Café, bakery, takeaway
Menu, loyalty stamps, order-ahead, a push when the bread is out.
Cambridge, UK · App development for small businesses
Your own business app, live on the App Store in two to four weeks.
Built in Cambridge by one developer who has already shipped an app you can download right now. You get a fixed written quote before any work starts, you own the code, and you choose a one-off payment or a monthly care plan.
- Apps from £1,500
- App Store submission included
- You own the code
- Taking new projects now
Try before you buy
Download what I built. It is free.
Most developers show you screenshots. I would rather you put a finished app on your own phone and judge for yourself.
Live on the App Store
Scan with your phone, or tap on iPhone.
Draw & Learn to Talk with Bob
A children's drawing app: kids trace, colour and learn first words, letters and numbers while Bob the robot says every word out loud in 18 languages. I designed it, built it, got it through Apple's strict Kids-category review first time, and published it. Everything you see in it, I can do for your business.
500+pictures
18languages
3releases
0ads or tracking
Scan with your phone, or tap on iPhone.
What I can build for you
Apps for the kind of business you actually run.
These are starting points, not a menu. Tell me what is slow or missing in your day and we work out what the app should do.
Salon, barber, beauty
Online bookings, reminders that cut no-shows, stylist profiles.
Gym, yoga, studio
Class timetable, bookings, memberships, waiting lists.
Trades and services
Quotes on site, photo job reports, invoices, customer sign-off.
Estate and lettings agents
Listings, viewing bookings, tenant requests, document uploads.
Nurseries, tutors, clubs
Parent updates, photos, homework, payments. Kids-safe by design.
Pubs, venues, events
What's on, table booking, tickets, a loyalty card that lives on the phone.
Clinics, dentists, therapists
Appointments, reminders, intake forms, aftercare instructions.
Shops and retail
Catalogue, click-and-collect, stock alerts, offers to regulars.
Charities, churches, societies
Membership, events, newsletters, donations in two taps.
Staff-only apps
Rotas, checklists, stock counts, incident reports. Replaces the WhatsApp group.
AI assistant for your business
Answers customer questions from your own documents, inside your app, 24 hours a day.
Already have an app that is broken, rejected by Apple, or abandoned by its developer? I take those on too, at a fixed fee after a free look.
Pricing
Honest starting prices. Final price agreed before we start.
These are the lowest realistic figures for each kind of app. Your written quote is based on exactly what your app needs, and it does not change unless you change the scope.
Starter
For a café, salon, club or trade that needs a simple presence on customers' phones.
from£1,500
Live in about 2 weeks
- iPhone app, up to 6 screens
- Menu, prices, opening hours, contact, map
- Loyalty card or booking link
- Your branding, icon and store screenshots
- App Store submission handled for you
Business
For bookings, orders, members or customer accounts. The app most small businesses actually need.
from£3,500
Live in 4 to 6 weeks
- iPhone app, up to 12 screens
- Customer accounts and sign-in
- Bookings, orders or memberships
- Push notifications to your customers
- Simple admin so you can update things yourself
- App Store submission handled for you
Custom & AI
For payments, integrations with the systems you already use, or AI features.
from£7,500
Timeline agreed with the quote
- Everything in Business
- Card payments and subscriptions
- Connects to your booking, stock or accounting software
- AI assistant trained on your own documents
- iPhone and Android together if you need both
Prices are in pounds sterling and are starting points. For comparison, UK agencies typically quote £10,000 to £25,000 for a simple app. I can charge less because you deal with one developer, with no office, no account managers and no outsourcing, and because I reuse solid, tested foundations instead of starting every app from zero.
Add-ons
- Android version +40%
- AI chat assistant +£1,000
- Card payments (Stripe) +£750
- Store listing: icon, screenshots, copy +£250
- Web app instead of App Store from £800
- Extra changes after launch £45 / hour
Two ways to pay
One-off and done, or one-off plus a care plan.
