Ecommerce app development is the design and build of a mobile shopping app that lets customers browse, buy, track orders and manage their account from an app on their phone. For most brands, the app is a second front end for the store they already run: products, prices, stock, discounts and orders stay in Shopify or WooCommerce, and the app reads and writes them through the platform's APIs. That way your team manages one catalog, and the app gives your best customers a faster way to buy and a channel you can reach with push notifications.
We build ecommerce apps as part of our ecommerce development practice, drawing on the same team behind our mobile app development work. As an ecommerce app development company, we start with a question many agencies skip: will enough of your customers use an app to justify building and maintaining one? If the answer is yes, you get an iOS and Android app built from one codebase, published under your own developer accounts, with analytics that show whether it is earning its place.
Does Your Store Need an App? An Honest Ecommerce App Development Test
An app pays off when customers come back often. It rarely helps a store where people buy once a year. Use these signals to judge.
| Signal | Points toward an app | Points toward improving your mobile site first |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase frequency | Customers buy monthly or more: fashion drops, beauty, groceries, pet supplies, consumables. | Customers buy once or twice a year: furniture, mattresses, appliances. |
| Returning customers | A large, loyal group of repeat buyers you want to reach directly. | Most revenue comes from first-time buyers via ads. |
| Launch model | Limited drops, restocks and early access where speed matters. | A steady catalog with few time-sensitive events. |
| Mobile site | Your mobile site is already fast and converts well. | Your mobile site is slow or awkward. Fix that first, because it serves every visitor. |
| Loyalty program | Points, tiers or member pricing that an app can make visible every day. | No retention program and no plan for one. |
If the test points away from an app, a progressive web app or mobile site improvements may give you most of the benefit at a lower cost. We will tell you so.
What Our Ecommerce App Development Services Include
| Service | What it covers | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| App strategy and scope | Feature list for launch and later phases, user flows and success metrics. | The first release focuses on what repeat buyers actually do. |
| App design | Custom design in Figma following Apple and Google interface guidelines, matched to your brand. | The app feels native on each platform rather than like a wrapped website. |
| Cross-platform build | One React Native or Flutter codebase for iOS and Android. | One team, one codebase and matching features on both platforms. |
| Store integration | Live sync with your catalog, cart, discounts and customer accounts through the Shopify Storefront API or WooCommerce REST API. | No second catalog to maintain, and stock and prices are always current. |
| Checkout | Your store's own checkout presented inside the app, with saved payment methods and wallets where supported. | Taxes, shipping rules, discounts and payment settings stay identical to your website. |
| Push notifications | Push through Firebase Cloud Messaging and Apple Push Notification service, or through your email platform where it supports push. | A direct channel to customers who opted in, for drops, restocks and order updates. |
| Deep links | Universal Links on iOS and App Links on Android, so links from email, SMS and social open the right product in the app. | Campaign links land on the product, not the app home screen. |
| Analytics and crash reporting | Commerce events in Firebase Analytics and GA4, and crash reports through Firebase Crashlytics. | You can see app revenue, retention and stability, and compare them with the website. |
| App store launch | Store listings, screenshots, privacy details and submission to the App Store and Google Play. | A smooth review, with fewer rejections caused by missing information. |
Ecommerce App Features: Launch Set and Later Phases
A focused first release ships sooner and teaches you what customers use. We usually split features like this.
In the first release
- Home, collections, search and filters fed from your store.
- Product pages with variants, images, reviews and stock status.
- Cart, discount codes and checkout using your store's checkout.
- Customer accounts with sign-in, order history, tracking and saved addresses.
- Push notifications for order updates and marketing, with clear opt-in.
- Deep links from email, SMS and social.
Common later additions
- Wishlists synced with the website, and back-in-stock alerts.
- Product recommendations based on browsing and purchase history.
- Loyalty points, tiers and member-only pricing or early access.
- App-only drops and early access windows.
- Store locator, in-store pickup and barcode scanning for brands with physical shops.
- Integrations with ERP, point of sale or loyalty systems on custom builds.
