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  • Dream App Lab — Mobile & Web App Estimate 📱🧰

    Welcome! We built this estimator because we believe you deserve to know what things cost before you ever talk to anyone.No sales calls. No 'what's your budget?' No runaround.Answer a few simple questions about your project and we will put together a clear, honest estimate — in plain English — so you know exactly what you are getting and what it costs.Here is what makes us different:We never ask what your budget is. Why? Because your doctor does not ask what you can afford before telling you what you need. Your mechanic does not ask your budget before diagnosing your car. We believe in fair, transparent pricing — you see the cost, you decide if it makes sense for your business. Simple as that.Our goal is to educate first and build second. We started Dream App Lab because we experienced firsthand how confusing and overwhelming the tech world can be for small business owners. Nobody spoke plain English. Nobody explained what things actually meant. We ended up spending more than we should have because what we thought we were getting and what we actually got were two very different things.We are here to change that.We ask detailed questions because the more we understand upfront, the more accurate your estimate will be — and the less back-and-forth we need. Every question has a purpose. A well-defined project gets a better estimate and avoids scope creep — meaning no surprise costs down the road. This will take about 5 to 10 minutes. Take your time — there are no wrong answers and nothing you select is set in stone. Let's build something great together. 🚀

  • Welcome to Dream App Lab — Mobile & Web App Estimate 📱🧰

  • 📱 What Are You Building?

    Select the option that best describes your project. This helps us ask you the right questions.
  • 📱 What type of project do you need? Not sure which one fits? Here is a simple guide: A Mobile App lives on your phone — you download it from the App Store or Google Play. A Web App lives in your internet browser — like Gmail or Google Docs — no download needed. Mobile + Web means you want both. If you are still not sure, pick your best guess and we will help sort it out.*

  • 💡 Tell Us About Your Project

    The more detail you share, the more accurate your estimate will be. Plain English is perfectly fine — there are no wrong answers here.
  • 👔 Select all who will use this app: Check everyone who will use your app. This helps us design the right experience for the right people. You can select more than one.
  • 🔄 Does a version of this already exist? Is there an existing app, website, or manual process that this will replace or improve? For example: We currently use spreadsheets to manage this. Or: There is an old app that does some of this but it is outdated. Or: This is a completely new idea.*

  • 📲 Platform & User Access

    These questions help us understand how your app will be accessed and who needs to use it.
  • 📲 What platform should this be built for? This question is about what type of device your app will run on. Android phones include Samsung, Google Pixel, and Motorola. iPhones and iPads are made by Apple and run iOS. If you want everyone to be able to use your app regardless of what phone they have, select Both iOS and Android — this is the most popular choice.
  • 🔐 Will users need to create accounts or log in? Logging in means the app remembers who someone is and shows them their own personal information — like their order history, upcoming appointments, or saved preferences. If your app just shows the same general information to everyone, login may not be needed. If different people need to see different things, login is required.*
  • 👥 Will different users have different levels of access? Think about whether everyone who uses your app can do the same things — or whether some people should have more power than others. For example: A customer can only see their own orders. A manager can see all orders and update them. An admin can manage everything including the manager. If everyone does the same things, select No.*
  • 👥 What roles will users have in your app? Select all the roles that apply. Think about who needs to do different things — for example a manager who controls everything versus a customer who can only place orders.
  • 🧍 Will users have a personal profile or account page? A profile page is a personal section where users can update their own information — like their name, photo, address, password, and notification preferences. Most apps that require login also include some kind of profile page. If users log in, they probably need this.

  • ⚙️ Core Features

    Select every feature your app needs. Don't worry if you're not sure about some — just pick what sounds right. The more accurately you select, the more accurate your estimate will be.
  • ⚙️ Select all the features you need: Select everything that sounds useful for your app. Do not worry if you are not sure about some — just pick what sounds right and we will help figure out the details. The more accurately you select, the more accurate your estimate will be. If you are not sure what something means, read the description next to each option.*

