How much does it cost to build an app in the UK?
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Read moreAre there any hidden costs?
Written by
Contic
Read time
2 minutes
No. A LaunchPad price covers everything it takes to get your product live, accounts and licences included. A few costs sit outside it, but none of them are hidden, and this page names every one.
The tier prices themselves are in how much a LaunchPad build costs. Hidden costs on software projects come from three places: things left off the quote, scope that grows without anyone agreeing it, and bills that start after launch. Here’s how each one works with us.
Nothing is left off the quote
Plenty of build quotes cover the code and nothing else. Then the invoices start arriving one at a time, each too small to argue about. The Apple developer account, the hosting, the email service, the map licence.
We include those up to launch. If the build needs a service to work, it’s in the fixed price. You won’t be asked to put a card down for a tool halfway through.
Scope only grows if you agree it
The price is fixed against a scope you agree in Discovery. If an agreed feature takes us longer than we planned, that’s our cost, not yours.
What can change the price is you asking for something new. During the build we use a one-in, one-out rule. If you add a feature, we suggest one to take out, so the price and timeline hold. Bigger ideas go on the post-launch roadmap, or we quote them as extra work. Either way, you approve the number before any work starts.
Fixing something we got wrong is never a change. You don’t pay for our mistakes. Our answer on whether the cost is really fixed goes into this in more depth.
The costs that aren’t hidden, but are separate
These are real costs, and they don’t appear in the LaunchPad price. Better you hear about them here than on a bank statement.
| Cost | When it applies | What to expect |
|---|---|---|
| VAT | On every invoice, if you’re buying as a UK business | 20% on top of the tier price, usually reclaimable if you’re VAT registered |
| New ideas mid-build | Only if you ask for more than the agreed scope | Quoted first, and you approve it or park it |
| Running the product | From launch onwards | Hosting, app store accounts and per-use services |
| Store commission | If you sell digital goods or subscriptions in an app | A cut taken by Apple or Google, not by us |
| Your time | Throughout the build | A few hours a week on feedback and decisions |
The last row is the one founders forget. Slow decisions stretch any timeline, and no contract can fix that. How much of my time will the project take? sets out what we’ll ask of you.
After launch
The build is a one-off cost. Running a product isn’t, and that’s where costs most often catch people out.
Hosting grows with your users. Email, SMS, maps and AI models are charged per use. And phones get new operating systems every year, so a product nobody looks after slowly falls behind them.
You can run all of that on your own accounts, with your own suppliers. Or you can hand it to TotalCare, which keeps it running for a fixed monthly price. Our answer on ongoing maintenance and updates compares the two.
How to check any supplier for hidden costs
Whoever you hire, ask these before you sign:
- Which accounts, licences and services does the price include, and until when?
- What happens if the work takes longer than you planned?
- How is a change priced, and who approves it?
- What will it cost to keep the product running in its first year?
A good supplier answers all four without hesitating. Our guide to fixed price and time and materials explains why the contract type decides who carries the risk of overruns.
For the full list of what each tier covers, see what’s included in the price and what isn’t.
Thinking about building something?
We design, build and launch digital products at a fixed price, with a money-back guarantee after Discovery. Tell us what you have in mind.