Native vs Cross-Platform Ecommerce Mobile App Development
For most shopping apps, a cross-platform framework is the sensible choice. The heavy lifting happens on your store's servers, and the app's job is to display products and pass orders to checkout quickly and smoothly.
| Approach | Strengths | Trade-offs |
|---|---|---|
| React Native | One codebase for iOS and Android, a large developer community, and official Shopify support for embedding its checkout in React Native apps. | Some advanced platform features need native modules. |
| Flutter | One codebase with consistent rendering on both platforms and smooth animations. | Fewer ready-made commerce libraries than React Native. |
| Native (Swift and Kotlin) | Full access to every platform feature and the highest performance ceiling. | Two codebases, two sets of work and higher cost for features that look the same to shoppers. |
Our cross-platform app development page explains the React Native and Flutter decision in more depth.
App Builders vs Custom Ecommerce App Development
Shopify app builders such as Tapcart and Vajro let you assemble a shopping app from templates for a monthly subscription. They are a reasonable way to test whether customers want an app. Custom ecommerce app development costs more up front but gives you control and ownership.
| App builder | Custom app | |
|---|---|---|
| Launch speed | Fast, using templates | Longer, designed for your brand and features |
| Cost model | Ongoing monthly subscription, often rising with usage or plan | Fixed build price plus maintenance, with no platform subscription |
| Design and features | Limited to the builder's components and integrations | Any design, flow or integration your business needs |
| Ownership | The app depends on the builder's platform | Source code in your repository and listings under your accounts |
| Backend | Shopify-focused, with limited support for other systems | Shopify, WooCommerce, headless stores, marketplaces and custom APIs |
How Our Ecommerce App Development Process Works
- Discovery and scope (1 to 2 weeks). We review your store, customer data, repeat purchase patterns and retention tools, agree the first release feature set and success metrics, and give you a fixed price.
- Design (2 to 4 weeks). We design the key screens in Figma for iOS and Android, test the prototype on real phones and agree the final design with you.
- Build and integration (6 to 12 weeks). We build the app in two-week cycles, connected to your store's development or staging environment, and share test builds through TestFlight and Google Play internal testing so your team can use the app early.
- Testing. We test purchases with real payment methods, deep links, push notifications, sign-in and edge cases such as out-of-stock items and expired discounts, on a range of real devices and OS versions.
- App store submission. We prepare listings, privacy declarations and screenshots, and submit to both stores. Review usually takes a few days, though Apple or Google can ask for changes, so we build time for that into the plan.
- Launch and growth phase. We help you announce the app through email, SMS and your website, watch crash reports and early reviews, and plan the next set of features from real usage data.
A standard shopping app connected to Shopify or WooCommerce typically takes 10 to 16 weeks from discovery to store approval. Apps with a custom backend, marketplace logic or ERP and POS integrations take longer and are scoped in phases.
Ecommerce App Deliverables and Post-Launch Metrics
What you own at launch
- Published iOS and Android apps under your Apple Developer Program and Google Play Console accounts.
- Full source code in a repository you own, with build and release instructions.
- Design files in Figma, including the component library.
- Push notification setup, deep link configuration and analytics events, documented.
- A release checklist your team or any developer can follow for future updates.
What we track after launch
- Crash-free sessions and app store ratings.
- App conversion rate and average order value compared with your mobile website.
- Push notification opt-in rate and the revenue linked to push campaigns.
- Retention: how many customers are still opening the app after 7, 30 and 90 days.
- Share of repeat purchases made through the app.
We do not promise that an app will raise revenue by a set amount. These measures show you clearly whether it is working, so you can decide where to invest next.
Ecommerce App Development Cost and Pricing
Ecommerce app development cost depends on how custom the design is, the number of features in the first release, the backend involved and the integrations needed. An app that syncs with a Shopify or WooCommerce store from one codebase is a fixed-price project. A growth build adds custom design in Figma and features such as wishlists, reviews and recommendations. A custom commerce app with its own backend, headless or marketplace support and ERP, POS or loyalty integrations starts from the level shown and is scoped in phases. Apple and Google developer account fees and any third-party services are paid by you directly, and ongoing updates are covered by a separate maintenance plan.
Apple and Google developer account fees are paid by you. You own the code and the store listings.