  • 🔗 Data & Integrations

    These questions help us understand what your app needs to store, connect to, and manage behind the scenes.
  • 💾 Will your app store data like user profiles, orders, or history? If your app needs to remember things — like a customer's past orders, appointment history, saved preferences, or account information — then yes, it stores data. Almost every app that has user accounts stores data of some kind. If your app just shows general information and nothing is saved, select No.*
  • 🔄 Will your app display content that changes regularly? Does the information shown in your app need to be updated often? For example: a restaurant that changes its menu every week, a store that adds new products daily, a company that posts new announcements, or a schedule that changes regularly. If the content stays mostly the same once the app is built, select No.*
  • 🖥️ Do you want to update your app content yourself without needing a developer? A Content Management System or CMS is basically a behind-the-scenes control panel — like a simple website you log into to make changes without any technical knowledge. For example: adding a new product, updating your hours, publishing a blog post, or managing your team's schedule. Most business owners prefer this so they stay in control day to day.*
  • 🔗 Will your app need to connect to software you already use? Many businesses already use tools like QuickBooks for accounting, Mailchimp for emails, Square or Stripe for payments, HubSpot for sales, or a scheduling system. If you want your new app to work with any of those tools — for example, automatically create an invoice in QuickBooks when someone books an appointment — then yes, you need integrations.*
  • 💳 Will your app process payments? Will users be able to pay money inside your app? For example: buying a product, booking a service and paying at the same time, paying a subscription fee, or tipping. If your app just shows information or lets people book for free with no money exchanged, then no payments are needed.*
  • 💰 How will you charge users? Select how you plan to make money from your app — or how users will access it. You can select more than one option. If your app is completely free with no purchases of any kind, select Completely Free.

  • 🖥️ Admin & Backend

    Most business apps need a behind-the-scenes control room. These questions help us understand what yours needs to look like.
  • 🖥️ Will you need an admin dashboard to manage your app? An admin dashboard is a private, password-protected area that only you and your team can access. It is like a control room for your app — where you can see who is using it, manage orders or bookings, update content, run reports, and handle day-to-day operations without needing a developer every time something changes. Most business apps need one.*
  • 👥 How many people will need admin access? Think about everyone on your team who would need to log in to manage the app — owners, managers, staff who handle orders or bookings, customer service reps, etc. This helps us design the right level of access and security for your team.
  • 🖥️ What will admins need to manage? Select everything your admin team will need to handle inside the backend. This helps us make sure the dashboard has all the right tools — nothing missing and nothing unnecessary.

  • 🎨 Design & Branding

    These questions help us understand your brand so your app looks professional and consistent with everything else your business puts out there.
  • 🎨 Do you have an existing brand identity we should follow? Brand identity includes your logo, colors, and fonts — the things that make your business look consistent everywhere from your business card to your website to your app. If you have these ready to share, we will match your app to your existing brand. If not, we can create a fresh brand identity for you.*
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  • 🖊️ Do you have wireframes or app designs already created? Wireframes are sketches or diagrams that show how your app should be laid out — like a blueprint for a building. They do not have to look professional. Even a rough sketch on paper that you photographed with your phone counts. If you do not have any, no worries — we can design everything from scratch.*
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  • 💡 Do you have any apps you love that we should reference? Sharing apps you admire helps us understand the look, feel, and features you are aiming for. You do not have to copy them — just use them as inspiration. For example: I love how simple the Uber app is. Or: I want something that feels like Airbnb but for equipment rentals.

  • 🔧 Technical Requirements

    These questions help us understand the technical infrastructure your app will need. Do not worry if you are not sure — we explain everything in plain English. Your answers help us give you a complete and accurate estimate including all ongoing costs, not just the build cost.
  • 📊 How much data do you expect your app to handle? Think about how many users you expect and how much information the app will store. For example: A small business app with 100 customers storing appointment records is small. A marketplace with 10,000 users uploading photos daily is large. Getting this right helps us recommend the right database and avoid surprise costs as you grow.*
  • 📸 Will your app store images, videos, or large files? Storing media files like photos and videos costs significantly more than storing text data. For example: If users can upload profile photos or product images, that is moderate media storage. If users upload videos or documents regularly, that is heavy media storage. This directly affects your monthly hosting costs.*
  • 🔔 Will your app send push notifications to users phones? Push notifications are the alert messages that pop up on a users phone even when they are not actively using the app — like a reminder that their appointment is tomorrow or that their order has shipped. These require a notification service which has monthly costs depending on how many notifications you send.*
  • 🌍 Do you expect users from multiple countries? If your app will be used internationally, we need to consider things like multiple languages, different currencies, international payment processing, and data privacy laws that vary by country (like GDPR in Europe). This can add complexity and cost to the project.*
  • ⚡ How important is real-time functionality in your app? Real-time means things happen instantly without refreshing the page. For example: a chat app where you see messages appear instantly, a live tracking app where you watch a drivers location update in real time, or a live auction where prices update as bids come in. Real-time features require more complex and expensive infrastructure.*
  • 🔒 Does your app handle sensitive or private information? Sensitive information includes things like medical records, financial data, social security numbers, childrens information, or anything that users would consider very private. Apps that handle sensitive data must follow strict security rules and sometimes government regulations, which adds cost and complexity to the build.*
  • 📱 Will your app need to access the phone hardware? Modern smartphones have powerful hardware features that apps can access. Select anything your app might use. Each hardware feature requires special development and testing.
  • ☁️ Do you have a preference for where your app is hosted? Your app needs to live on servers somewhere on the internet — this is called cloud hosting. The main options are Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure. Each has different pricing, strengths, and geographic coverage. If you do not have a preference, we will recommend the best option for your specific app.*

