Custom mobile app development services — Flutter, iOS + Android, source code yours
Custom-built iOS and Android apps for operators who have outgrown a readymade script. One Flutter codebase, NestJS backend, full source delivered. Quotes from $18,000, fixed against scope. Looking to license a readymade instead, or hire a Flutter engineer? Both routes are open below.
What custom mobile app development means here
Custom mobile app development services, on this page, means a fixed-scope build for one operator. You bring a product idea (or a working prototype, or an aging app that needs replacing); we deliver iOS, Android, the backend, and the admin dashboard, with the source code in your Git repository at handover. No SaaS subscription, no per-user license, no platform commission. The price is a number, fixed against a written scope, agreed before any code is written.
That is deliberately not the same offer as a software-as-a-service product, where you rent the platform and a vendor owns the codebase. It is also not the same as a developer hire, where you embed an engineer in your team and direct the work day-to-day. Three different ways to get a mobile app shipped, three different price tags, three different time horizons. Most operators on this page have already worked out that a SaaS does not fit and they want a build, not a hire — but if you are still scoping the choice, the next section lays out the trade-offs without the pitch.
License, custom build, or hire engineers — pick the one that fits
We run three distinct fulfilment options under one roof. Each has a different price, a different timeline, and a different decision profile. The matrix below lays them out side-by-side so you can pick the row that matters most for your project before going deeper. Pick by decision profile, not budget alone.
| License | ★ Custom build | Hire engineers | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $1,500 – $5,000 one-time | $18,000 – $80,000+ fixed | $18 – $60 / hr, monthly retainer |
| Timeline | 4–6 weeks to live | 12–20 weeks discovery to live | On day one of the retainer |
| Commercial shape | One-time license | Fixed-scope SOW | Monthly retainer |
| Source code | Yours at handover | Yours at handover | Your repo throughout |
| Scope flex | Brand + config only | Anything — locked at sprint 1 | Anything you direct, week to week |
| Engineering team | Same Flutter bench | Dedicated 4–6 person pod | Embedded engineer(s) in your team |
| Best when | Your vertical matches an SKU | Vertical is bespoke or regulated | You have an in-house PM, want capacity |
| Vertical match | 5 verticals shipped (food, grocery, services) | Any vertical — bespoke | Any vertical you direct |
| Post-launch support | 3 months email | 30 / 60 / 90-day window included | Continuous — while the retainer runs |
| Where it lives | /products/ | this page | hireflutterdev.com |
Custom build is highlighted because this page is the custom-build surface. The same engineering bench runs all three paths.
What we build inside a custom mobile app project
Native iOS apps
Swift / SwiftUI when the project genuinely needs platform-specific frameworks (CarPlay, HealthKit, ARKit). Default is Flutter; native is offered when justified, not as the lead pitch.
Native Android apps
Kotlin + Jetpack Compose when an integration (Wear OS, deep Android Auto, manufacturer SDKs) makes Flutter the wrong call. Same rule: justified, not default.
Flutter cross-platform
Single Dart codebase compiled to native iOS and Android binaries. One engineering team, one bug list, one design system, one release cycle.
NestJS + MongoDB backend
TypeScript REST API on Node.js, MongoDB with Mongoose, Redis cache, Stripe + Razorpay pre-wired. Deployed to AWS, DigitalOcean, or your VPS.
Web admin dashboards
Next.js or React admin CMS for ops, content, and analytics. Same auth, same database, same TypeScript types as the mobile apps.
App Store + Play submission
Submission under your Apple Developer ($99/yr) and Google Play Console ($25 one-time) accounts. Review-cycle handling and rejection appeals included.
One Flutter codebase, two native binaries
The stack we ship — Flutter, NestJS, MongoDB
Flutter and Dart for the mobile apps by default. One Dart codebase compiles to native iOS and Android binaries — no JavaScript bridge, no WebView, no second engineering track for the second platform. Every scroll, transition, and live-tracking update runs at 60fps on mid-range Android hardware because Flutter renders directly to a Skia / Impeller canvas. Flutter app development services sit inside this same engagement model.