App Launch
$8,500 one-time
One-time, milestone billing
- iOS and Android app from one codebase (React Native or Flutter)
- Live sync with your Shopify or WooCommerce catalog, cart and checkout
- Customer accounts, order history and saved addresses
- Push notifications for offers and abandoned carts
- Your branding on a proven app layout
- App Store and Google Play submission
- 30 days support, 8 to 10 weeks
App Growth
$16,000 one-time
One-time, milestone billing
- Everything in App Launch
- Custom app design in Figma
- Wishlist, reviews and product recommendations
- Loyalty or rewards connected to your current app
- Deep links from email, SMS and ads
- In-app analytics and push segments
- 60 days support, 10 to 14 weeks
Custom Commerce App
From $28,000 project
Milestone billing
- Custom backend and API layer
- Headless or marketplace store support
- ERP, POS or loyalty system integrations
- Offline mode, AR or other device features
- Admin panel for content and promos
- 90 days support
- Add-on
- App care: $450/month for OS updates, store releases and up to 6 hours of changes
All prices in USD. Need something different? Ask for a custom quote.
If your app needs features beyond these plans, send us your feature list for a custom quote.
Ecommerce App Mistakes to Avoid
- Shipping a wrapped website. Apple's App Store Review Guidelines (section 4.2, minimum functionality) allow rejection of apps that are little more than a repackaged website. An ecommerce app needs real app features such as push, accounts and native navigation.
- Running a second catalog. Apps that keep their own product data drift out of sync with the store. We read live from your store's APIs.
- Misunderstanding payment rules. Physical goods sold in an app can use your normal payment provider rather than Apple's in-app purchase system. Digital goods and subscriptions to digital content follow different rules, which we check early in scoping.
- Push notification overload. Too many messages lead customers to switch notifications off or delete the app. We set up segments and frequency limits from the start.
- No update plan. Apple and Google raise their technical requirements regularly, and Google Play requires apps to target a recent Android API level. An app with no maintenance plan can fall out of compliance within a year.
- Launching quietly. An app nobody knows about gets no installs. Promotion through email, SMS, website banners and order confirmations is part of the launch plan.
How to Choose an Ecommerce App Development Company
Choose an ecommerce app development company based on how well it understands your store platform and how it handles the app after launch, not only on its design portfolio. Ask these questions:
- Will the app use my store's checkout? It should, so taxes, shipping and discounts stay consistent and you avoid building a second payment flow.
- Who owns the code and the store listings? They should sit under your accounts from the first submission.
- How are updates handled? Ask for a plan covering OS releases, store policy changes and new features.
- Do they understand ecommerce marketing? Push campaigns, deep links from email and attribution matter as much as screens.
- Will they say if you do not need an app? A good partner will steer you to a better mobile site when that is the right move.
Why Choose 95 Solutions as Your Ecommerce Mobile App Development Company
- Ecommerce operators, not only developers. Mustafa has led marketing for a Florida-based resort wear brand since 2016, so the app is planned around repeat purchases, drops and retention campaigns.
- We work with store data every week. Our team co-builds AM Jarvis, a SaaS suite for Shopify and WooCommerce stores, so we know how these platforms store products, variants and customers.
- You own everything. Code, design files, developer accounts and store listings are yours from the start.
- Fixed prices and overlapping hours. Builds are priced against a written scope, contracts are in USD from our US LLC, and our remote team works hours that cover the US business day and UK business hours.
Who Our Ecommerce App Development Services Are For
A good fit
- Shopify and WooCommerce brands with a loyal base of repeat customers.
- Fashion, beauty, food and consumables brands that run regular drops, restocks or member offers.
- Retailers with physical stores that want app features such as pickup, store locator and loyalty.
- Brands that tried an app builder and outgrew its templates or monthly costs.
Probably not a fit
- New stores still finding product-market fit. Put the budget into the website and marketing first.
- Stores selling high-value items bought once every few years.
- Brands without the capacity to promote the app and send regular push campaigns.
Related Ecommerce and App Services
An app works best on top of a solid store, so see our B2C ecommerce development service if your website needs work first. After launch, app store optimization helps customers find the app in search, and our app maintenance and support plans keep it current with every iOS and Android release. For budgeting across app types, read our guide to app development cost.