Hiring an ecommerce app development company: Shopify builder, custom app or full platform?

Before you pick a developer, pick a route: a Shopify app builder, a custom app on your store, or a full platform. Here's how to decide, what to build first and what it costs.

If you sell online and you're talking to an ecommerce app development company, the first decision isn't which features to build. It's which of three routes to take: a Shopify app builder, a custom app on top of your existing store, or a fully custom commerce stack. Each one has a different cost, a different ceiling, and a different amount of work left for you after launch.

This guide walks through that decision, the features that actually move revenue, how payments work inside an app, and what a realistic budget looks like.

First: does your store need an app at all?

A shopping app earns its keep through repeat purchases. Customers who install it are usually your best ones already, and the app's job is to make them buy more often: faster checkout, saved details, push notifications they actually want, and a home screen icon that reminds them you exist.

An app tends to pay off when:

• Customers buy from you several times a year (fashion, beauty, groceries, supplements, pet supplies, coffee).
• You run drops, flash sales or limited stock, where a push notification is the fastest channel you have.
• You have a loyalty program, subscriptions or a membership that's clumsy on mobile web.
• Your email and SMS costs are rising and you want an owned channel with no per-message fee.

If most customers buy once (furniture, mattresses, one-off gifts), put the money into your mobile website and checkout first. An app won't fix a low repeat rate.

Shopify app builder vs custom app vs fully custom platform

Many US direct-to-consumer brands run on Shopify, so here's how the three routes compare for a Shopify store. The same logic applies to WooCommerce, BigCommerce or Magento with different tools.

For a custom app on Shopify, the building blocks are documented in Shopify's mobile documentation: the Storefront API for products, search and carts, and Checkout Kit for iOS, Android and React Native, which presents Shopify's own checkout inside your app so your payment methods, discounts and checkout extensions keep working. That last point matters more than it sounds. Rebuilding checkout yourself is where custom ecommerce apps usually go over budget.

A sensible path for many brands: start with a builder to prove customers will install and use an app, then move to a custom build once the app channel is a measurable share of revenue.

Must-have features for a shopping app (and what can wait)

Every extra feature adds testing, maintenance and another reason for a store review to take longer. Build the first version around the path from opening the app to a completed order.

Launch version

• Fast home screen with merchandised collections you can change without an app update.
• Search with filters and sorting that match how customers shop your catalog.
• Product pages with variant selection, stock status, reviews and good image zoom.
• Persistent cart that syncs with the website, so a cart started on desktop shows up in the app.
• Express checkout with Apple Pay, Google Pay and your existing payment methods.
• Account, order history, tracking links and easy reorder.
• Push notifications with a clear opt-in, plus deep links from email, SMS and ads to the right product.
• Analytics events for view item, add to cart, begin checkout and purchase, with revenue values.

Version two

• Wishlists and back-in-stock alerts.
• Loyalty points, tiers and app-only offers.
• Personalized recommendations once you have enough order data to make them worthwhile.
• Subscriptions and "subscribe and save" if your products are replenished.
• Store locator, click-and-collect or in-store barcode scanning for omnichannel retailers.

Payments inside an ecommerce app

A common worry is that Apple or Google will take a cut of every sale. For physical goods, they don't. App Store Review Guideline 3.1.3(e) says apps selling physical goods or services consumed outside the app must use purchase methods other than in-app purchase, such as Apple Pay or card entry. Google Play's billing rules treat physical goods the same way.

In practice your options are:

• Your platform's checkout (for Shopify, Checkout Kit), which keeps one payment setup across web and app.
• A payment provider SDK such as Stripe, Braintree or Adyen for a fully custom checkout. You own more of the UX and more of the compliance work.
• Wallets (Apple Pay, Google Pay, Shop Pay) for one-tap purchase. They remove most of the typing from mobile checkout, which is where mobile buyers drop off.
• For India: UPI intent flows, cards, net banking and cash on delivery through gateways such as Razorpay, Cashfree or PayU, with COD rules and RTO risk handled in the order logic.

Whatever you choose, card data should never touch your own servers. Use the provider's tokenized fields or hosted checkout so your PCI DSS scope stays small.