Native Swift / SwiftUI and Kotlin / Jetpack Compose when the project genuinely needs a platform framework Flutter does not yet expose first-class — CarPlay, ARKit, deep HealthKit, Wear OS, manufacturer SDKs, or sustained sub-16ms render budgets. We do not pad with native by default; native lives where it earns its place.
Backend is NestJS (TypeScript) on Node.js, with MongoDB and Mongoose as the data layer and Redis for cache and session. Stripe ships pre-wired for US and EU payments; Razorpay is the India default; both expose a payment-provider interface so PayU, Paystack, Tap, or Flutterwave is a config + credentials, not a rewrite. Mapbox or Google Maps drives geocoding and live tracking. FCM and APNs handle push directly; OneSignal is supported when the operator wants a pre-built segmentation UI.
Admin web dashboards are Next.js or React, sharing TypeScript types with the NestJS backend so the data shape never drifts between the API and the dashboard. Same auth, same database, same observability stack as the mobile apps.
How we deliver in six phases
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Discovery
60–90 minute scoping call, then a 1–2 week discovery sprint: user flows, data model, integrations, success metrics. Output is a fixed-scope SOW with a fixed quote.
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Design
UX wireframes → high-fidelity Figma → clickable prototype. Designer pair with the lead engineer so screens are buildable, not just pretty.
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Build sprints
Two-week sprints. Working build at the end of every sprint, in your TestFlight and Play Internal track. No 14-week black box.
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Beta
Real users on TestFlight + Play Beta for 1–2 weeks. Crash reports, analytics, feedback triage. Hot-fix cycles, not feature creep.
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Store submission
App Store + Play Store submission under your developer accounts. Listing copy, screenshots, content rating, review-cycle handling.
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Handover
Source code in your Git, infra docs, runbook, on-call playbook. 30 / 60 / 90-day post-launch support window for bug fixes and small adjustments.
Six phases, two-week sprint cadence, working build at the end of every sprint. The reason custom mobile app builds collapse — and they do, often — is almost never engineering. It is scope drift in the middle of the build, or an over-promised timeline that hides three weeks of unscoped discovery. Both are addressed structurally here: scope is fixed before sprint 1 against a written SOW, and the timeline is committed against scope on the kickoff call. We have hit every committed launch date inside fixed scope since 2010.
Timeline and team size — what gets pointed at your project
A custom mobile app build runs 12 to 20 weeks from discovery kickoff to live store listing. The 12-week end is a single-role MVP with one payment integration; the 20-week end is a multi-role marketplace with KYC, custom payment rails, and a complex admin. Most operator-facing apps land in the 14–16 week middle.
The delivery team is typically four to six people, dedicated for the duration of the build:
Product manager
Single point of contact, scope ownership, weekly status, demo cadence. No account-management layer between you and engineering.
Product designer
UX flows, Figma high-fi, design system, and design QA at every sprint review. Pairs with the lead engineer so screens are buildable.
Engineers
Typically 1 lead + 1 mid Flutter engineer + 1 backend (NestJS), with a second backend/admin engineer when scope warrants. Native iOS / Android specialists added for justified native scope.
QA engineer
Manual + automated test coverage, regression on every sprint, and App Store + Play Beta cycle handling through to launch.
You talk to the product manager day-to-day and to Navin (founder) on commercial and scope questions. We do not run an account-management layer between you and the engineering team — the lead engineer is in your sprint reviews, every sprint.
