Mobile app development cost in India in 2026 starts at about ₹75,000 for a simple MVP and runs to ₹2 to 6 lakh for a typical business app. Ecommerce and on-demand apps usually cost ₹5 to 18 lakh, and complex apps with AI, real-time tracking or fintech compliance usually cost ₹7 lakh to ₹20 lakh or more. On top of the build, add 18% GST, store fees, hosting, and roughly 15 to 20% of the build cost every year for maintenance.
This guide puts the 2026 price ranges published by Indian app agencies side by side, explains why they disagree, and shows what each platform and feature adds. It also covers the yearly costs most quotes leave out, with two worked budgets and a checklist for getting a quote you can compare. Every figure links to its source.
Mobile app development cost in India: 2026 price table
The table below uses the ranges most Indian agencies publish. "Business app" and "complex app" mean slightly different things to each agency, so read these as market bands, not fixed prices.
App type | What it usually includes | Typical price range | Typical timeline |
|---|---|---|---|
Simple app / MVP | 5 to 8 screens, login, basic profile, Firebase or simple backend | ₹75,000 to ₹2.5 lakh | 4 to 6 weeks |
Business app | 10 to 20 screens, custom design, bookings or catalogue, push notifications, admin panel | ₹2 lakh to ₹6 lakh | 2 to 4 months |
Ecommerce app | Product catalogue, cart, UPI and card payments, order tracking, 15 to 25 screens | ₹5 lakh to ₹12 lakh | 10 to 16 weeks |
On-demand / marketplace app | Separate customer, vendor and admin apps, live location, chat, 20 to 40 screens | ₹8 lakh to ₹18 lakh | 14 to 22 weeks |
Complex / enterprise app | AI features, heavy integrations, high security, AR/VR or fintech compliance | ₹7 lakh to ₹20 lakh+ | 4 to 8 months |
Sources: simple, ecommerce and on-demand bands and their timelines are from PS Digitise's 2026 breakdown (published May 2026). The business app and complex app bands are from Secuodsoft's 2026 price guide, which puts mid-level apps at ₹2 to 6 lakh and enterprise apps at ₹7 to 20 lakh or more.
Indian agencies almost always quote before GST. App development falls under SAC code 998314 (IT design and development services) and attracts 18% GST, so a ₹3 lakh quote becomes ₹3.54 lakh on the invoice.
Why published app prices in India disagree so much
If you search for app development cost in India, the numbers do not line up. Here is what three Indian agencies published in 2026 for roughly the same categories:
App category | PS Digitise | Secuodsoft | Vxplore |
|---|---|---|---|
Simple app | ₹75,000 to ₹2.5 lakh | ₹50,000 to ₹1.5 lakh | ₹3 lakh to ₹8 lakh |
Mid-level / business app | ₹2 lakh to ₹3 lakh | ₹2 lakh to ₹6 lakh | ₹10 lakh to ₹25 lakh |
Complex app | ₹5 lakh to ₹10 lakh+ (enterprise/AI) | ₹7 lakh to ₹20 lakh+ | ₹30 lakh to ₹50 lakh+ |
Sources: PS Digitise, Secuodsoft and Vxplore's 2026 guide (published June 2026).
A "simple app" ranges from ₹50,000 to ₹8 lakh depending on who you ask. The gap comes from four things:
What counts as simple. One agency's simple app is a template with a login screen. Another's includes custom UI design, a proper backend and an admin panel.
Design depth. Vxplore prices UI/UX alone at ₹50,000 to ₹1.5 lakh for basic design and up to ₹12 lakh for premium design. A template-based app skips most of that.
Backend. An app that runs on Firebase with off-the-shelf login is far cheaper than one with its own server, database and APIs. Vxplore puts a basic backend at ₹1.5 to 4 lakh and a high-traffic one at ₹8 to 20 lakh.
Who builds it. Hourly rates differ several times over between a junior freelancer and a senior agency team (see the rates section below).
So when two quotes for "the same app" differ by 5x, the first question is whether they are quoting the same scope. The checklist at the end of this guide helps you make them comparable.
