How much does app maintenance cost per year?
Use this formula: yearly cost = maintenance work + running costs + store fees.
Maintenance work is the developer time to keep the app current, secure and accepted by the stores. Plan on 15–20% of the build cost a year. That’s a planning allowance, not a quote. The real number depends on the code, the number of platforms and how fast you need issues fixed.
Running costs are the monthly bills for hosting, AI and other services. Store fees are A$144.99 a year for Apple, plus a one-off US$25 for Google Play.
| Build cost | Maintenance work (15–20%) | Running costs a year | Store fees | Yearly total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $40,000 (simple app) | $6,000 – $8,000 | $600 – $1,800 ($50 – $150 a month) | ≈ $132 | ≈ $6,732 – $9,932 |
| $80,000 (logins, payments, an AI feature) | $12,000 – $16,000 | $2,400 – $7,200 ($200 – $600 a month) | ≈ $132 | ≈ $14,532 – $23,332 |
| $150,000 (marketplace or heavy AI) | $22,500 – $30,000 | $6,000 – $18,000 ($500 – $1,500 a month) | ≈ $132 | ≈ $28,632 – $48,132 |
An older or inherited app usually costs more. An audit may find one-off catch-up work to do before normal maintenance starts. Our guide to taking over an app covers the audit.
New features are not maintenance. Quote them separately. Our app development cost guide covers build pricing.
What the maintenance budget pays for
| Work | How often | What triggers it |
|---|---|---|
| iOS and Android compatibility | Yearly, plus beta testing from June | New iOS each September, new Android each year |
| Store rule updates | Yearly | Apple’s Xcode minimum in April, Google’s target API in August |
| Framework upgrades | 2–3 times a year | New Expo and React Native releases |
| Security and package updates | Monthly checks, urgent when needed | Published vulnerabilities in your packages |
| Backend runtime and provider changes | As announced | AWS runtime deprecations, AI model retirements, API changes |
| Bug fixes and support | Ongoing | Crash reports, alarms and user emails |
What are the monthly running costs?
Serverless services charge per request and have free tiers. So the bill tracks your users, data and AI calls, not a fixed server size.
| Category | Example service | Current pricing (USD) |
|---|---|---|
| Backend functions | AWS Lambda | 1M requests and 400,000 GB-seconds free each month. Then US$0.20 per million requests (AWS) |
| Database | Amazon DynamoDB on-demand | US$0.625 per million write units, US$0.125 per million read units, 25 GB storage free (AWS) |
| Search server | Amazon OpenSearch, one t3.small node | US$0.036 an hour, about US$26 a month, running all the time |
| Firebase backend | Firestore on the free Spark plan | 50,000 reads and 20,000 writes a day free. Upgrade to the Blaze plan to go past that (Firebase) |
| App builds | Expo EAS | Free: 15 iOS and 15 Android builds a month. Starter US$19 a month plus usage. Production US$199 a month plus usage (Expo) |
| In-app subscriptions | RevenueCat | Free up to US$2,500 monthly tracked revenue, then 1% of tracked revenue (RevenueCat) |
| AI models | Anthropic, OpenAI, Google | Per million tokens. Claude Haiku 4.5 is US$1 in and US$5 out. Claude Sonnet 4.6 is US$3 in and US$15 out (Anthropic) |
| Crash reporting | Sentry or Firebase Crashlytics | Sentry Team US$26 a month billed yearly. Crashlytics is free |
Worked example: a serverless backend
Take an app making 3 million backend requests a month. Each runs for 0.3 seconds at 512 MB on x86.
That’s 3M × 0.5 GB × 0.3 s = 450,000 GB-seconds. Take off the 400,000 free and 50,000 are left, which is about US$0.83. The 2 million paid requests add US$0.40. Lambda costs about US$1.23 for the month.
Add 5 million strongly consistent reads and 1 million writes on DynamoDB, for items under 4 KB and 1 KB. That’s 5 × US$0.125 + 1 × US$0.625 = US$1.25.