What's included in the quote — and what's NOT
- Full source code in your Git repository (Flutter apps + backend + admin)
- App Store + Play Store listings published under your developer accounts
- Discovery sprint, UX design, dev, QA, and store submission inside the quote
- 30 / 60 / 90-day post-launch support window for bug fixes
- Infra deployment scripts (AWS / DigitalOcean / your VPS)
- No monthly platform fee, no per-order commission, no usage royalty
- Apple Developer Program ($99/yr) and Google Play Console ($25 one-time) — those accounts are yours, in your name
- Payment processor account setup (Stripe / Razorpay / PayU) — your business identity, your KYC, your bank
- Marketing, paid acquisition, ASO writing, store-screenshot copywriting
- KYC / identity-verification vendor accounts (Persona, Onfido, Hyperverge) — operator-owned
- Server hosting bills after handover — billed to your AWS / DO / GCP account directly
- Third-party SDK fees (Mapbox above free tier, OneSignal pro, etc.) — pass-through to the operator
Hiding line items inflates the apparent quote and produces angry change orders later. We split the bill at the boundary that keeps operator ownership clean: we deliver the engineering, you own the accounts, identities, and ongoing operational costs. Both sides can plan against that.
Custom mobile app development cost — $18,000 to $80,000+
Quotes for custom mobile app development services on this page run from $18,000 for a basic feature set to $80,000+ for a full feature expansion. The actual number depends on scope: number of user roles, payment integrations, third-party SDKs, regulatory surface, admin reporting depth, and whether native code is justified anywhere in the build. We commit to a fixed quote against a fixed-scope SOW after the discovery sprint — not a vague hourly card.
| Phase | Range | What drives the number |
|---|---|---|
| Discovery + UX design | $3,000 – $8,000 | Scoping sprint + Figma flows. Heavier for regulated or multi-role apps. |
| iOS + Android engineering | $10,000 – $50,000 | Flutter single codebase. Native splits (Swift / Kotlin) sit at the upper half of the band. |
| Backend + admin dashboard | $3,000 – $15,000 | NestJS + MongoDB + Redis. Heavier with multi-role auth, marketplace economics, or complex reporting. |
| QA + store submission | $2,000 – $7,000 | TestFlight + Play Beta cycles, store rejection appeals, content rating, screenshots. |
Two operator-facing notes on the range. First: the lower band assumes Flutter cross-platform and a single backend region. Adding native iOS or native Android pushes engineering toward the upper half of its band because two platforms, two test matrices, and two store-review cycles compound. Second: the upper band is not a ceiling on principle — multi-region, multi-currency, regulated-market builds (HIPAA, PCI Level 1, KYC-heavy fintech) routinely sit at $80,000 to $150,000 when the engineering surface justifies it. We will tell you when a feature is cheaper to skip than to build.
If your budget is materially under $18,000, the honest answer is that a readymade license fits better. The five products at /products/ cover the most common operator verticals at $1,500 to $5,000, with the same Flutter codebase a custom build would be written on.
What we have actually shipped
Most agencies offering custom mobile app development services point at testimonials. We point at five production Flutter apps you can buy and inspect today, and seven clone-vertical pages we maintain as buyer references. The same engineering bench builds the custom work.
Five readymade products — production Flutter apps with source code
Readymade Restaurant App
Branded ordering app for one restaurant. Customer + Restaurant + Admin apps, source included.
View product → $1,500Readymade Grocery Online Store
Single-store grocery app: customer, picker, driver, admin. Live in 4–6 weeks.
View product → $1,999Multi-Store Grocery App
Multi-location grocery for chains and franchises. Per-store inventory, central admin.
View product → $5,000Food Delivery System
Aggregator-grade marketplace: 3 apps + admin + commission engine. Build a Zomato in your city.
View product → $1,500Home Services App
On-demand multi-service marketplace: electrician, plumber, AC, cleaner. Two-sided economics.
View product →Seven clone vertical pages — buyer references
We also maintain the open-source GetWidget Flutter UI kit (4M+ downloads) from the same engineering bench. If a custom mobile app build needs a deeper engineering reference, the restaurant ordering app pillar walks through one full operator-facing build end-to-end.
Where we have shipped — verticals we know
Custom mobile app development services scale on engineering generality, but ship faster on vertical familiarity. Where IFA has the deepest pattern library:
- Food and restaurant. Single-restaurant ordering, multi-restaurant aggregator marketplaces, dine-in QR ordering, kitchen and KDS integrations. Reference builds: readymade restaurant app, food delivery system, plus the Zomato, Uber Eats, Swiggy, and DoorDash clone pages.
