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App development cost: what it really takes to have an app built
For founders and businesses who want to know what their own web app will cost before they hire anyone. Here you find the cost drivers, the five usual routes fairly assessed, and Melta's exact numbers.
Why there is no single price
Ask five providers about app development cost and you get five vague answers. The price depends less on who builds it than on what gets built and what keeps running afterwards. Six factors decide the amount almost every time.
Scope
Pages, roles and workflows. Every feature has to be built, tested and later maintained. Scope is the biggest lever.
Design
A look of your own with colours, fonts and a logo takes time, whoever does it. Templates are cheaper, but they look like templates.
Integrations
Sending email, calendars, data imports, connections to other tools. Every integration is a small project with its own ways to break.
Payments
One-time purchases, subscriptions, checkout, payouts. They need a contract with a payment provider, clean flows and testing.
Legal
Imprint, privacy policy, terms and cookie rules have to match the operator and stay current. This work never appears on a feature list.
Operations and maintenance
Hosting, monitoring, updates, bug fixing. An app is not finished when it goes live, it runs. And running costs money every month.
App development cost by route: the five options
For agencies, freelancers, no-code tools and AI builders we do not quote prices: they depend on project, provider and region and keep changing. We describe what you get, what keeps costing and what stays your job. For Melta, the exact numbers are listed.
Agency. A team, a single contact and a result built to a specification. A fixed quote or billing by effort, usually five figures for a complete web app with logins and payments, more for larger projects. Changes after acceptance go through maintenance contracts or new quotes.
Freelancer. Cheaper than an agency because fewer people are involved. Billing is by hourly or daily rate, and the total depends on scope. You run the project yourself and carry the risk that the person is no longer available later.
No-code tool. You build it yourself with a visual builder or pay someone to set it up. The tool costs a monthly subscription; payments, email, domain, legal texts and analytics come separately. The real cost is your time and the limits of the builder.
AI builder. You describe what you want and get code that you put online yourself. Billing is usually a subscription with a quota of generations. Hosting, payments, legal pages and operations stay with you, and when something breaks you need someone who reads code.
Melta. You describe the product in plain language. Melta builds it, puts it online and connects payments, legal pages and your domain. Melta operates it afterwards.
| Route | One-time | Ongoing | Stays with you |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agency | Fixed quote or effort, usually five figures | Maintenance contract, hosting, changes by effort | Specification, acceptance, organising operations |
| Freelancer | Hourly or daily rate, total by scope | More hours per change, hosting separate | Project management, cover if they leave, operations |
| No-code tool | Your time or a paid setup | Tool subscription plus extra services one by one | Building, payments, legal pages, domain, maintenance |
| AI builder | Usually no one-time amount | Subscription with a quota, hosting and services separate | Prompting, debugging, hosting, payments, legal pages, operations |
| Melta | see pricing | see pricing | Describe the product, confirm the concept, change it by chat |
The assessment describes categories, not a single offer. What agencies, freelancers, no-code tools and AI builders offer may change at any time. Check the current terms directly with the provider.
What is often forgotten
The build is only the first item. Most estimates end at go-live, but the bill does not. Anyone weighing up app development cost should count the ongoing costs from the start.
- Hosting - Server or platform, database, domain, certificate, backups. Small per month, but permanent, and rising as you grow.
- Payment fees - Every payment provider keeps a percentage plus a fixed amount per payment, and some models add a platform share. Both belong on the price list, not in the small print.
- Maintenance - Libraries age, browsers change, security issues become known. Without care an app becomes a risk after a while.
- Legal updates - The privacy policy and terms have to match new features and new requirements. When your offer changes, the texts change too.
Note: the remarks on imprint, privacy and terms are general information, not legal advice.
What it costs
A concept uses only a few credits; afterwards your product runs on a plan per organisation with credits every month. All numbers and how the price is made up are on the pricing page.
Frequently asked questions about cost
How much does it cost to have an app developed?
It depends on scope, design, integrations, payments, legal requirements and operations. Agencies usually quote five figures, freelancers bill by the hour, no-code tools and AI builders charge a subscription plus your time.
Why are there no numbers for Melta on this page?
So that prices are the same everywhere, they live in exactly one place: the pricing page, with the complete cost structure. Agencies and freelancers price every project by effort, so they can only give ranges.
Do changes after the build cost extra?
No. Change runs are included in every plan. Each change is a chat message in plain language, lands in the preview first, and you decide when it goes live.
What do I pay if I sell nothing?
Only the plan. The share and the card processing only apply when someone pays inside your product. Without payments it stays at the plan and its credits.
Do I pay separately for hosting, a domain or a payment provider?
Hosting, payments, email, support inbox and analytics are included in the plan; you need no contract with a payment provider. On Starter your product runs on a melta.ai subdomain, from Growth on your own domain, bought through Melta or connected.
First the concept, then the number
Describe your product and get a concept in plain language for a few credits. We invite in the order of registration.
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