Android vs iOS vs Flutter: cost by platform
Platform choice is the biggest single lever on price after scope. Building two native apps means two codebases. A cross-platform framework like Flutter or React Native builds both from one.
Platform approach | Typical cost | Typical timeline | Good fit |
|---|---|---|---|
Native Android only (Kotlin) | ₹1.5 lakh to ₹8 lakh | 6 to 16 weeks | Products aimed mainly at Android users |
Native iOS only (Swift) | ₹2 lakh to ₹10 lakh | 8 to 18 weeks | Premium consumer apps, iPhone-first audiences |
Native iOS + Android | ₹5 lakh to ₹20 lakh | 16 to 28 weeks | Apps that need the best performance or deep device features on both |
React Native (both platforms) | ₹75,000 to ₹12 lakh | 4 to 16 weeks | Most business, booking and ecommerce apps |
Flutter (both platforms) | ₹1 lakh to ₹14 lakh | 5 to 18 weeks | Apps with custom, design-heavy interfaces |
Ranges and timelines from PS Digitise's 2026 platform comparison. Vxplore estimates that cross-platform development costs 30 to 40% less than building two native apps for a comparable mid-level app.
For most Indian businesses that need to reach customers on both Android and iPhone, a cross-platform build is the sensible default. Go native when the app depends on heavy graphics, complex background work, or device features that cross-platform plugins handle poorly.
Features that add cost
Each feature that stores data, moves money or talks to another system adds design, development and testing time. These are per-feature ranges for a React Native build from PS Digitise's 2026 breakdown:
Feature | Typical added cost |
|---|---|
User login and authentication | ₹15,000 to ₹35,000 |
Push notifications | ₹15,000 to ₹30,000 |
Multi-language support (Hindi, Marathi and so on) | ₹20,000 to ₹50,000 |
Payment integration (Razorpay, UPI) | ₹25,000 to ₹60,000 |
Google Maps and location tracking | ₹30,000 to ₹70,000 |
Product catalogue and search | ₹35,000 to ₹80,000 |
In-app chat | ₹40,000 to ₹90,000 |
Booking or appointment system | ₹40,000 to ₹1 lakh |
Admin dashboard (web) | ₹50,000 to ₹1.5 lakh |
Offline mode with data sync | ₹50,000 to ₹1.2 lakh |
AI chatbot | ₹50,000 to ₹1.5 lakh |
Source: PS Digitise feature cost table, 2026.
The admin dashboard is the line people forget. Someone on your team has to add products, approve bookings or answer chats, and that needs its own web panel. If a quote does not mention one, ask.
AI features also vary widely. IMG Global Infotech estimates that adding AI capabilities raises the cost of an app by 30 to 100%, depending on how much of the app relies on them.
Cost by industry
Industry matters because it decides which features you cannot skip. A fintech app needs KYC and security work. A delivery app needs live tracking. A clinic app needs careful handling of patient data.
Industry | Typical cost range | What drives it |
|---|---|---|
Real estate | ₹2 lakh to ₹4 lakh | Listings, maps, lead capture |
Healthcare / clinic | ₹2 lakh to ₹5 lakh | Appointments, records, data security |
Education / EdTech | ₹2 lakh to ₹5 lakh | Video, courses, progress tracking |
Restaurant / food | ₹3 lakh to ₹6 lakh | Menu, ordering, real-time order status |
Logistics / delivery | ₹3 lakh to ₹6 lakh | Live tracking, driver app |
Fintech / payments | ₹5 lakh to ₹10 lakh | RBI compliance, KYC, security |
Ecommerce / retail | ₹8 lakh to ₹15 lakh | Payments, catalogue, logistics integrations |
Source: PS Digitise industry pricing, 2026. Secuodsoft's industry ranges are wider, for example ₹3 to 12 lakh for ecommerce and ₹4 to 12 lakh for fintech.
Who builds it: freelancer vs agency rates
Most Indian agencies quote a fixed project price, but hourly rates explain why quotes differ.
