A simple app or MVP takes about 3 to 6 weeks to build. A standard business app with accounts, payments, and a backend takes 2 to 4 months. A complex product or marketplace takes 4 to 8 months. After the build, add a few days for Apple and Google to review it before it goes live.
The range is wide because "an app" can mean a single-feature MVP or a full platform. The timeline follows the scope. We build apps for a living, so these are the timelines we actually commit to, and our fastest MVP reached the app stores in under 21 days.
How long does it take to build an app?
Here is a plain timeline by app type. These assume one focused team building in React Native so a single codebase ships on both iPhone and Android at once.
| App type | Timeline | What is involved |
|---|---|---|
| Simple app or MVP | 3 to 6 weeks | One core feature, a few screens, light backend |
| Standard app | 2 to 4 months | User accounts, payments, real backend and admin |
| Complex app | 4 to 8 months | Marketplace, real-time, or fintech, heavy backend |
What are the phases of building an app?
Every build moves through the same five phases. The middle one, development, is where most of the time goes, and it stretches with the number of features.
| Phase | What happens | Typical time |
|---|---|---|
| Discovery and scope | Decide what to build, wireframe, agree scope and a fixed price | 3 to 7 days |
| Design | Screens, flows, and the look and feel | 1 to 3 weeks |
| Development | Build the app and the backend behind it | 2 weeks to 4+ months |
| Testing and fixes | Find and fix issues on real devices | Runs alongside, 3 to 7 days to finish |
| Store submission and review | Submit to Apple and Google, wait for approval | 1 to 5 days |
What sets the timeline?
Three things decide most of it. The first is how many features you need, because every screen and flow is more to design, build, and test. The second is the backend. If your app stores data or takes payments, someone has to build the server and admin behind it, and that is often larger than the screens people see. The third is design. A custom interface takes longer than a template, and it is usually worth it, because a confusing app loses users no matter how fast it shipped.
Does a bigger team build an app faster?
Only up to a point. Adding people lets design, backend, and frontend move in parallel, which does help early. But past a small team, every extra person adds coordination, more meetings, more handoffs, and more chances for wires to cross, so the gains shrink fast. A small senior team often ships sooner than a large junior one, because the seniors need less back-and-forth and make fewer mistakes to fix later.
We keep teams small and senior for this reason. You get people who have shipped this before, not a big org chart you are paying to coordinate.
What speeds it up?
You can move faster without cutting quality. The biggest lever is scope, because the smaller the first version, the sooner it ships. That is the case for starting with an MVP. Clear decisions help too, since a project slows down most when it is waiting on answers. And building in React Native means one codebase for iPhone and Android, so you are not paying to build the app twice.
Do not forget the app store review
One step founders forget is the store review. After the app is built, Apple and Google review it before it goes live. Apple usually takes 1 to 3 days, Google often less, and either can run longer if something needs a change. We handle the submission and the back-and-forth, but it is worth knowing that "done building" and "live in the store" are a few days apart.
How we work
We give you a real timeline before we start, tied to the scope we agree together, and we keep you updated as we go. If speed matters, we will tell you honestly what a smaller first version could ship in, and what is better left for later. Here is what a build costs alongside the timeline.