Either way the build price is the same and the code is yours. The difference is what happens after launch.
Option A
One-off payment, no monthly fees
You pay for the build, I hand everything over, and that is the end of it. Perfect if your app will not change much. When you do need something, you ask and pay by the hour.
- 50% deposit to start, 50% when Apple approves the app
- Nothing else to pay, ever, unless you ask for more work
- 30 days of free bug fixes after launch
- Changes later at £45 per hour, quoted first
Option B
One-off payment plus a care plan
Same build price, then a small monthly fee and I keep the app healthy: new iPhone updates, Apple's rule changes, bug fixes, and a bank of hours for changes. Rolling monthly, cancel with 30 days' notice.
- Same 50% deposit, 50% on approval
- Care plan starts the month after launch
- No contract, no lock-in, no minimum term
- Unused hours do not expire for 3 months
| Care plan | What is included | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Care£49 / month | iOS and App Store updates, security patches, bug fixes, 1 hour of changes a month, email support | Starter apps that rarely change |
| Care Plus£149 / month | Everything in Care, 4 hours of changes a month, content and menu updates, a short monthly report, priority replies | Business apps with regular updates |
| Care Pro£299 / month | Everything in Care Plus, 10 hours a month for new features, usage analytics, same-day response on problems | Apps your customers rely on daily |
- You own the code and the App Store listing from the day of final payment.
- Apple's own developer fee (£79 a year, paid to Apple) is the only cost not included.
- If the scope changes mid-build, the quote changes first, in writing, not the invoice.
How it works
From first chat to the App Store.
01
Free chat
Thirty minutes by phone, video or coffee in Cambridge. You describe the business, I ask the awkward questions. No obligation.
02
Fixed quote
Within two days you get a one-page plan: what the app does, screen by screen, the price and the date. Sign it and we start within a week.
03
Build, with you watching
A test version on your own phone within the first week, then updates every few days. You see it grow and steer it.
04
Launch and handover
I submit to Apple, deal with their review, and hand you the code, the accounts and a plain-English guide. Then care plan or goodbye, your call.
Questions
Things people ask before they email.
Who owns the app and the code?
You do, fully, once the final payment clears. Source code, design files, the App Store listing and any accounts are handed over in your name. If you ever want another developer to take it on, they can.
Do I need an Apple developer account?
Yes. Apple requires apps to be published under the account of the business that owns them, so I set one up with you on day one. It costs £79 a year, paid to Apple. Approval from Apple can take a few days for a sole trader and up to two weeks for a limited company, so we start that first while I build.
How long does Apple's review take?
Usually one to three days, occasionally a week. I prepare the submission to pass first time and handle any questions from Apple myself. I never promise a public launch date, because that last step belongs to Apple.
What about Android?
Every app can have an Android version, built natively in Kotlin, for 40% on top of the iPhone price. Most small businesses in the UK start with iPhone and add Android once the app is earning its keep.
Why are you so much cheaper than an agency?
One person does the design, the code, the testing and the release. There is no office, no project manager and no outsourcing to pay for. I also use modern AI tooling and reusable, tested foundations, so a Starter app takes days of real work rather than months of billable ones. The quality bar is the app you can download above.
What if I want changes after launch?
On the one-off option, email me and you get a quote, usually in hours at £45 an hour. On a care plan you have a bank of hours each month and just ask. Either way, nothing is done without you agreeing it first.
Can you fix an app someone else built?
Usually, yes. Send me what you have and I will take a free look. Rescue work is quoted as a fixed fee, and a port to a modern codebase is often cheaper than you fear.
Do you work outside Cambridge?
Yes. Everything can be done by video call and TestFlight, so location does not matter. Cambridge businesses get the coffee option.
Contact
Tell me about your app.
One email is enough: what the business is and what you want the app to do. You will get a reply from me, usually the same day, with a time for a free 30-minute chat.
hello@cambyte.co.ukRoberto Pires Almeida · Cambyte · Cambridge, UK