Developer level | Typical rate in India |
|---|---|
Junior developer | ₹400 to ₹600 per hour |
Mid-level developer | ₹600 to ₹800 per hour |
Senior developer | ₹800 to ₹1,000 per hour |
Tech lead / architect | ₹1,000+ per hour |
Agency blended rate | ₹800 to ₹1,000 per hour |
Rates from PS Digitise, 2026. Other published figures run higher: Secuodsoft puts India at US$20 to 50 per hour, against US$90 to 150 in the United States.
A freelancer can work well for a small, clearly defined app. The risk is what happens after launch: app stores change their rules and phones get OS updates every year, so you need someone available to keep the app working. An agency costs more per hour but gives you a designer, developers and a tester under one contract. Our older guide on how to choose a mobile app developer covers what to check before you hire.
How long app development takes
Timelines follow scope. Published 2026 ranges from PS Digitise and Secuodsoft:
Simple app or MVP: 2 to 6 weeks
Business app: 2 to 4 months
Ecommerce app: 10 to 16 weeks
On-demand or marketplace app: 14 to 22 weeks
Enterprise or complex app: 4 to 8 months or more
Leave time for store review and launch fixes as well. Your own speed also counts: slow feedback on designs and late content (product photos, menu items, legal text) delay more projects than code does.
Costs after launch that most quotes leave out
The build is a one-time cost. These come back every month or every year.
Cost | Typical amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
Apple Developer Program | US$99 per year | Needed to publish on the App Store; Apple shows the local price at enrolment |
Google Play developer account | US$25 one time | Paid once when you register |
Backend hosting (Firebase) | ₹0 to ₹8,000 per month | Grows with users and data |
Backend hosting (AWS / Google Cloud) | ₹3,000 to ₹20,000 per month | For apps with their own server |
SMS / OTP | ₹0.15 to ₹0.50 per SMS | Every login OTP is a paid message |
Annual maintenance (AMC) | 15 to 20% of build cost per year | Bug fixes, OS updates, security patches |
New features | ₹50,000 to ₹5 lakh+ | Priced as needed |
GST on services | 18% | On development and maintenance invoices |
Sources: Apple's fee from the Apple Developer Program enrolment page; Google's fee from Play Console Help; hosting, SMS and feature costs from PS Digitise; the 15 to 20% maintenance rule appears in both PS Digitise's and Vxplore's 2026 guides.
Store commission on in-app sales
If you sell digital goods or subscriptions inside the app, the stores take a cut. Google Play's service fee in markets including India is 15% on a developer's first US$1 million of earnings each year, 30% above that, and 15% on auto-renewing subscriptions. If you also offer an alternative billing system to users in India, Google reduces the fee on those transactions by 4 percentage points. Apple's App Store Small Business Program charges 15% on paid apps and in-app purchases for developers who earned up to US$1 million in the previous year.
These fees apply to digital goods. Apps that sell physical products or real-world services (groceries, salon bookings, deliveries) normally take payment through a gateway like Razorpay instead, which charges its own per-transaction fee.
Privacy rules under the DPDP Act
Almost every app collects phone numbers, names or locations. The Digital Personal Data Protection Rules were notified on 14 November 2025 with an 18-month phased compliance timeline. Plan for clear consent screens, a privacy policy, and a way for users to ask for their data to be deleted. Confirm the quote includes this work.
Worked example: first two years for a booking app
The numbers below are illustrative. They use figures from inside the ranges above to show how costs add up. They are not quotes.
Example 1: Flutter booking app for a clinic or salon (Android and iPhone)
Design and development: ₹3,00,000 + 18% GST (₹54,000) = ₹3,54,000
Apple Developer Program: US$99 (about ₹8,500, the estimate PS Digitise uses)
Google Play registration: US$25 one time (about ₹2,100)
Firebase hosting at ₹3,000 a month: ₹36,000
Year one total: about ₹4,00,600.
Year two, with a maintenance contract at 15% of the build:
Maintenance: ₹45,000 + 18% GST (₹8,100) = ₹53,100
Apple Developer renewal: about ₹8,500
Hosting: ₹36,000
Year two total: about ₹97,600.
