A Flutter app for both iOS and Android typically costs $5,000 to $12,000 for a simple app without a backend, $12,000 to $30,000 for an app with login, a backend and an admin panel, and $25,000 to $60,000 or more for an app with subscriptions or in-app purchases, several user roles and integrations, when built by an experienced freelancer. US and UK agencies usually charge two to three times as much. Flutter’s main saving is that one codebase serves both platforms.
This guide breaks those numbers down and covers the costs people forget: store fees, commission and maintenance.
Why does Flutter cost less than native apps?
Flutter lets one codebase run on iPhone and Android. With fully native development you build and maintain two apps, one in Swift for iOS and one in Kotlin for Android. Flutter typically saves 30 to 50% of the build cost compared with two native apps, and more over time, because every fix and feature is written once.
Native code is still sometimes needed, for a device feature without a good plugin, for example. A good Flutter developer writes those small parts in Swift or Kotlin rather than avoiding the feature.
How much does a Flutter app cost by complexity?
Typical 2026 ranges in US dollars, for both iOS and Android:
| App type | Example features | Freelancer in India | Freelancer in US or UK | Agency (US, UK) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simple | A few screens, content or calculators, no accounts, no backend | $5,000–12,000 | $12,000–30,000 | $25,000–60,000 |
| App with backend | Login, user data, an API and database, admin panel, push notifications | $12,000–30,000 | $30,000–70,000 | $60,000–150,000 |
| Subscription or marketplace app | In-app purchases or subscriptions, several roles, payments, integrations, analytics | $25,000–60,000+ | $60,000–120,000+ | $100,000–250,000+ |
Public job posts show how wide the market is. Small Flutter jobs are often posted at $1,500 to $3,000 fixed, and hourly offers on general marketplaces can be very low. Those budgets usually buy a prototype or a single feature, not a production app with a backend and payments.
What drives the cost of a Flutter app?
Screens and user flows
Count the screens a user moves through, plus the ones staff or admins use. Each needs design, state handling, error states and testing on real devices.
The backend
Most useful apps need a backend: accounts, data, an admin panel and an API. It can be custom (for example Node.js with PostgreSQL) or a hosted service such as Firebase or Supabase. The backend is often 30 to 50% of the total cost, and it is the part that decides whether the app can grow.
Payments, subscriptions and in-app purchases
Selling digital features inside an app usually means Apple’s and Google’s billing systems, with trials, renewals, restores and cancellations handled correctly on both. This is one of the hardest parts of mobile development to get right, and it adds real cost. I explain the full setup in Flutter in-app purchases and subscriptions.
Device features
Camera, QR scanning, location, Bluetooth, background tasks and offline mode each add work and testing. Offline sync is particularly involved, because the app must store data locally and resolve conflicts later.
Design
A clean design built from a solid component set costs far less than a fully custom, heavily animated interface.
Store submission
Getting through Apple’s and Google’s review takes time: privacy details, permissions, account deletion, subscription wording and screenshots. Rejections add rounds of fixes.
What are the ongoing costs of a mobile app?
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Apple Developer Program | $99 a year |
| Google Play developer account | $25 one-off |
| Store commission on digital sales | 15% for most small businesses, up to 30% |
| Backend hosting and database | $20–200 a month at early stage |
| Push notifications, email, storage | Often free at small scale, then usage-based |
| Maintenance | Updates for new iOS and Android versions every year |
Apple’s and Google’s small business programmes reduce commission to 15% on the first $1 million of yearly revenue; check the current terms on the Apple Developer and Google Play sites. Physical goods and services sold through an app, such as food orders or bookings, use normal payment gateways instead.
Budget a few hours to a few days each year for updates. Each new iOS and Android release can change permissions, APIs or store requirements.
Should I build a web app first instead?
Often, yes. A web app launches faster, needs no store review and works on every phone. Go mobile first when the product depends on the camera, location, notifications or daily use on the go. The decision is covered in web app or mobile app. If you need both, building one backend for the web and mobile apps keeps the total well below the sum of two separate projects. For web-only budgets, see how much an MVP costs.
How long does a Flutter app take?
A simple app can take four to eight weeks. An app with a backend and admin typically takes two to four months, and subscription or marketplace apps longer, including time for store review. Clear scope and quick feedback shorten every one of those.
What does a real Flutter app include?
CRUD Review is a Flutter app I built that is live on the App Store and Google Play, rated 5.0 on Google Play. It includes an owner console, a staff mode that logs in by scanning a QR code, OTP login and subscriptions with a three-day free trial through both stores’ billing. The same Node.js and PostgreSQL backend serves a Next.js web app, so the business runs one system across phone and browser.
How to get an accurate Flutter quote
Send a short brief:
- What the app does and who uses it.
- The main screens, and any staff or admin side.
- Whether users log in, and what data is stored.
- Payments: subscriptions, one-off purchases or physical goods.
- Device features: camera, location, notifications, offline.
- Whether you also need a web app.
- Your deadline and budget range.
I build Flutter apps for iOS and Android, including the backend, subscriptions and store submission, published under your own developer accounts. Send the brief and get a fixed quote within 24 hours.