How much does it cost to build an app in Portugal? At a Portuguese agency, a simple web app typically costs €4,000-€15,000 and an iOS and Android app €12,000-€50,000. Freelancers charge €14-€70 per hour. At Web Arts, a web app costs €2,000-€7,500 and an iOS and Android app €6,000-€25,000.
App prices are hard to compare: almost no company publishes them, and most cost guides on Google come from US or offshore vendors quoting dollar figures for a different market. Here we gathered the figures we found in the Portuguese market alongside our own public prices, so you know what to expect before requesting quotes.
Pricing by App Type
| App type | Agencies in Portugal | Web Arts | Typical timeline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Simple web app or PWA | €4,000-€15,000 | €2,000-€7,500 | 4 to 8 weeks |
| Custom web platform (bookings, client portal, SaaS) | €10,000-€40,000 | €5,000-€20,000 | 8 to 16 weeks |
| iOS and Android app | €12,000-€50,000 | €6,000-€25,000 | 8 to 16 weeks |
| Maintenance and hosting | 15-20% of build cost per year | from €49/month | Monthly |
Agency figures are reference ranges, based on the minimum budgets Lisbon agencies publish on directories such as Edvido ($5,000 to $50,000+ per project) and on market hourly rates. They give you the order of magnitude; the real figure depends on each project's features.
How Much Does a Web App Cost?
A web app runs in the browser on desktop and mobile, with nothing to install. It is the right choice for booking platforms, client portals and internal management tools. At Web Arts, a simple web app starts at €2,000: for example, an ordering system with customer login and a staff dashboard.
A full platform with several user types, online payments, subscriptions and analytics costs €5,000-€20,000. That is the kind of project we built for Korte, a booking platform that has processed more than 10,000 bookings, and for the COVA Spaces coworking space in Almada.
How Much Does an iOS and Android App Cost?
An app installed from the App Store and Google Play costs more because it has to run on two systems, pass store review and use phone features such as notifications, camera and location. On Zaask, the average price of an Android-only app in Portugal is around €3,100, within a €2,000-€7,500 range (Zaask). For both platforms at an agency, prices typically start around €12,000.
At Web Arts, an iOS and Android app starts at €6,000. We build both versions from a single codebase, so you don't pay twice for the same work.
How Much Does a PWA Cost?
A PWA (progressive web app) is a web app customers install on their home screen straight from the browser, without going through the stores. It costs the same as a web app, from €2,000 at Web Arts, and is the cheapest way to have "an app". The limitation is the iPhone, where some features, such as certain background notifications, Bluetooth or NFC, are not available.
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See Pricing and Request a QuoteWhat Drives the Price of an App?
Two quotes for "a booking app" can differ tenfold because they describe different work. These are the features that weigh the most:
| Feature | Impact on price |
|---|---|
| Login and user profiles | Low |
| Admin dashboard | Medium |
| Online payments and subscriptions | Medium |
| Push notifications | Low to medium |
| Integration with invoicing, ERP or other systems | Medium to high |
| Real-time maps and location | High |
| In-app chat between users | High |
| Several connected apps (customer, provider, admin) | High |
Design also affects the price, since adapting proven components costs less than designing every screen from scratch. Mid-project changes push costs up more than anything else, and a precise feature list agreed before you start is the best way to avoid them.
How Much Does It Cost to Maintain an App?
After launch, an app has recurring costs: server, database, backups, updates for new iOS and Android versions and small fixes. Innowise recommends budgeting 15-20% of the build cost per year. For a €20,000 app, that is €3,000-€4,000 a year.
| Cost | Amount |
|---|---|
| Apple developer account | €99/year |
| Google Play developer account | $25, one-off |
| Agency maintenance and hosting | 15-20% of build cost per year |
| Web Arts maintenance and hosting | from €49/month |
Always make sure the store accounts, server and domain are registered to your company.
Agency, Freelancer or AI?
| Option | Cost | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| AI and no-code tools | Monthly plans with credits | Prototypes and testing an idea; security, data and publishing still need review |
| Freelancer | €14-€70/hour on Zaask | Small, well-defined projects with time to manage them |
| Agency | Mobile apps typically from €12,000 | Teams that want design, development, stores and maintenance handled |
| Web Arts | Web apps from €2,000, mobile apps from €6,000 | Small businesses and startups that want a team, a fixed price and real references |
AI tools have made prototypes almost free, and they are worth using to test an idea. For an app with real customers, payments and personal data, you still need security, GDPR compliance and performance done properly. We wrote more about this in building a website with AI: is it worth it?
How to Pay Less for Your App
- Start with an MVP. Launch only the features the app cannot work without, and add the rest once you see how customers use it.
- Consider a web app or PWA first. It costs less than half, ranks on Google and can become a native app later.
- Check whether off-the-shelf software exists. For some needs, such as simple bookings, subscribing to an existing platform is cheaper than a custom app. We will tell you when that is the case.
- Ask for quotes with the same scope. Feature list, timeline, monthly costs and code ownership, in writing, so you compare like with like.