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How much does it cost to build a Shopify app?

This Shopify app planning estimate starts at $36,094–$174,256 for an agency build for the preset below. Budget another $3,240–$6,120 a year for the recurring costs shown. Adjust the scope and compare DIY, freelancer, agency, and Superapp costs; these are model estimates, not quotes.

USD · Last updated November 5, 2026

Price your app

App platform
Complexity
Custom design
Who builds it?
Features
Yearly running costs view
Custom hosting budget / year
Maintenance hours / year
Other services / year

Free account · Two quick questions · Personalized cost breakdown

What drives the cost?

The preset includes merchant installation and webhooks plus accounts / profiles, external integrations, payments / subscriptions, admin dashboard. One merchant workflow with minimal permissions and reliable webhook handling.

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Public example using the default preset. Get your free estimate above for a breakdown of your selected scope.

Compare build options
Build optionOne-off laborRecurring budget
DIY builder$0 paid labor; your time excluded$240 + your maintenance time
Freelancer$21,656–$177,813$2,040–$6,240/year
Agency$36,094–$174,256$3,240–$6,120/year
Superapp ProYou build and review the app$540/year illustrative budget

Default preset breakdown and assumptions

Estimated effort
1444–3556 hours
Delivery effort at 30 productive hours/week
48.1–118.5 person-weeks
Global agency hourly range
$25–$49
Global freelancer hourly range
$15–$50
Custom design adjustment
+25% effort (planning assumption)
Hosting / platform
$240/year
Maintenance labor
$3,000–$5,880/year
Additional services
$0/year
Apple membership
$0/year

Hours include implementation and testing, not a delivery guarantee. Website scope starts at 12–140 hours plus 2–5 hours for each additional page. App scope starts at 400–5,000 hours depending on complexity. Selected features add the effort below. Annual domain and hosting budgets are placeholders, not provider quotes.

Selected feature assumptions

Incremental engineering hours used by this calculator.

Selected feature assumptions
FeatureHours
Accounts / profiles40–80
External integrations60–160
Payments / subscriptions40–100
Admin dashboard60–140
Merchant installation and webhooks155–365

Merchant installation and webhooks

A merchant app needs installation, store-scoped permissions, webhooks, and a merchant admin workflow. It extends stores rather than replacing their shopping interface.

What creates ongoing Shopify app maintenance

API changes, webhook retries, uninstall cleanup, and billing lifecycle changes require continued testing. Merchant acquisition and any marketplace requirements are separate from build labor.

A cheaper way to start with Superapp

Build a focused version yourself before commissioning a full custom project. Superapp Pro is $25 a month; the subscription covers its plan allowance, while your time, extra usage, integrations, hosting, and specialist work remain part of the budget. A Superapp site is an alternative implementation, not a guarantee of WordPress or Shopify compatibility.

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Sources and methodology

Rates are global marketplace benchmarks, not US-only agency quotes. Freelancer and agency ranges overlap because they describe different samples. WordPress.com Personal and Shopify Basic use annual billing, exclude introductory promotions and taxes, and replace the hosting budget. Feature hours and recurring budgets are our explicit planning assumptions.

Common questions

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