  • 💡 What You Need to Know — Ongoing Costs

    Before you submit, we want to make sure you have a clear picture of ALL the costs involved in building and running an app — not just the build cost. Many clients are surprised by ongoing costs they were not told about upfront. We believe in full transparency.Here is a plain-English overview of what to expect after your app is built:📱 APP STORE ACCOUNTS (one-time setup):• Apple iOS Developer Account — $99 per year. Required to publish your app on the Apple App Store so iPhone and iPad users can download it.• Google Play Developer Account — $25 one-time fee. Required to publish your app on the Google Play Store so Android users can download it.• If you are building a Web App only (no mobile), you do not need these.☁️ HOSTING & SERVERS (monthly ongoing):• Your app needs to run on servers 24/7. This is called cloud hosting.• Small apps (under 1,000 users): roughly $20 to $100 per month• Medium apps (1,000 to 10,000 users): roughly $100 to $500 per month• Large apps (10,000+ users): $500 and up per month• These costs scale with usage — the more users and data, the more it costs.🗄️ DATABASE STORAGE (monthly ongoing):• Your app needs a place to store all its data — user accounts, orders, records, photos, etc.• Text data (names, dates, numbers) is very cheap — often just a few dollars per month.• Media storage (photos, videos, documents) costs significantly more.• Example: Storing 10,000 profile photos could cost $20 to $50 per month extra.🔔 PUSH NOTIFICATIONS (monthly ongoing):• If your app sends notifications to users phones, you need a notification service.• Small volume (under 10,000 notifications/month): often free or just a few dollars.• Large volume (millions of notifications): can cost $50 to $500+ per month.💳 PAYMENT PROCESSING FEES (per transaction):• If your app accepts payments, the payment processor charges a fee per transaction.• Stripe and Square charge approximately 2.9% plus $0.30 per transaction.• Example: On a $100 sale, you pay roughly $3.20 in processing fees.• This is paid to the payment processor, not to us.🔄 MAINTENANCE & UPDATES (monthly or annual):• Apps require regular updates to stay compatible with new phone operating systems.• Apple and Google release major updates annually that can require app updates.• We offer monthly maintenance plans starting at $150 per month.• Without maintenance, your app may stop working correctly over time.📊 THIRD-PARTY SERVICES (varies):• Some features require paid third-party services. Examples: - Mapping and location services (Google Maps API): approximately $0.007 per map load - SMS text messaging: approximately $0.01 per text sent - Email services (SendGrid, Mailchimp): free up to a limit, then $10 to $100+ per month - Video calling: varies widely based on usageWe will provide you with a detailed breakdown of all estimated ongoing costs in your custom quote so there are absolutely no surprises. Our goal is for you to make a fully informed decision.
  • ✅ I understand that building an app involves both a one-time build cost and ongoing monthly costs Please confirm you have read and understood the information above. This helps us make sure we are all on the same page before we start.*

  • 📅 Almost Done!

    Just a few more questions to help us understand your timeline and give you the most accurate estimate possible.

  • 📅 What is your target launch date? This helps us plan realistically and allocate the right resources. If you have a hard deadline — like a trade show, grand opening, product launch, or investor demo — please mention it in the notes at the bottom of this page so we can plan accordingly.*
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