Scope
Every screen, feature and edge case is work. Scope that grows mid-project is the most common reason apps run over budget. Write down what version one does, and what it doesn't.
2026 guide · Ireland
What does it cost to build an app in Ireland?
The honest answer is that it depends on what the app has to do. This guide puts real numbers on that: typical budgets by type of app, an estimator you can tick through feature by feature, the costs that keep coming after launch, and which Irish grants actually pay for an app build. Most of them don't.
The list of features sets the price more than anything else. Cutting version one is the biggest saving.
One codebase for iPhone and Android usually beats two native apps on cost.
Budget 15–25% of the build cost every year to keep the app working and up to date.
The well-known Irish grants exclude a standard custom app build. Check before you count on one.
Typical budgets
App development costs in Ireland by type of app
Effort is in working days for one senior developer. Costs are effort multiplied by €500 a day, excluding VAT. Pick a row to load an example into the estimator.
| Type of app | Effort | Budget | With one developer | Estimator |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simple appA handful of screens and no accounts. A calculator, an events guide, a brochure app. | 15–30 days | €7,500–€15,000 | 3–6 weeks | |
| Business app with loginsAccounts, cloud data and push notifications. A customer portal, a staff checklist, a loyalty app. | 35–80 days | €17,500–€40,000 | 2–4 months | |
| Bookings or shop with paymentsCard payments, a booking calendar and a web dashboard for your staff. | 70–140 days | €35,000–€70,000 | 3–7 months | |
| Platform with integrationsA marketplace or two-sided app with chat, payments, an admin dashboard and links to other systems. | 100–220+ days | €50,000–€110,000+ | 5–10+ months | |
| Mobile gameLevels, art and sound drive the cost far more than code. Content-heavy games go much higher. | 30–120+ days | €15,000–€60,000+ | 6 weeks–6+ months | My games |
Other published guides for Ireland put a "simple" app anywhere from €5,000 to €40,000. Most of that gap comes from what each guide counts as simple, so compare feature lists, not headline prices.
App cost estimator
Tick through your app and see where the money goes.
Every feature shows the days it usually adds, and the breakdown adds up line by line. It is a rough guide, not a quote, based on one senior developer building with React Native and Expo.
What moves the price
Six things that decide what your app costs.
Two quotes for "the same app" can be €20,000 apart. Nearly always, the gap comes from one of these.
Platforms
One React Native or Flutter codebase covers iPhone and Android. Two native apps means writing and testing most of the app twice, which adds roughly 70% to the app side of the work.
Design
A clean look built from standard components takes days. A custom brand design, drawn screen by screen and then built to match, takes weeks.
Backend
Accounts, cloud data and an admin dashboard are often half the job. Managed services like Firebase keep that cheaper than building a server from scratch.
Integrations
Connecting to your existing systems is the hardest part to estimate. A well-documented API takes days. An old system with no API can take weeks.
Who builds it
Day rates vary by more than double between a freelancer, an Irish agency and an offshore team. The cheapest day rate isn't always the cheapest app. See the comparison below.
After launch
The costs that keep coming once the app is live.
The build is a one-off. These aren't, and many quotes leave them out.
| Cost | How much | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Apple Developer Program | $99 a year | Needed to publish on the App Store. Put it in your own business's name, not the developer's. |
| Google Play developer account | $25 once | A one-off registration fee. Again, open it under your own business. |
| Hosting and backend | Often €0 to start | Firebase and similar services have free tiers that cover most new apps. The bill grows with users, storage and AI calls, so ask for an estimate at 1,000 and 10,000 users. |
| Maintenance and updates | 15–25% of build a year | Apple and Google release new OS versions every year, libraries go out of date, and store rules change. An app nobody updates eventually stops working or gets pulled. |
| Store commission | Usually 15% | Only on digital sales inside the app, like subscriptions. In the EU, small developers in Apple's Small Business Program pay 15% under the terms that started on 1 October 2026. Google Play subscriptions in the EEA pay 10% plus a 5% billing fee. Physical goods and services paid by card are not charged. |
| VAT | 23% | Added by any developer or agency registered for VAT. Registration is compulsory for services above €42,500 a year, so some freelancers won't charge it. VAT-registered businesses can usually reclaim it. |
Grants and funding
Can you get a grant to build an app in Ireland?
Some cost guides list grants as a way to pay for an app. The scheme rules say otherwise. Here is what each one actually covers.
Enterprise Ireland Innovation Voucher
€10,000
Fully funded, with a co-funded option for projects up to €20,000. It is for research with a registered public knowledge provider, such as a university or technological university.
- Standard website, software and mobile app development are excluded
- Can't be spent with private companies or freelancers
- Can fund a feasibility study, technical specification or rough prototype for a genuinely new idea
- Limited companies only
Local Enterprise Office Grow Digital Voucher
50%, up to €5,000
For small businesses with 1–50 employees that have done a Digital for Business project. It replaced the Trading Online Voucher.
- Custom or bespoke software is not eligible
- Covers off-the-shelf booking, CRM, ecommerce and job-tracking software
- Worth a look if an existing product could replace the app you were planning
Local Enterprise Office Feasibility Grant
Up to €15,000
Usually 50% of eligible costs, or up to 60% in some regions. Prototype development is on the list of eligible costs.
- Can help test a new product before you build it in full
- Aimed at manufacturing and internationally traded services, not local businesses
- Rules and deadlines vary from county to county
Talk to your Local Enterprise Office before you spend anything. Grants generally don't cover money already spent, and scheme rules change from year to year. If an app is part of a bigger research project, Enterprise Ireland's R&D supports may be worth asking about too.
Spend less
Six ways to cut the cost without cutting corners.
Ship a smaller version one
Launch with the one job your customers need most. Real usage tells you what to build next, which is cheaper than guessing up front.