- Grocery and quick-commerce. Single-store and multi-store grocery, picker / shopper apps, route optimisation for drivers, perishables-aware inventory. Reference: grocery online store, multi-store grocery app, and the Instacart clone page.
- On-demand home services. Two-sided marketplaces with KYC for service providers, scheduled bookings, in-app payments, ratings and disputes. Reference: home services app.
- Marketplace and rental economies. Two-sided supply / demand matching with messaging, calendar availability, deposits, and dispute resolution. Reference: Airbnb and Airbnb clone script.
- Healthcare and regulated builds. Patient-facing apps with HIPAA scope, BAA-signed hosting, audit logging, role-based access. Scoped per engagement; we do not pretend turn-key compliance.
Geographically, the core delivery team sits in Bengaluru, India, with operator customers concentrated in the United States, India, and the United Arab Emirates. The India bench is the reason mid-market US operators get a senior Flutter team at a price point a comparable US-only mobile app development company would quote at three to four times the number — without dropping engineering quality.
Custom build vs readymade — when each one wins
| Readymade license | ★ Custom build | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | $1,500 – $5,000 one-time license | $18,000 – $80,000+ scoped to spec |
| Timeline | 4 – 6 weeks to live in store | 12 – 20 weeks discovery → live |
| Source code | Yours — full Flutter codebase | Yours — full Flutter / native codebase |
| Customisation depth | Branding + config + paid add-ons | Unlimited — built to your spec |
| Vertical fit | Food, grocery, on-demand services (existing SKUs) | Any vertical, any scope |
| Best for | Operators validating an idea, fast launch, tight budget | Brand-critical apps, regulated markets, bespoke integrations |
| Path | /products/ — 5 readymade SKUs | This page — request a custom quote |
The honest short version. If your vertical matches one of the five readymade SKUs and your priority is speed and budget, license the readymade and route any extension work through a paid customisation sprint at $25/hr. If your vertical is bespoke, the brand or compliance surface is unique, or you are planning a multi-vendor marketplace from day one, the custom build is structurally cheaper than retrofitting a readymade. Operators sometimes start with a readymade for the prototype and graduate to custom in year two — the source code transfers, so the prototype work is not thrown away.
If you are not sure which side of the line you sit on, the discovery call sorts it. We will tell you when the readymade is the right answer, including the cases where it means we sell you a $1,500 license instead of an $18,000 build.
Customisation rate — $25/hr or fixed-bid
Post-launch feature additions, integration work, and small adjustments outside the original scope are billed at $25/hr, or on a fixed-bid quote for scoped features. The four most common requests after a custom mobile app launches:
POS / ERP integration
Connect the order or transaction stream to an existing back-office system (Square, Toast, Petpooja, Posist, SAP, NetSuite). Typical scope 2–4 weeks.
Loyalty and CRM modules
Tiered points, referral codes, lapsed-customer campaigns, deeper segmentation than the base build covers.
Additional payment gateways
PayU, Paystack, Tap, Flutterwave, local UPI rails — one config plus credentials plus a webhook. Days, not weeks.
Localisation packs
Hindi, Arabic, Spanish, Bahasa, Portuguese — string files plus a right-to-left audit for Arabic / Hebrew, plus currency handling at the payment layer.
Fixed-bid features typically land in the $1,500–$8,000 range, scoped on a 30-minute call and quoted in writing within three working days.
Frequently asked
How long does a custom mobile app build take?
12 to 20 weeks from discovery kickoff to live App Store + Play Store listing is the honest range for a custom build. A simple MVP (1 user role, 1 platform feature, 1 payment integration) lands at the 12-week end. A multi-role marketplace with KYC, custom payment rails, and complex admin reporting sits at 20 weeks. The bottleneck is almost always discovery scope and store review queues — not engineering capacity. We commit to fixed launch dates inside fixed scope, which is why we hit them.
How much do custom mobile app development services cost?