Push notifications and retention: where the app pays for itself

Push is the main reason an app outperforms mobile web for repeat buyers, and it's also the fastest way to get uninstalled. Both iOS and Android (from Android 13) require the user to grant notification permission, so the opt-in moment deserves design time.

• Ask at a moment of intent. After the first order ("Want shipping updates?") or on a back-in-stock request, not on first launch.
• Send by trigger, not by calendar. Abandoned cart, price drop on a wishlisted item, back in stock, order shipped and reorder reminders outperform generic blasts.
• Segment by behavior. A first-time buyer and a VIP shouldn't get the same message on the same day.
• Cap frequency. Agree a weekly maximum for promotional pushes and track opt-out and uninstall rates alongside revenue.
• Deep link every message to the exact product or cart, not the home screen.

Paid retargeting to app users is the other half of retention. Our guide to app retargeting campaigns covers audiences and measurement, and Meta vs Google Ads for ecommerce covers which channel to fund first.

What an ecommerce app costs

These are typical ranges for a custom Android and iOS app on top of an existing store, built by an offshore team such as one in India. US agencies usually quote several times higher for the same scope. Your price depends on catalog complexity, integrations and design depth, so treat this as a planning guide, not a quote.

Budget separately for ongoing items: maintenance and OS updates, push and analytics tools, and the marketing that gets the app installed. Our app development cost guide explains the drivers in more detail, and React Native vs Flutter covers how the framework choice affects cost.

How to choose an ecommerce app development company

Use this checklist on your first calls:

1. Have they shipped shopping apps that are live now? Ask for store links and open them. Test search, cart and checkout yourself.
2. Do they recommend the cheapest route that works? A good partner will tell you when a builder is enough.
3. How do they handle checkout? The answer should name your platform's checkout or a specific payment SDK, plus Apple Pay and Google Pay.
4. What gets tracked? Ecommerce events with revenue, sent to your analytics and attribution tools, verified before launch.
5. Can your team change the home screen and promotions without a release? If not, every sale needs a developer.
6. Who owns the code and the store accounts? You should, from day one.
7. What's the price, and is it fixed? See our guide to fixed price app development for how to write a scope that protects you.

Where Appryze fits

Appryze builds Android and iOS shopping apps (native Swift or Flutter) on top of Shopify and custom backends for brands in the USA, UK, UAE and India. You get a fixed-price written quote within 24 hours, free App Store and Google Play submission, and one month of launch marketing so the first installs come from campaigns set up around purchase events, not just installs. See how builds work on our Studio page or how we market apps after launch on Growth.

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to build an ecommerce app?

It depends on the route. An app builder costs little upfront plus a monthly fee. A custom Android and iOS app on top of an existing Shopify store, built offshore, typically runs from the mid five figures depending on features like loyalty and subscriptions. A fully custom commerce platform with its own backend usually costs six figures or more. US agencies typically quote several times higher for the same scope.

Is a Shopify app builder good enough for my store?

Often, yes, especially if you want to test whether customers will install and use an app. Builders are fast and cheap but limit your design and features, and their monthly fees can rise as you grow. Once the app is a meaningful share of revenue, a custom app built on Shopify's Storefront API and Checkout Kit gives you full control while keeping Shopify's checkout and payment setup.

Do Apple and Google take a commission on ecommerce app sales?

Not on physical goods. Apple's App Store guidelines require apps that sell physical goods or services used outside the app to use payment methods other than in-app purchase, such as Apple Pay or card entry, and Google Play treats physical goods the same way. Normal payment processing fees from your payment provider still apply. Digital goods and subscriptions consumed in the app follow different rules.

How long does it take to build a shopping app?

A builder app can go live in days to a few weeks. A custom app on top of an existing store typically takes eight to sixteen weeks, depending on features, integrations and design. A fully custom commerce platform with its own backend and admin often takes five to nine months or more. Store review adds a few days at the end, so plan launch dates around it.

Should an ecommerce app be native or Flutter?

Both work well for shopping apps. Flutter or React Native lets one team ship Android and iOS from a shared codebase, which usually lowers cost and keeps features in sync. Native Swift and Kotlin make sense when you need deep platform features or a very large in-house team per platform. For most brands, the bigger decision is checkout and integrations, not the framework.

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