App development in Auckland
iOS and Android apps designed, built and shipped by the same team, including the parts most quotes leave out: store review, developer accounts, and what happens when Apple rejects the first submission.
What you get
- Product definition: the screens, the flows, and the features cut from version one
- Interface design for iOS and Android conventions, not one design stretched across both
- A React Native or native build, chosen on what your app actually does
- Backend, database and API, or integration with what you already run
- App Store and Google Play submission, including the assets and policies each demands
- Crash reporting and analytics from the first release
- A tested release process your team can run without us
Before you build an app
Plenty of the businesses who call us about an app need a better mobile website instead. Apple rejects apps that repackage a website, and a customer will not install something they use twice a year.
An app earns its cost where you need one of four things: hardware the browser cannot reach, offline use, push notifications people will act on, or a daily habit worth an icon on the home screen. A booking flow, a menu and a contact form need none of those.
We will tell you which side of that line you sit on before quoting. Our comparison of an app against a website for NZ businesses covers the same ground in more detail, including the account fees and deadlines Apple and Google apply.
How we scope a first release
Version one ships with less than you want it to. That is the point. Every feature in the first release adds weeks to the build and surface area for bugs, and half of them turn out to matter less than expected once real users arrive.
We run a scoping phase that produces a written spec, a screen inventory and a fixed quote. The spec names what version one includes and what waits for version two, so the conversation about scope happens before the invoice rather than after it.
Most first releases run twelve to twenty weeks. Rushing that timeline costs more than it saves, because store review adds days you cannot compress and a rejected submission adds a week.
React Native, or native
React Native for most business apps. One codebase serving both platforms halves the build cost and the maintenance cost, and the result is indistinguishable from native for anything short of heavy graphics.
Native Swift or Kotlin where the app leans on the hardware: sustained camera or video processing, Bluetooth device control, background location, or anything needing the newest OS features on release day.
We make that call in scoping and explain the reasoning, because it drives the cost more than any other decision in the project.
Store submission and what follows
Apple charges US$99 a year for a developer account and Google charges US$25 once. Both require the account to be in your business name, and Apple's verification for a company account needs a D-U-N-S number that can take a fortnight to obtain. We start that paperwork in week one, because it has delayed more launches than any code problem.
Submission itself needs a privacy policy, data disclosure, screenshots at multiple device sizes, and an account reviewers can log into. We prepare all of it. A first rejection is common and rarely serious, and we handle the correspondence.
After launch you get crash reporting, analytics on the flows that matter, and a release process documented well enough that another developer could run it.
Common questions
How much does an app cost to build in New Zealand?
It depends heavily on scope: a focused first release costs far less than an app with real-time features, payments or a substantial backend. We run a scoping phase before quoting, and the fixed price that comes out of it is settled before the build starts. Apple and Google also charge their own account fees, separate from our quote.
How long does app development take?
Twelve to twenty weeks for a first release, including two to three weeks of scoping and roughly a week for store review. Complex apps run longer. The store review window is fixed and cannot be compressed by adding people to the project.
Do I need separate apps for iPhone and Android?
Not usually. We build most business apps in React Native, which produces both from one codebase and cuts the cost close to half. Apps that depend heavily on device hardware sometimes justify separate native builds, and we flag that during scoping.
Who owns the App Store and Google Play accounts?
You do. Both accounts go in your business name with your billing details, and we work inside them as invited developers. An app published under an agency account is a liability you should avoid regardless of who builds it.
What does it cost to maintain an app?
Budget 15% to 20% of the build cost each year. Apple and Google both ship OS updates annually that require app updates, and Google removes apps that fall behind its target API level. Maintenance is not optional in the way it is for a website.
Tell us what you are trying to build.
Send a couple of paragraphs about the business and the problem. You get a reply within one business day, from the person who would do the work.
Start a project