How Much Does it Cost to Develop a Trading App?

Hidden Costs Behind Trading App Development

Mobile-based trading is no longer fringe, and it’s reshaping global markets. The global stock-trading app market is estimated at USD 23.9 billion in 2025. Meanwhile, active user count has surged: as of 2024, 145 million people worldwide use stock-trading apps.

That means demand isn’t slowing down. More users, broader adoption, rising expectations. But delivering a trading experience that works from order execution to data feeds to compliance requires serious planning and investment.

Most miscalculations happen because teams overlook compliance steps, data-feed agreements, security work, and the development effort behind trading features. This breakdown helps you understand those cost drivers before you commit resources.

Global Surge in Trading-App Adoption and Its Impact on Development Costs

The adoption of trading apps has accelerated sharply over the past few years. Reports indicate that over 145 million people worldwide use stock-trading apps, and the overall market is projected to reach USD 23.9 billion in 2025. This growth reflects a clear shift toward mobile-first investing, driven by users who want quicker access to markets, lower entry barriers, and an interface that simplifies complex financial decisions.

Higher adoption has also raised expectations. Modern trading apps are expected to offer clean charting tools, fast order execution, integrated research content, flexible payment options, alerts, and strong account-management features. Meeting these expectations requires more development time, deeper technical planning, and additional third-party integrations.

As the market becomes more competitive, trading platforms must deliver more than basic buy/sell functionality. This increase in scope directly affects development cost, making it important to understand which features and systems influence overall investment.

Core Cost Drivers in Trading-App Development

The budget for a trading application depends on several technical and regulatory components. Each factor influences development time, complexity, and long-term maintenance.

1. Platform Choice (Native or Cross-Platform)

The choice between native and cross-platform development usually comes up early, often before features are fully defined.  While it’s easy to frame this as a speed-versus-performance decision, the bigger impact shows up later in engineering effort, testing cycles, and ongoing costs as the trading app scales.

Native development (iOS + Android)

With native development, iOS and Android apps are built separately using their respective platforms and tooling.  This approach demands more work upfront, but it gives teams tighter control over performance, which matters in trading environments.

Common feature related factors that increase cost:

• Two distinct codebases maintained in parallel, each with its own build and release process

• QA and regression testing handled separately for iOS and Android, often on different timelines

• Smoother performance for real-time charts, live market data, and order execution flows

• Direct access to system level APIs, which simplifies security features and low-latency optimizations

In practice, native apps cost more to build and maintain, but they’re more reliable when the app is under heavy load or market activity spikes.

Cross-platform development (React Native or Flutter)

Cross-platform frameworks reduce duplication by allowing most of the app logic to be shared across platforms.  This can be a strong advantage during early development, especially when timelines and budgets are tight.

Common feature-related factors that increase cost:

• A largely shared codebase for iOS and Android, which shortens development cycles

• Faster rollout of features and updates across both platforms

• Lower initial engineering and maintenance costs compared to fully native builds

• Custom native modules still required for advanced charting, biometric authentication, and device-level security

As the product matures, teams often discover that performance tuning and native extensions add complexity, but for many trading apps, the early cost savings still make cross-platform development a viable option.

2. Depth of trading features and order handling

Costs rise as trading capabilities expand. Simple buy/sell flows are straightforward, while advanced tools such as chart modules, multiple order types, watchlists, price alerts, or portfolio calculations require additional backend logic, UI states, and edge-case handling.

Common feature sets that increase cost:

• Multiple order types (market, limit, stop, bracket orders)
• Candlestick & technical charts (with 20+ indicators)
• Live P&L calculations
• Watchlists & alerts
• Portfolio analytics

3. UI/UX for Data-Heavy Screens

Trading screens contain dense data. Designing layouts for charts, order panels, positions, and analysis tools takes more time than regular app interfaces. Every data point must be placed carefully to avoid confusion, which increases design and frontend development hours.

4. Security and User Protection Layers

Trading apps store financial data and handle sensitive transactions. Features such as multi-factor authentication, encrypted data storage, secure session management, and fraud-detection logic raise both development effort and testing requirements.

5. Compliance and Regulatory Requirements

Launching a trading app involves KYC verification, AML checks, audit logs, and region-specific rules (such as SEBI, SEC, or FCA requirements). These compliance steps require dedicated flows, external checks, and sometimes legal review, adding to the overall cost.

6. Third-Party APIs and External Services

Trading apps rely heavily on external data feeds, brokerage APIs, identity verification services, and payment systems. Implementing these connections through structured API integration solutions adds engineering effort, especially when handling rate limits, error states, and authentication flows. Licensing fees from market-data providers also contribute to long-term cost.

7. Backend Architecture and Load Management

Trading periods create high spikes in activity, and the backend must handle frequent price updates, order submissions, user activity, and notifications without delays. Applying load testing practices during development helps identify system limits early, which increases the amount of infrastructure planning and engineering effort needed to support these workloads.

8. Testing and Quality Checks

Testing a trading app takes longer due to the number of edge cases involved. Order execution, chart accuracy, and pricing behavior must work under different network conditions and device types. Errors in these areas can cause financial losses, so testing is more extensive than standard mobile apps.

Time Taken for Development

The cost it takes to develop your trading app is directly proportional to the time it takes and the rate of your developer, i.e. total cost = time taken (in hours) x hourly rate of your developers’ salaries.

This is why it is important to know and plan a timeline for your app’s development cycle.