Over two years, the app costs about ₹4.98 lakh against a build price of ₹3 lakh. Ask for those running costs before you compare quotes.
Example 2: launching an ecommerce app as an MVP first
Say the full ecommerce app you have in mind would cost ₹8,00,000 (inside the ₹5 to 12 lakh band above). IMG Global Infotech estimates an MVP at 40 to 60% of the full product cost. Building the MVP first means spending ₹3,20,000 to ₹4,80,000 up front, then adding features once real customers show you which ones matter. Some features on your original list will turn out not to be needed, and that money stays in your account.
How to cut app development cost without cutting quality
Start with an MVP. Launch with the one journey that makes money (book, order, pay) and leave loyalty points, referral codes and chat for version two.
Use one codebase. Flutter or React Native covers Android and iPhone together. Vxplore estimates the saving at 30 to 40% against two native apps.
Use managed services. Firebase for login and notifications, Razorpay for payments, Google Maps for location. Building these from scratch costs more and rarely works better.
Reuse your website. If you already have a website with a product catalogue or booking system, the app can often use the same backend.
Prepare content early. Have product photos, descriptions and legal pages ready before development starts so the team is never waiting on you.
Fix the scope in writing. A fixed-price contract with a signed feature list stops costs growing during the build. Changes then go through a written change request with a price.
Still deciding whether you need an app at all? Our guide on choosing between a website and a mobile app covers that question first.
Checklist: how to get an accurate app quote
Send the same brief to every developer, then compare the quotes line by line.
Describe the app in one paragraph: who uses it and the main thing they do in it.
Say which platforms you need at launch: Android, iPhone, or both.
List every user type (customer, vendor, delivery partner, admin) and what each one can do.
List every feature, including payments, notifications, languages and integrations with tools you already use.
Ask whether the quote includes UI/UX design, the backend, the admin panel and testing, or only the app screens.
Ask whether GST is included. A quote that adds 18% later can look cheaper than it is.
Ask who publishes the app, and make sure both store accounts are in your company's name.
Confirm you will receive the full source code, design files and server access at the end.
Ask what maintenance costs after launch and what it covers (OS updates, bug fixes, security).
Agree milestones and payment stages tied to deliverables, for example design approval, beta build and store launch.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to develop a mobile app in India?
Published 2026 ranges put a simple app or MVP at ₹75,000 to ₹2.5 lakh, a business app at ₹2 to 6 lakh, and ecommerce or on-demand apps at ₹5 to 18 lakh. Complex apps with AI or fintech features usually cost ₹7 lakh to ₹20 lakh or more. Add 18% GST and yearly running costs.
Does Google take 30% of in-app purchases?
Only on earnings above US$1 million a year. According to Google Play's service fee page, the fee is 15% on a developer's first US$1 million each year and 15% on auto-renewing subscriptions. In India, offering an alternative billing system reduces the fee on those transactions by 4 percentage points.
Is Flutter cheaper than native app development?
For an app that must run on both Android and iPhone, usually yes, because one codebase serves both platforms. Vxplore estimates the saving at 30 to 40% compared with building two native apps.
How long does it take to build an app in India?
A simple app or MVP takes about 2 to 6 weeks, a business app 2 to 4 months, and a complex app 4 to 8 months or more. Leave time for store review and launch fixes on top.
Do I have to pay GST on app development?
Yes, if your developer is GST-registered. App development falls under SAC 998314 and is taxed at 18%. If your business is GST-registered, you can usually claim it as input tax credit; check with your CA.
How much does app maintenance cost per year?
Most 2026 guides advise budgeting 15 to 20% of the original build cost every year. For a ₹4 lakh app, that is ₹60,000 to ₹80,000 a year plus GST, before hosting and store fees.
Get a clear quote for your app
Webhorse Studio designs and builds Android, iPhone and cross-platform apps for businesses in Mumbai and across India. See our mobile app development services, or tell us about your app and we will send you an itemised quote.
