How much does a custom app cost?
A custom app costs anywhere from about $500 to $120,000+, depending on how it’s built. Richburg Consulting offers productized builds from $500 (configured vertical templates, plus AppCare at $99/mo) up to $5,999 (bespoke custom builds, AppCare optional). A traditional agency typically runs $85,000–$120,000+ on a 16–24 week timeline.
Cost comparison at a glance
Metric
- Cost
- Timeline to launch
- Best for
- Team
- Cash-flow impact
- Change flexibility
Richburg productized build
- $500–$5,999 setup + AppCare
- ~20 days (templates) to ~6 weeks
- Vertical MVPs, defined tools, SMBs
- 1 full-stack builder on modular accelerators
- Minimal / predictable
- High, no change-order fees
Traditional agency
- $85,000–$120,000+ (upfront)
- 16–24 weeks
- Enterprise budgets, rigid scope
- Account manager, designer, 2 devs, QA, scrum master
- High burn, large outlay
- Low, pivots incur change orders
Metric
Cost
Timeline to launch
Best for
Team
Cash-flow impact
Change flexibility
Richburg productized build
$500–$5,999 setup + AppCare
~20 days (templates) to ~6 weeks
Vertical MVPs, defined tools, SMBs
1 full-stack builder on modular accelerators
Minimal / predictable
High, no change-order fees
Traditional agency
$85,000–$120,000+ (upfront)
16–24 weeks
Enterprise budgets, rigid scope
Account manager, designer, 2 devs, QA, scrum master
High burn, large outlay
Low, pivots incur change orders
Why the productized model beats a traditional agency
Preserves capital
From $500 plus AppCare at $99/mo, or monthly financing on custom builds, instead of a $90k+ upfront agency retainer.
Faster
Templates launch in about 20 days versus the agency’s 16–24 weeks of discovery-first delivery.
No account-management overhead
Your budget goes to product, not project managers.
Need ongoing senior capacity instead of an app build? That’s what the fractional pods are for.
FAQs
From about $500 to $120,000+ depending on the build model. Richburg Consulting offers productized builds from $500 (templates, plus AppCare at $99/mo) up to $5,999 (custom). A traditional agency typically charges $85,000–$120,000+ over 16–24 weeks.
Agency pricing largely covers layers of account management and long discovery phases rather than engineering. Removing that overhead — as a productized build does — cuts both cost and timeline substantially.
Yes, on custom builds (from $179/mo). Templates are $500 (template) or $700 (full build), plus AppCare at $99/mo.
A vertical template launches in about 20 days by skipping lengthy discovery and going straight to configuration and delivery.