This covers only Lambda and database requests. Storage, logs, backups, the API layer and bandwidth are extra. Always-on servers, AI tokens and paid plan tiers usually add more than requests do.
Worked example: an AI chat feature
Say each chat message sends about 1,500 tokens and gets 400 back. These are round numbers for illustration.
On Claude Haiku 4.5 that’s (1,500 × US$1 + 400 × US$5) ÷ 1,000,000 = US$0.0035 a message. 10,000 messages cost US$35.
On Claude Sonnet 4.6 the same 10,000 messages cost US$105. That’s three times more for the same traffic. Prompt length, caching and how often you call the model matter too. Our AI app cost guide goes deeper.
How does Pantry Pic run for under A$100 a month?
Pantry Pic is our own iOS and Android app. It turns photos of food and recipes into recipes using AI. It costs under A$100 a month to run, across AWS, AI and everything else. Here’s why, from its code.
- No app servers to rent. Lambda functions on Node.js 22, an AppSync GraphQL API and DynamoDB tables on pay-per-request billing.
- One always-on server, kept small. Recipe search runs on a single t3.small OpenSearch node with 10 GB of storage. That’s about US$27 a month with storage, and it’s the biggest fixed AWS cost.
- Photos are shrunk on the phone. Images are resized and compressed before upload, so the AI never gets a full-size original.
- Each AI feature has its own model. Six features, from recipe generation to chat, are routed separately. Chat runs on GPT-4o mini, one of the cheapest models we use.
- Models switch without an app release. A setting in AWS can move any feature to another OpenAI, Anthropic or Google model. A fallback must use a different provider, which cuts reliance on any one of them.
- Every AI call logs its cost. Token counts and an estimated cost are saved per call, using vendor prices with the date each was checked. We can see which feature costs what.
- Static assets go through a CDN. CloudFront serves them from its cheapest price class, with compression on.
Store fees, commission and GST
| Cost | Amount | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Apple Developer Program | US$99 a year, charged in local currency. A$144.99 in Australia | Apple |
| Google Play developer account | US$25, once | |
| Apple commission, standard | 30%. Subscriptions drop to 15% after a subscriber’s first year of paid service | Apple |
| Apple Small Business Program | 15% for enrolled developers under US$1M in proceeds, counting associated accounts. Back to 30% on sales after you pass US$1M in a year | Apple |
| Google Play, users in Australia | From 30 September 2026: 10% on the first US$1M a year and on subscriptions, plus a 5% fee if you use Google Play Billing |
Google’s Australian rates changed with its new billing choice rules. Above US$1M, one-off in-app purchases cost 20% for new installs and 25% for existing installs, plus the billing fee. Google’s fee table has the full list.
Why the Apple fee shows A$144.99, not A$149
Apple sets the fee at US$99 a year “in local currency where available”. Prices may vary by region, and the local price shows during enrolment.
The Apple Developer app on the Australian App Store lists membership at A$144.99, including GST. You may see older guides quote about A$149. Use the price shown when you enrol.
Don’t let it lapse. When membership expires, the app can’t be downloaded and you can’t ship updates.
GST on app sales in Australia
It depends on where the developer is based, and on the store. Australian developers are not covered by the overseas rules.
- Overseas developers: Apple and Google charge and pay the 10% GST on sales to Australians made through their billing.
- Australian developers on Google Play: you work out, charge and pay GST yourself. If you aren’t registered, Google may add 10% GST to its service fee. The usual registration threshold is $75,000 of GST turnover.
- Australian developers on the App Store: Apple Pty Ltd acts as your agent under a section 153-50 arrangement. Apple issues tax invoices to customers in its own name and sends you a recipient-created tax invoice.
- Apple’s paid apps terms require an Australian developer to have an ABN and be registered for GST, whatever the turnover (Exhibit C).
This is the rule, not tax advice. Ask your accountant how it fits your business before you turn on paid features.