Custom build quotes start from $18,000 for a basic feature set and run to $80,000+ for a full feature expansion (multi-role, marketplace, custom payments, complex admin). Inside the range: discovery and UX is $3,000–$8,000, iOS + Android engineering is $10,000–$50,000, backend and admin dashboard is $3,000–$15,000, QA and store submission is $2,000–$7,000. The number depends on scope, not on hourly padding. We quote fixed against a fixed-scope SOW after the discovery sprint, not a vague rate card.
Do I get the source code?
Yes — full source code in your Git repository at handover. That covers the Flutter apps (or native Swift / Kotlin where chosen), the NestJS backend, the admin dashboard, and the infrastructure deployment scripts. There is no usage royalty, no platform fee, no licensing tier you can graduate out of. If you ever choose to extend the app with a different agency or hire your own Flutter engineers, every line of code is documented and any qualified Flutter developer can pick it up.
Whose Apple Developer and Google Play accounts do you publish under?
Yours. The app is published under your Apple Developer Program account ($99/yr) and your Google Play Console account ($25 one-time), in your business name. Reviews, install base, store rankings, and the customer relationship belong to you. We handle submission and rejection appeals; we do not own the listing.
Do you host the backend or do I?
You. Hosting is billed directly to your AWS, DigitalOcean, GCP, or VPS account so you own the infrastructure end-to-end. We deploy the NestJS backend with Infrastructure-as-Code scripts (Terraform or shell), document the runbook, and hand it over. If you want managed hosting after launch, we offer a separate retainer; that is opt-in, not a lock-in.
Can the app launch in multiple countries?
Yes. The Flutter codebase uses the standard `intl` package for localisation, so adding a new language is a string-file plus a right-to-left audit if you need Arabic or Hebrew. We have shipped apps in English, Hindi, Arabic, and Spanish. Multi-currency is handled at the payment layer (Stripe in the US/EU, Razorpay in India, PayU / Paystack / Tap regionally). Per-region content moderation, KYC vendors, and tax handling are scoped per market.
Native iOS and Android, or Flutter — when do you pick each?
Default is Flutter. One codebase, two platforms, one engineering team, lower long-run cost. We pick native (Swift / SwiftUI for iOS; Kotlin / Jetpack Compose for Android) when the project genuinely needs a platform-specific framework: CarPlay, ARKit, deep HealthKit, Wear OS, manufacturer SDKs, or extreme battery / performance constraints (real-time video, AR overlays). For a typical operator-facing app — ordering, marketplace, on-demand, content, social — Flutter is the right call and the savings show up in both the build cost and the year-two maintenance bill.
Do you handle compliance — HIPAA, PCI, GDPR?
PCI-DSS scope is reduced to SAQ-A by routing card data directly through Stripe / Razorpay tokenisation; we do not store PANs on your server. GDPR and CCPA are handled at the engineering layer with cookie consent on the web admin, account-deletion flows in the app, data-export endpoints, and a privacy-policy template. HIPAA-grade engagements are scoped separately because they require BAAs, audit logging, encryption-at-rest configuration, and access controls beyond the standard build. We do not pretend we are HITRUST-certified; we wire the engineering pieces and tell you which third parties (audit firm, BAA-signed hosting) you still need.
What does post-launch support look like?
Every custom build ships with a 30 / 60 / 90-day post-launch support window for bug fixes and small adjustments — included in the project quote, not a paid add-on. Beyond that window, support runs at $25/hr for ad-hoc work or on a monthly retainer for operators who want a predictable on-call team. Source code is yours, so you are not locked to us; any qualified Flutter developer can extend the app.
I just want to hire a Flutter developer instead — can you do that?
Not directly through this page — sister site hireflutterdev.com handles dedicated Flutter engineers on monthly retainer, with hourly rates from $18 to $60 depending on seniority. Different engagement model: you embed an engineer (or a small pod) in your team and direct the work day-to-day, instead of contracting us to deliver a scoped project. Both models share the same engineering bench; you pick the one that matches how you want to run the build.
Ready to scope a custom mobile app?
Start your project — message Navin directly
Founder-led custom mobile app development services. Discovery call within 48 hours, fixed-scope SOW in five working days, source code yours at handover. Quotes from $18,000.