How Much Does It Cost to Build a MVP?
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Building a minimum viable product (MVP) can cost anywhere from a few thousand dollars to well over $100,000, depending on the project’s scope, complexity, and how you choose to build it. On the low end, a very simple MVP might be developed for as little as $5,000–$10,000 (for example, if you use no-code tools or a single freelance developer), whereas more complex MVPs built by professional agencies or in-house teams can run more expensive.
In most cases, startups should budget somewhere around $10,000 to $20,000 for a typical MVP build that includes essential features and a basic user interface. The exact cost will ultimately depend on various factors – from the features you need and the design polish, to whether you hire a freelancer, work with an agency, or try a no-code approach. In this article, we’ll break down those options to help you understand how much it costs to build an MVP and how to plan your budget effectively.
Hiring a Freelance Developer for MVP Development
One cost-effective route is hiring freelance developer(s) to build your MVP. Freelancers typically offer more competitive rates compared to agencies, since they have lower overhead. Many startups choose a freelancer or a small team of independent developers to save money.
Cost Range: An MVP built by freelancers might cost on the order of $2000-$5000 in total. This is much less than what an agency would charge for a similar project.
Why It’s Cheaper: Freelancers don’t have the high hourly rates or management fees that agencies do. They set their rates, which might be, say, $50–$100 per hour depending on experience and location. You also have the flexibility to hire only the specific talent you need, maybe one developer and a part-time designer, rather than paying for a full multidisciplinary team.
Pros: Cost savings and flexibility. You can hand-pick a freelancer with the exact skill set needed for your project. It’s a good fit if you have a limited budget or only need one or two people. Analyses have found that freelancers often charge 40–60% lower hourly rates than agencies.
Cons: More management responsibility and risk. When hiring freelancers, you effectively become the project manager. You’ll need to coordinate tasks, manage timelines, and keep the work on track. Quality can vary, and a freelancer might have other gigs or could quit if something goes wrong, since they aren’t bound by a long-term contract. Communication issues or scheduling conflicts can also arise, especially if your freelancer is in a different time zone.
Tips: To mitigate risks, spend time finding a reputable freelancer (check their portfolio and reviews) and establish clear requirements and milestones. It can also help to start with a small paid trial task to ensure they deliver good work before committing fully.
Working with an Agency to Build an MVP
Another option is to hire a software development agency to create your MVP. Agencies provide a full development team (developers, designers, testers, project managers) to plan and build your product. This route offers convenience and expertise, but at a significantly higher cost.
Cost Range: Using a professional agency in the U.S. will typically be the more expensive option. Agencies often charge high hourly rates – on the order of $100 to $250 per hour for each team member. Even a small team at those rates can run up tens of thousands of dollars per month, so it’s not uncommon for a full MVP project with a reputable agency to end up being more than $9000-$1000.
Pros: High quality and speed. Agencies bring an experienced team that has likely built similar products before. They can often deliver a polished, stable MVP relatively fast, handling everything from design and development to testing. You don’t have to manage daily details – the agency’s project manager coordinates the work. You also have more assurance (and legal contracts) that the product will be delivered as agreed.
Cons: High cost, less flexibility. The obvious downside is cost – an agency might easily cost several times more than using freelancers for the same scope. You’re paying for the team’s combined expertise and overhead. Additionally, you might have less direct control over individual team members or the process. Changes or new feature requests can become expensive. For many early-stage startups, spending $100k on an MVP is not feasible.
Outsourcing Option: To save money, some startups outsource to development firms in lower-cost regions. By hiring developers overseas, you can often cut costs significantly. For example, a comparable team might cost around $25,000 per month in an Eastern European country versus $60,000 per month in the U.S.. The trade-off is managing remote collaboration and ensuring the offshore team’s quality.
When to Use an Agency: If budget isn’t a primary concern and you need a top-notch product quickly, an agency is worth considering. It’s especially suitable for projects that require a broad range of skills or very high quality, for example, a complex app where user experience is critical. But if funds are limited, an agency can be overkill for an MVP.
Using No-Code/Low-Code Platforms to Build an MVP
No-code and low-code platforms have emerged as a popular way to build MVPs quickly and cheaply. No-code tools let you create software through drag-and-drop interfaces and pre-built components, without writing traditional code. Low-code platforms involve minimal coding but can offer more flexibility. These approaches can drastically cut development costs for simple applications, though they come with trade-offs.
Cost Range: No-code platforms themselves are very affordable – many have free tiers, and paid plans often start around $30–$50 per month. The overall MVP cost can be extremely low if you do everything yourself. In some cases, a no-code MVP might cost only a couple of thousand dollars out of pocket. However, as your app grows or if you need advanced features, the costs can rise. You might end up paying $20,000–$30,000+ in total once you factor in higher-tier platform fees, plugins, and possibly hiring a developer to help with limitations.
Pros: Fast and cheap start. No-code tools enable very rapid development – you might build a basic MVP in days or weeks instead of months. You’re using pre-built modules, so development is a fraction of the cost and time of coding from scratch. This makes it ideal for quickly validating an idea or creating a prototype to show stakeholders. You also don’t need programming experience to use many no-code platforms (they’re designed for non-technical users), and it’s easy to iterate on your design.