The yearly changes you can’t skip
Apple and Google raise their requirements every year. Your app can work perfectly and still be blocked from updates. These are the rules in force in October 2026.
| Rule | Requirement | Since | If you miss it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apple build tools | Xcode 26 and the iOS 26 SDK or later | 28 April 2026 | App Store Connect rejects the upload (Apple) |
| Apple minimum iOS | Apps must target iOS 13 or later | 9 September 2026 | Uploads are rejected |
| Google Play, new apps and updates | Target Android 16 (API level 36) | 31 August 2026 | You can’t submit. Extensions to 1 November 2026 can be requested (Google) |
| Google Play, existing apps | Target Android 15 (API level 35) | 31 August 2026 | Hidden from new users on phones running a newer Android version |
| Google Play, 16 KB memory pages | Apps targeting Android 15+ must support 16 KB page sizes on 64-bit devices | 1 February 2027 | You can’t release updates (Android) |
| AWS Lambda runtimes | A supported runtime. Node.js 20 was deprecated | 30 April 2026 | No security patches. Function updates are blocked from 31 August 2027 (AWS) |
There’s no rule that you must release every year. But Apple has raised its Xcode minimum most years, usually in late April. Google moves its target API level each August. Plan your update round around those dates, not just the September iOS launch.
Frameworks move too. Expo shipped a major SDK about three times a year for years, and is now trialling faster releases (Expo). Each SDK targets a newer React Native. Skip a few and the catch-up gets bigger, because breaking changes stack up.
AI providers retire models as well. OpenAI announced on 14 October 2026 that GPT-4o and GPT-4o mini shut down on 14 January 2027 (OpenAI).
Security, dependencies and monitoring
Apps depend on open source packages. Some get security fixes, and some stop being supported. Login, payment and analytics providers also retire old APIs.
The ASD’s Essential Eight recommends patching internet-facing services within 48 hours of a patch’s release when a flaw is critical or a working exploit exists. It’s guidance, not a law, but it’s a sensible bar for your backend.
The Privacy Act covers most businesses with turnover over $3 million, and some smaller ones, such as health services. If a breach is likely to cause serious harm and you can’t fix it in time, the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme requires you to notify the OAIC and the people affected as soon as practicable. Unpatched apps make that more likely.
What a yearly update round includes
- Update Xcode, the iOS SDK and the Android target API level to meet the current rules.
- Upgrade the framework, such as Expo and React Native, one version at a time.
- Update packages and fix anything a security audit flags.
- Move the backend to a supported runtime and rotate any keys that are due.
- Test on the newest iOS and Android, plus the oldest versions you support.
- Submit to both stores and watch crash reports for a week after release.
Monitoring tools and what they cost
| Tool | What it watches | Price (USD) |
|---|---|---|
| Firebase Crashlytics | App crashes | Free |
| Sentry | Crashes and errors, app and backend | Free for 5,000 errors a month, one user. Team US$26 a month billed yearly (Sentry) |
| Amazon CloudWatch | Backend logs and alarms | 10 standard alarm metrics free, then US$0.10 per alarm metric a month |
| Google Play Console vitals | Crash and ANR rates on Android | Free |
Google watches stability too. If the user-perceived crash rate goes over 1.09%, or the ANR (app not responding) rate over 0.47%, Play may reduce your app’s visibility and show a warning on the listing.
Retainer or pay as you go?
A retainer suits apps with active users and a roadmap. Pay as you go suits stable apps that rarely change. Scope, included hours and response times decide the price, so compare quotes on those.
| Option | How it works | Suits | Example on an $80k app |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pay as you go | Quoted per job, when you need it | Stable apps with few changes | One update round a year, plus fixes as needed |
| Monthly retainer | A set number of hours each month for updates, fixes and small features | Apps with active users and a roadmap | $12,000 – $16,000 ÷ 12 = $1,000 – $1,333 a month, as a monthly equivalent of the allowance |
| Yearly update | One planned round of store and dependency updates | Simple apps that rarely change | Booked ahead of Apple’s April and Google’s August deadlines |
We work Sydney business hours, AEST or AEDT, and handle urgent production issues as they come up. See our app maintenance and support service.
