Mobile App Development
The shortcut: Most solo mobile devs lose the project on the App Store, not the code. Apple takes 15-30% of every digital purchase and rejects apps for reasons buried 40 pages into the Review Guidelines. Build the validation layer and the store-compliance plan into your scope before you write a line of Swift — or you'll deliver a $25K codebase that can't legally bill its own users.
Industry: Software & Tech | Investment level: Medium — $10,000-$50,000 | Time to launch: 8-14 weeks (validation + reusable cross-platform starter + first paid pilot gate the launch)
Best for: A developer comfortable with React Native or Flutter, willing to read App Store Review Guidelines line by line, and able to tell a non-technical client "your idea fails the IAP rules" without losing the deal. What you'll likely make: $3,000-$6,000 month 3, $8,000-$15,000 month 6, $15,000-$28,000 month 12 (one full build plus partial work on the next, or build-plus-maintenance retainers). Math is in Section 4.
Market Opportunity
Custom-app agencies charge $30K-$300K for the same build, and a meaningful share ship to crickets. The thing that decides whether a $25K project turns into a business or a portfolio piece isn't the code. It's whether anyone wanted the app before a single line got written.
The opening for a solo builder is in that gap. Local service businesses and niche e-commerce brands keep getting quoted $80K minimums by mid-tier agencies for builds that should cost $20K-$40K. They need one person who can run a one-week validation sprint, scope a real MVP, and ship to both stores without blowing the IAP rules.
Your own product is a different lane. A subscription app under Apple's Small Business Program keeps 85% of revenue instead of 70% while annual proceeds stay under $1M. The risk is real too: most consumer apps never recoup build cost. Agency builds pay this month. Product builds pay in year two if at all.
- Apple Developer Program: $99/year to distribute on the App Store — Apple Developer enrollment.
- Google Play: $25 one-time registration fee — Google Play Console.
- Apple in-app purchase commission: 30% standard, 15% under the Small Business Program for businesses under $1M annual proceeds — Small Business Program. Subscriptions drop to 15% after a customer's first paid year regardless.
Start with this idea — free signup, no card required.