Cons: Limited scalability and flexibility. No-code solutions have significant limitations. They may struggle with very custom features or high scalability requirements. Many startups build an MVP on no-code only to later rebuild it with custom code once they need more performance or flexibility. Also, as your user base grows, you can face hidden costs – for example, needing to upgrade to expensive plans or pay for third-party services (like APIs or plugins), which can erode the initial savings. In short, a no-code MVP is great for a quick start, but it might not be suitable as a long-term solution for a complex or growing product.
Best Use Cases: No-code/low-code is excellent for rapid prototyping and very simple apps. If you need to test a concept quickly and cheaply, no-code is hard to beat. It’s perfect for an early demo or proof-of-concept. Just be prepared that if your MVP gains traction, you may eventually need to invest in traditional development to scale further.
Real Examples of MVP Costs (Case Studies)
To illustrate the range of MVP costs in practice, here are two real-world examples from startups that built and launched MVPs, including what they spent:
Health App MVP (~$15,000): A healthcare startup developed an MVP for a mobile health app that connects with wearable devices and provides personalized health data to users. They used a hybrid development approach (combining cross-platform frameworks with some native code) to balance cost and performance. The MVP focused on a lean set of core features and ended up costing about $15,000 to build. By keeping the scope limited and leveraging cross-platform tech, the team delivered a functional health app within a mid-five-figure budget.
Case Study 2 – E-commerce Recommendation Engine MVP (~$12,000): In another example, an online retail startup built an MVP of a product recommendation engine for their e-commerce website. The goal was to serve personalized product suggestions to users based on their browsing and purchase history. Using existing machine learning libraries and plugging into the site’s data, the team was able to create this recommendation engine for roughly $12,000. By focusing on one key feature (personalized recommendations) and integrating it with the existing platform, they kept the scope narrow and costs relatively low. The result was an MVP that demonstrated clear value (improving user engagement and sales) without a huge upfront investment.
These examples show that many MVPs can be built for tens of thousands of dollars rather than hundreds of thousands. By focusing on core features and making smart development choices, startups often get an MVP done in the $20k–$50k range. Of course, extremely simple MVPs can be even cheaper, and very complex ones can cost more – but these case studies represent a realistic middle ground.
Frequently Asked Questions about MVP Costs
Q: How much does it cost to build an MVP app?
A: It varies widely based on scope and approach. As discussed above, an MVP can cost anywhere from around $5,000 at the low end to over $100,000 for a very complex project. In practice, many startup MVPs tend to fall in the $15,000 to $50,000 range for a basic version of the product. The more features and polish you add, the closer you get to the higher end of that range.
Q: Is it cheaper to hire freelancers or an agency for an MVP?
A: Generally, hiring freelancers is cheaper than hiring an agency. A freelance developer or small freelance team might deliver an MVP for, say, $10k–$20k, whereas a development agency might charge several times that amount. Freelancers have lower rates and less overhead, though you’ll need to manage them closely. Agencies provide a full team and take care of management, but you pay a premium for that service.
Q: Can I build an MVP for very little money using no-code tools?
A: Yes – building a very cheap MVP with no-code platforms is quite possible. Some founders have built MVPs for just a couple of thousand dollars using no-code tools. You can often start on a free or low-cost plan and invest mostly your time instead of money. Keep in mind that as your user base grows or if you need more advanced features, you may have to upgrade to paid plans or even bring in developers, which will increase costs. But for a simple proof-of-concept, no-code is a fantastic low-budget approach.
Q: How can I reduce the cost of my MVP?
A: To keep MVP costs down, consider these strategies:
Focus on only the core features that address your main user problem (avoid extras at first).
Use a simple, lean design or existing templates instead of expensive custom UI.
Build cross-platform or hybrid so you don’t develop separate apps for web and mobile.
Leverage open-source libraries and tools to save development time.
If you’re non-technical, try a no-code/low-code tool for the first version to save money.
Get quotes from multiple developers (prices vary) and avoid scope creep or feature bloat.
Q: How long does it take to build an MVP, and how does the timeline affect cost?
A: Most MVPs take around 3 to 4 months to develop a first version. The timeline and cost are directly related: more development time means more work hours (and a higher cost). If you need to move faster, you might hire a bigger team (higher monthly burn), whereas a solo developer could take longer but cost less per month. Finding the right balance between speed and budget is important.
In Conclusion
Building an MVP is an investment, but it’s also an essential step to validate your idea with real users. Whether you choose a scrappy no-code approach on a lean budget or invest in a professional development team, make sure you’re building the right product – one that delivers just enough value to learn from users. Once your MVP is out in the world, you can gather feedback, attract potential investors or customers, and then decide on the next steps (for example, improving the product or scaling up).
Ready to turn your MVP idea into reality? At Rex Marketing & CX, we specialize in helping founders develop and launch successful products. Book a Strategy Call with us to discuss your project – we’ll help you figure out the smartest way to build your MVP and how to connect it with your target market.