What to ask before you sign
- How many hours are included, and what happens to unused ones?
- How fast do you respond to an outage, and how fast do you aim to fix it?
- Is the backend, hosting and AI spend covered, or only the app?
- Who holds the Apple, Google and AWS accounts?
- How are bugs in the original build handled, versus new work?
What happens if you stop maintaining an app?
It usually keeps working for a while. Here’s what can happen after that.
- You can’t ship a quick fix. Builds made with old tools are rejected, so the first urgent fix includes all the catch-up work.
- Android users stop finding it. Apps that target an old API level are hidden from new users on newer Android phones.
- Features break. A payment, login or AI provider retires an old API, or a new iOS changes a permission. Crash rates rise and ratings can drop.
- Apple can remove it. Apps not updated in three years with almost no downloads get a notice and 90 days to update. Apps that crash on launch are removed straight away.
- Security risk grows. Old packages with known flaws stay in your app and your backend.
Removed apps still work for people who already installed them. But new downloads stop until an update is approved, so you lose new customers in the meantime.
If your developer has gone quiet, read our guide to taking over an app from another developer.
How to keep maintenance costs down
- Own your accounts. Put the Apple, Google, AWS and domain accounts in your company’s name. Give your developer access, not ownership.
- Choose common tools. A popular stack such as React Native and Expo is easier to hand over and has more people who can maintain it.
- Go serverless where it fits. Pay per request instead of for servers that sit idle.
- Log AI costs per feature. Then move each feature to the cheapest model that’s accurate enough.
- Update little and often. Upgrade effort grows with each skipped version.
- Ask for crash reporting and alarms at launch, not after the first outage.
Want a maintenance estimate for your app? Use our free estimate form.
Common questions
How much does it cost to maintain an app per month?
Divide 15–20% of the build cost by 12, then add running costs. For an $80,000 app that’s about $1,000–$1,333 a month of work, plus hosting and services. Running costs depend on usage. Our AI app Pantry Pic runs for under A$100 a month. Prices are AUD ex GST.
Is maintenance included in the cost of building an app?
Usually only for a short support period. We include three months of free support after launch, on top of your rights under the Australian Consumer Law. After that, maintenance is a retainer or quoted per job.
Do I have to update my app every year?
There is no rule that says you must release every year. But Apple raises its minimum Xcode version most years and Google raises its target API level each August. If you skip a year, your next urgent fix has to include that catch-up work first.
Does app maintenance include new features?
No. Maintenance keeps the app working, secure and accepted by the stores. New features are quoted separately. A retainer can cover both if you agree to use some of its hours on small features.
Who should own the Apple and Google developer accounts?
Your business should. A company can enrol as an organisation, which needs a D-U-N-S number for Apple. Then add your developer as a team member. If you change developers, you keep the app, its reviews and its customers.
Do I pay GST on App Store and Google Play sales?
It depends on the store. On Google Play, an Australian developer works out and pays their own GST. On the App Store, Apple acts as your agent, issues recipient-created tax invoices and requires an ABN and GST registration. Check your situation with an accountant.
Does app maintenance include hosting?
Usually not. Hosting, AI and other services are billed by the providers, often in US dollars, and you pay them directly or through your developer. Maintenance is the developer time on top. Ask any quote to list the two separately.
Can you maintain an app another developer built?
Yes. We have taken over apps from other developers. We start with a code audit so we know what we are taking on, then quote the catch-up work and ongoing support.
Sources
- Apple: Upcoming requirements (Xcode 26 from 28 April 2026)
- Android Developers: Target API level requirements for Google Play
- Apple Developer app on the Australian App Store (A$144.99 membership)
- Apple: Program enrolment and fees
- Apple: App Store Small Business Program
- Google Play: Australian fee changes from 30 September 2026
- Google Play: Australian GST for developers
- Apple: Exhibits to Schedules 2 and 3 (Australian GST terms)
- Apple: App Store Improvements (outdated app removal)
- AWS: Lambda runtimes and deprecation dates
- OpenAI: API deprecations
- Expo: EAS pricing