How much does an MVP cost in 2026? Hours, rates and hidden costs

Showing the maths for all three scopes is what makes this useful. The jump from 160-240 hours for a single-flow web MVP to 700-1,050 once iOS and Android join really shows why the second platform is the first thing to cut. The sanity check of dividing a quote by the rate and asking whether the resulting hours make sense is a keeper too — it turns a vague price into something you can actually argue with. The costs outside the build quote landed for me as well: the 12-tester, 14-day closed test for new Google Play accounts is the kind of calendar cost that catches first-time founders off guard, even though the fee itself is only $25. A good reminder that the budget has to survive launch, not just reach it.