What an app costs after launch: store fees, hosting and maintenance

What the build price leaves out

Most quotes for an app cover the build: design, development, testing and getting it into the stores. That is the number people compare. After launch the app also has to stay online, keep working on new phones and keep meeting both stores' rules, and none of that is in the build price.

None of these costs are hidden on purpose. They are just outside the build, and they depend on choices you make while scoping. If you know them before you start, you can choose a scope whose running cost you are happy to carry.

Store accounts

To publish under your own name you need your own developer accounts. Apple charges $99 a year for the Apple Developer Program. Google charges a one-time $25 registration fee for a Google Play developer account. Organisation accounts on both stores ask for business verification, which takes some paperwork but no extra fee.

The accounts are in your name, so the fees above are yours and so is the listing; the developer accounts guide explains why that matters.

Hosting the backend and database

If your app has its own backend (user accounts, orders, bookings, an admin dashboard) that backend runs on a server somewhere, with a database next to it. That is a monthly cost for as long as the app is live.

For a new app with a modest number of users, a small cloud server or a managed platform is enough. The cost grows with traffic, stored files (photos, documents, video) and how much uptime you need. Video and large file storage are usually what push hosting bills up, not the number of screens.

• Apps that only connect to APIs you already have (your website, your booking system) often need no new hosting at all.
• Apps with their own Node.js backend and PostgreSQL database, like the Growth and Scale packages, need a server and a database from day one.
• Backups, a staging copy for testing and monitoring are worth paying for once real customers rely on the app.

Third-party services, billed per use

Many features are built on someone else's service, and that service sends its own bill. These are usually priced per message, per request or per transaction, so they stay small while the app is small.

Maintenance and operating system updates

Apple and Google release new versions of iOS and Android every year, and both stores tighten their requirements over time. Google Play, for example, requires apps to target a recent Android version before you can publish updates. An app that nobody touches for two years can end up blocked from updating until it is brought current.

Maintenance covers that upkeep, plus fixing bugs that real users find and updating libraries with security fixes. Some owners pay a monthly retainer; others pay per update when they need one. Either works, as long as there is a maintenance budget.

How to keep running costs low from the start

Most of the running cost is decided during scoping, so the cheapest time to reduce it is before the build starts.

• Connect to systems you already pay for instead of rebuilding them inside the app.
• Start with email login or social sign-in before adding SMS codes, which cost per message.
• Store images at sensible sizes and keep video on a service built for video.
• Choose one cross-platform codebase (Flutter) so every update is made once for both Android and iOS.
• Ask for the source code and the accounts in your name, so you can move maintenance to anyone you like.

What is included in my packages and what is not

My packages are fixed prices for the build: $999 for Launch, $1,699 for Growth and $2,500 for Scale, with testing and help publishing to both stores. Store fees, hosting, third-party services and ongoing maintenance are separate, and I list the ones your app will need in the written scope before work starts, so the running cost is not a surprise.