Use one codebase
React Native with Expo, or Flutter, gets you on iPhone and Android for not much more than the price of one. Try the platform options in the estimator to see the difference.
Check what already exists
A booking, CRM or loyalty product might already do the job for a monthly fee, and the Grow Digital Voucher can pay half. A custom app makes sense when nothing off the shelf fits how you work.
Reuse what you have
If your website already has accounts, products or bookings behind it, the app can often use the same backend instead of a new one.
Write a clear brief
A one-page list of screens, features and who uses them gets you tighter quotes and fewer surprises. The estimator above is a good starting list.
Build some of it yourself
If you or someone on your team codes, my free Expo and Firebase tutorials cover setup, sign-in, push notifications and store release.
Who builds it
Freelancer, Irish agency or offshore team?
None of these is always right. It depends on the size of the job and how much of the managing you want to do yourself.
Freelance developer in Ireland
Senior contractors in Dublin: about €395–€535 a day
Good for
- Talking directly to the person writing the code
- Small and medium apps, and fast decisions
- Lower overheads than an agency
Watch for
- One person's capacity, holidays and sick days
- Design may need a separate person
Irish agency
Usually a higher day rate than a freelancer
Good for
- Design, development and testing under one contract
- Bigger builds that need several people at once
- Cover when someone is off
Watch for
- Talking to account managers more than developers
- Juniors doing the work a senior pitched
Offshore team
Often a much lower day rate
Good for
- Tight budgets with a very clear brief
- Work you can check yourself
Watch for
- Time zones and slower feedback loops
- Quality that varies a lot between teams
- Fixing it later can cost more than the saving
Before you sign
Eight questions to ask any app developer.
Good developers answer these happily. Vague answers here usually mean surprises later.
- Will the app be in my own Apple and Google accounts?It should be. If the developer's account holds it, moving it later is slow and sometimes impossible.
- Do I own the code, and do I get the repository?Get it in writing, with access to the code throughout the project, not just at the end.
- Is this a fixed price or a day rate?Fixed prices suit a clear brief. Day rates suit work that will change. Know which one you're signing.
- How are changes priced once work starts?Agree the process for new requests up front, so a "small change" doesn't become an argument.
- Which phones will you test on?Ask for real older iPhones and cheaper Android phones, not just the newest ones and a simulator.
- What happens after launch?Ask how long bugs are fixed for free, and what ongoing support costs each month.
- What will hosting cost as we grow?Ask for the monthly bill at 1,000 and 10,000 users, and who pays it.
- Does the price include VAT?A 23% difference changes which quote is cheapest.
FAQ
App development cost questions.
How much does it cost to build an app in Ireland in 2026?
At a senior day rate of around €500, a simple app with a handful of screens costs roughly €7,500 to €15,000. A business app with accounts and cloud data is roughly €17,500 to €40,000. An app with bookings or payments and an admin dashboard is roughly €35,000 to €70,000. Larger platforms with several integrations start around €50,000. These figures exclude VAT.
How long does it take to build an app?
With one senior developer, a simple app takes about 3 to 6 weeks and a business app with accounts takes about 2 to 4 months. An app with payments, bookings and an admin dashboard takes about 3 to 7 months. Waiting on content, feedback and App Store review adds time on top.
Is it cheaper to build for iPhone or Android only?
A little, but less than most people expect. With one React Native or Flutter codebase, the second platform mostly adds testing and store work, because the design, the backend and most of the code are shared. Building two separate native apps costs much more. Unless you know your users are all on one platform, one codebase for both is usually the best value.
Can I get a grant to build an app in Ireland?
Not for a standard app build. Enterprise Ireland's Innovation Vouchers exclude standard website, software and mobile app development and must be spent with a public knowledge provider. The Local Enterprise Office Grow Digital Voucher covers 50% of off-the-shelf software up to €5,000, and custom software is not eligible. A Local Enterprise Office Feasibility Grant can include prototype development for some new businesses. Check with your Local Enterprise Office before you spend anything.
How much does an app cost to run each year?
The Apple Developer Program costs $99 a year and a Google Play developer account costs $25 once. Hosting is often free or cheap at launch and grows with your users. A common rule of thumb is to budget 15% to 25% of the original build cost each year for updates, fixes and new iOS and Android versions.
Do app developers in Ireland charge VAT?
Developers and agencies registered for VAT add 23% to their invoices. Registration is compulsory once a business supplying services passes €42,500 in turnover, so most agencies charge it and some freelancers do not. If your business is VAT-registered, you can usually reclaim it. Always ask whether a quote includes VAT.
Want a real number for your app?
Send me your feature list, or the estimate above, and I'll come back with a fixed quote and an honest view of what version one needs. I build iOS and Android apps with React Native, Expo and Firebase, and I've shipped my own to the App Store.
Sources
Where the numbers come from.
Day counts are my own estimates for a React Native and Expo build. Everything else is from the sources below, checked on 13 October 2026.
- Morgan McKinley: Technology contract salaries in Ireland, 2026 Day rates for iOS, Android and React developers by city and experience
- Apple Developer Program $99 annual membership
- Google Play Console: Get started $25 one-time registration fee
- Apple Newsroom: Apple announces changes for apps in the European Union EU App Store commission rates from 1 October 2026
- Google Play: Service fees EEA subscription and billing fees
- Enterprise Ireland: Innovation Vouchers Voucher values, knowledge providers and exclusions
- Local Enterprise Office: Grow Digital, who is eligible Eligibility and the exclusion of custom software
- Local Enterprise Office Kilkenny: Feasibility Grants An example county's rate, cap and eligible costs
- Revenue: VAT thresholds €42,500 for businesses supplying services
- Zoho: App development cost Maintenance at 15–25% of build cost a year