Just the build
You already have the design, the backend, or a team that will run the app after launch. Webbify builds the app to that spec, hands over a clean repository, and gets out of the way.
Mobile apps
Mobile app development, from first build to the App Store
iPhone apps, with Android from the same codebase when you need it, built with Expo and React Native by a developer who has shipped seven personal apps to the App Store. Hire Webbify for just the build, or for everything from scoping to updates after launch.
How you can hire Webbify
As much of the project as you need.
Some clients arrive with designs and a backend. Others arrive with an idea. Both are normal, and the proposal is written around what you actually need done.
The whole product
Scoping, screen design, the app itself, the backend and APIs it talks to, App Store submission, and updates after launch. One person accountable from the first conversation to the version in your customers’ hands.
Somewhere in between
Most projects land here: an existing website or system the app has to connect to, plus the parts nobody on your side has done before, usually the App Store listing and the review process.
The approach
A small first version, on your phone early, then the store.
App projects go wrong when the first release tries to do everything. The sequence keeps the first version small and gets it into your hands quickly.
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Decide whether it should be an app at all
Some ideas are better as a fast mobile website: cheaper to build, nothing to install, no store review. An app earns its place with push notifications, offline use, the camera, location, or a customer who opens it every week. That gets settled first.
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Scope the first version
The smallest release that does the job well. Screens, accounts, what data the app holds, and what it connects to are written down before any code, along with what is deliberately left for version two.
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Build and test on real devices
Working builds go to your phone through TestFlight early and often, so you are reacting to the real app rather than a mock-up. Feedback lands in the next build, not at the end.
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Submit to the App Store
Listing copy, screenshots, privacy details, and the review submission itself. Apple’s guidelines are checked before submission, not after a rejection.
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Ship updates
Phones and operating systems change every year, and an app that is not maintained eventually stops working. Updates can continue under an ongoing arrangement or be handed to your own team.
What the work can include
Everything between an idea and an app in the store
- A native iPhone app built with Expo and React Native in TypeScript
- Android from the same codebase, when the project needs both
- Screen design and user flows, or a build to your existing designs
- Accounts, sign-in, and the data the app stores
- Backend and API work, or integration with systems you already run
- Push notifications, camera, location, and offline behavior where they earn their place
- TestFlight builds throughout so you test on your own phone
- App Store listing, screenshots, privacy details, and review submission
- Post-launch updates and operating-system compatibility work
- A repository and developer accounts that are yours, not Webbify’s
Honest expectations
What the experience is, and what nobody can promise
- Ian has shipped seven apps to the App Store. They are personal projects rather than client work, and they are where the release, review, and update experience comes from. Webbify does not yet have a published client app case study.
- Apple decides what goes on the App Store. Webbify prepares submissions against the published guidelines and handles any review feedback, but no developer can guarantee approval or how long review takes.
- No download, rating, or revenue figure is promised. A well-built app is easy to use and reliable; whether people install it depends on the audience and how it is marketed.
- Webbify is a founder-led studio. One person designs, builds, and ships. That suits focused apps and first versions, and it is the wrong shape for a product that needs a full mobile team from day one. That gets said at scoping.
Where this fits
App work connects to the rest of the application practice
Questions
What people ask before building an app.
Do I need an app, or would a mobile-friendly website do?
If customers will use it once, or mostly need to read information and contact you, a fast mobile website is usually the better answer: no install, no store review, and one thing to maintain. An app makes sense when people come back to it regularly, or when it needs push notifications, offline use, the camera, or location. Webbify will tell you which one fits before proposing either.
Can you build for Android as well as iPhone?
Yes. Apps are built with Expo and React Native, which produces both an iPhone app and an Android app from one codebase. Some platform-specific polish and testing is still needed, but it is far less than building two apps separately.
Is an Expo app a real native app?
Yes. It installs from the App Store and runs as a native app with native navigation, gestures, and access to the camera, notifications, and other device features. It is not a website wrapped in an app frame.
Can you just build the app, without the design or backend?
Yes. Webbify can build to your designs and connect to an existing backend, or handle everything from scoping to App Store submission and updates. Most projects are somewhere in between, and the proposal says exactly which parts are included.
Who owns the app and the developer account?
You do. The Apple Developer account should be in your business’s name, and the source code, build configuration, and documentation are handed over so another developer could continue the work.
How much does an app cost?
App work is scoped individually rather than given a range, because the difference between a simple first version and a product with accounts, payments, and a backend is too large for a range to mean anything. After a conversation about what the app needs to do, you get a written proposal.
Have an app in mind?
Describe what it should do and who will use it. Webbify will tell you whether it should be an app, what a first version would include, and which parts of the project you need help with.