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If you are planning a startup, you should first Google our two questions: What will be the scope of your business idea, and how much does an MVP cost?
As a startup owner, everyone feels insecure about whether their idea will work or not. In such situations, one can always choose MVP, or a minimum viable product. Trust us, MVP is the smart move if you are in a startup phase, as it will help you validate your idea within a small budget.
But still, you will have a question remaining: What will be the MVP development cost? So let us clear it for you: they may vary by project, as it depends on your goals, tech stack, and team structure. But how you accurately estimate it will be discussed in this guide.
What Exactly Does MVP (Minimum Viable Product) Mean?
The MVP, or Minimum Viable Product, is a simple but functional version of your application or software, which is built to test the concept of your business ideas with actual users. However, the full-fledged product includes the core features that actually solve users’ primary problems.
Okay, let us think of it as your idea’s test flight. In MVP’s case, you are building enough of the app or software to prove your product has potential. This will help you save your time and money while ensuring minimum risk.
Startup founders mostly get confused between MVP and prototype, but both are different.
- A prototype is simply a visual or clickable model that shows exactly how your product looks.
- An MVP is an actual product having limited and only important features and functionality.
In this case, you are calculating the approximate MVP prototype cost. Remember that prototypes are cheaper, but they do not validate the app or software concept that an MVP does.
Why Should Startups Focus on MVP First?
We agree that your idea is brilliant and hits users’ pain points directly. Then, also, launching a complete version of your app or product too early may backfire. That is why startup MVP development becomes the safety net that saves your time and money both.
The following is why every founder should start with an MVP first:
- Quick Time-to-Market: Following MVP, you can launch and test your product on real users in weeks rather than stretching it to months.
- Cost Efficiency: By avoiding investment of money and time on unnecessary features, you can build features that users actually want in the product.
- Investor Attraction: You can pitch investors on the basis of MVP, because MVP itself is a structured product.
- User Feedback Loop: You will get real insights from actual users and shape your next release accordingly.
If you are building a marketplace, SaaS platform, or on-demand app, developing custom MVP software is the smartest initial move that will never fail, because it helps you test the waters, measure the actual performance, and give you the scale where you can excel.
What Are The Factors that Influence MVP Development Cost
Actually, the MVP development cost varies based on various factors. The following are some of them.
(1) App Complexity and Features
Simply, the basic app will cost you less than the fully fledged, feature-packed app. For example:
| MVP Type | Inclusions | Approximate Cost |
| Basic MVP | Login, profile, dashboard, and other basic features. | $10,000 to $20, |
| Medium Complexity | Basic features plus 3rd-party payment options, notifications, admin panel, and more. | $30,000 to $50,000 and more |
| Complex MVP | The above-mentioned features plus AI integration, chatbots, analytical dashboards, and more. | $60,000 to $120,000 and more |
It is simple math: the more screens, the more 3rd-party app integrations, and the more APIs will lead you to the higher the cost to develop an MVP.
(2) MVP Design and UX
Approximately 15 to 25 percent of your total MVP cost is taken by the UI/UX design. UI/UX design includes custom illustrations, animations, and brand design that increase user experience, but also increase the budget. However, MVP follows a minimal design approach that focuses on usability and not perfection, which saves both time and money.
(3) Tech Stack You Choose
Suppose you want to build an MVP; then choose a single platform, either iOS or Android, which will cost you less, right? However, the cross-platform frameworks (Flutter or React Native) are the most chosen ones in 2025, and it will continue to be the first choice for startups in 2026, as per the reports. So, delivering native-like performance also costs you less.
(4) Team Model
Hiring in-house professionals will cost you more in terms of fixed salaries, infrastructure, Wi-Fi, electricity, and more. Outsourcing to a mobile app development company, hiring dedicated teams, or IT-staff augmentation ensures flexibility and cost control. Partnering with the leading IT-staff augmentation companies, like India App Developer, ensures complete flexibility on team size so that you can increase or decrease team size as per your project and save budget.
However, if you are thinking about how to optimize the cost to develop an MVP, then IT-staff augmentation remains one of the most strategic moves.
(5) The Region of the Professionals
The location of the professionals plays a huge role when it comes to the pricing. The following table shows the region-wise breakdown for the year 2026.
| Region | Average Hourly Rate | Estimated MVP Cost Range |
| USA | $80 to $150 per hour | $60,000 to $150,000 and more |
| Europe | $60 to $120 per hour | $40,000 to $100,000 or more |
| India | $25 to $50 per hour | $10,000 to $40,000 or more |
Have you seen the difference? IT-staff augmentation from India can save up to 60% to 70% of your total MVP cost, and that’s without compromising quality.
How Much Does it Cost to Build an MVP in 2026
| MVP Types | Approximate Cost | Inclusions |
| Simple MVP | $10,000 to $20,000 | Login, profile, dashboard, and other basic features. |
| Moderate MVP | $25,000 to $50,000 | Basic features plus 3rd-party payment options, notifications, admin panel, and more. |
| Complex MVP | $60,000 to $120,000 or more | The above-mentioned features plus AI integration, chatbots, analytical dashboards, and more. |
💡 Pro Tip: If you are planning for lower MVP development cost, then you must partner with IT-staff augmentation providers, who have pre-screened professionals and give you full flexibility in terms of team size.
The Cost-Saving Tricks for MVP Development
Even a small strategic move can cut down your cost to develop an MVP. The following is how smartly you can cut down the cost.
(1) Build only core features and ignore what is not necessary.
(2) You can use pre-built components or APIs for authentication, maps, and payments.
(3) You can go with the cross-platform frameworks like Flutter or React Native and reach Android and iOS user types.
(4) Choose IT-staff augmentation rather than freelancers or in-house hiring.
(5) Remember, MVP is not the prototype, and test your MVP on real users so that you can ensure the next release is as per their needs.
If you follow these tricks, you will be able to develop custom MVP software faster and cheaper.
Why Choose India App Developer to Build Cost-effective and Highly Qualitative MVPs?
Who doesn’t want to have an equal balance between quality and affordability? India App Developer is one of the trusted mobile app development companies for startups worldwide. Having a decade of experience, skilled professionals, and transparent pricing models, we helped thousands of startups to turn their vision into life, and that too smarter and faster than they thought!
The following are some reasons we set India App Developer apart from others:
- We follow the agile development process and offer quick turnaround, following our client’s time zone.
- We offer a dedicated team for each project and an aligned communication channel that allows our clients to directly chat/call with the team.
- We signed NDAs before starting the project and focus on long-term relationships.
- We have proven expertise in React Native, Flutter, AI, and SaaS-based solutions.
We offer a competitive app development cost in India, without compromising quality, which I guess is the biggest reason companies choose us to save their budget. If you are planning to hire dedicated developers in India or want to go with an IT staff augmentation service, you can contact us today to know how we will build a secure and scalable MVP for your business.
