel — and if not, what would those cost?" The answer separates complete proposals from ones that will need a second, larger invoice.
Native or cross-platform?
Cross-platform (Flutter / React Native)
- One codebase covers Android and iOS
- Roughly 40% cheaper than two native builds
- Faster to market; single team
- Excellent for business, commerce, and service apps
- Cheaper long-term maintenance — one codebase to update
Native (Kotlin / Swift)
- Best possible performance and platform fit
- Full access to sensors, background services, widgets
- Required for heavy graphics or deep hardware work
- Costs 60–80% more to cover both platforms
- Two codebases means two ongoing maintenance streams
For roughly 80% of business apps built in Bengaluru, cross-platform is the correct commercial decision. Choose native when you genuinely need deep hardware integration, sustained high performance, or platform features like widgets and App Clips.
Costs that appear after launch
These catch first-time app owners out more than the build price does:
- Apple Developer Program — about ₹8,500 per year, mandatory and non-negotiable for iOS.
- Google Play Console — a one-time fee of roughly ₹2,100.
- Backend hosting — ₹3,000/month at launch, scaling with usage.
- Push notifications and SMS/OTP — SMS in particular is charged per message and adds up quickly at scale.
- Annual maintenance — 15–20% of build cost. Android and iOS force yearly compatibility updates; an unmaintained app eventually stops working.
How to reduce cost without regret
- Ship a genuine MVP first Cut to the one workflow that proves the idea. A ₹3L MVP that validates demand beats a ₹15L app built on assumptions.
- Launch on one platform if your audience is skewed If 90% of your users are on Android, launch there and add iOS once revenue justifies it.
- Use proven services for commodity features Firebase for auth and notifications, Razorpay for payments. Building these from scratch is expensive and rarely better.
- Do not over-design early Elaborate custom animations are the easiest thing to add in version two, and the easiest place to burn budget in version one.
One thing worth not economising on: source code ownership. Confirm in writing that you receive the complete source for both the app and the backend on final payment. Without it, changing vendors later means rebuilding from zero.
Want a realistic number for your specific idea? Describe your app and we will send an itemised quote — or compare approaches in our native vs cross-platform guide.