1. Basic Trading App:

• Estimated Development Time: 3 to 6 months

• Total Hours: Approximately 480 to 960 hours

2. Intermediate Trading App:

• Estimated Development Time: 6 to 12 months

• Total Hours: Approximately 960 to 1920 hours

3. Advanced Trading App:

• Estimated Development Time: 12 to 16 months or more

• Total Hours: Approximately 1920 hours or more

Types of Trading Apps and Their Costs

Brokerage Apps

Cost estimate: $50,000 to $500,000

• These apps are offered by traditional brokerage firms and allow users to trade a wide range of financial instruments, including stocks, options, ETFs, and mutual funds.

• They provide access to market data, research tools, and account management features. Examples include Robinhood, TD Ameritrade's thinkorswim, E*TRADE's mobile app, and Charles Schwab's StreetSmart Mobile.

• Basic brokerage apps with essential features can cost between $50,000 to $200,000.

• More advanced apps with additional features like real-time market data, advanced charting, and payment integration may range from $200,000 to $500,000 or more.

Robo-Advisors

Cost estimate: $50,000 to $200,000

• Robo-advisor apps automate the investment process using algorithms and software to create and manage investment portfolios based on user preferences and risk tolerance.

• They typically offer diversified portfolios of ETFs and use rebalancing techniques to maintain portfolio allocations. Popular robo-advisor apps include Betterment, Wealthfront, and SoFi Invest.

• Developing a robo-advisor app typically costs between $50,000 to $200,000, considering the complexity of implementing automation, investment algorithms, and portfolio management features.

Cryptocurrency Exchanges

Cost estimate: $100,000 to $1,000,000

• These apps facilitate the buying, selling, and trading of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin.

• They provide users with access to a wide range of digital assets and trading pairs, as well as features like real-time market data, price charts, and wallet management.

Examples include Coinbase, Binance, and Kraken.

• Building a cryptocurrency exchange app is more complex and may cost anywhere from $100,000 to $1,000,000 or more.

• Costs can vary significantly based on factors such as security requirements, trading functionalities, regulatory compliance, and the number of supported cryptocurrencies.

Social Trading Platforms

Cost estimate: $50,000 to $300,000

• Social trading apps allow users to connect with other investors, share trading ideas, and even automatically copy the trades of successful traders.

• They combine elements of social networking with investment features, enabling users to learn from and collaborate with peers. Popular social trading platforms include eToro, ZuluTrade, and TradeUP.

• The development cost for social trading platforms can range from $50,000 to $300,000 or more, depending on features such as social networking capabilities, copy trading functionality, and user engagement tools.

Fractional Share Investing Apps

Cost estimate: $50,000 to $200,000

• These apps enable users to invest in partial shares of stocks and ETFs, making it easier for individuals with limited capital to diversify their portfolios.

• Fractional share investing apps often offer low or no minimum investment requirements and may include features like automatic dividend reinvestment.

Examples include Robinhood, M1 Finance, and Public.

• Developing fractional share investing apps may cost between $50,000 to $200,000, considering features like fractional share trading, portfolio management, and user-friendly interfaces.

• Costs may vary based on additional features such as automatic dividend reinvestment and social sharing functionalities.

How Much Would It Cost to Build an App Like Robinhood, eToro, or Coinbase?

Trading apps differ widely in complexity depending on their business model. A stock brokerage app, a social-trading platform, and a crypto exchange each require different architecture, compliance layers, and integrations. Below is a breakdown of what it takes to build apps similar to Robinhood, eToro, and Coinbase.

1. How Much Would It Cost to Develop a Trading App Like Robinhood?

• A trading app like Robinhood requires all the essential features, such as placing buy and sell orders, accessing stock market price updates, viewing company information, and managing user portfolios.

• Beyond the basics, Robinhood includes more advanced functionality like commission-free trading, fractional share investing, payment flows, and security layers to protect sensitive financial activity.

• The platform also depends heavily on clean UI/UX. Chart screens, watchlists, search functionality, and order panels need precise design to avoid user errors. This increases the design and frontend workload substantially.

• A project of this scale requires multiple specialized development teams, often 10 to 50+ developers working on mobile, backend, security, QA, and compliance. Coordinating these teams adds overhead, though outsourcing to a development partner can help reduce in-house costs.

• Robinhood also relies on several third-party systems. Stock-market data providers, payment services, KYC verification tools, and alerting systems each come with integration time and recurring usage fees.

• In addition, infrastructure costs need to be considered. Trading spikes during market hours require more server capacity, monitoring tools, and load management. Outsourcing can offset some of these cost burdens.

• Considering developer expenses, integrations, and infrastructure, building a Robinhood-style trading app typically costs $500,000 to $1,500,000, depending on the exact scope and whether development is handled in-house or outsourced.

2. How Much Would It Cost to Develop a Social-Trading App Like eToro?

• An app like eToro has all the standard trading features like placing orders, tracking markets, and managing positions It also introduces an additional social layer, which significantly increases complexity.

• Along with basic market tools, eToro requires features such as user profiles, performance metrics, strategy history, discussion feeds, and the ability to follow other traders. The most advanced feature is copy-trading, which mirrors another trader’s actions automatically.

• Copy trading requires careful engineering. It must replicate trades across thousands of accounts, handle partial executions, manage failed orders, and properly adjust allocations. This adds substantial backend logic and testing.

• eToro-style apps also need engaging UI/UX for feeds, comments, leaderboards, and trader analytics dashboards. The social experience is heavily design-driven, which increases design and frontend development time.

• A project of this size typically needs a multi-team structure of backend engineers, frontend/mobile developers, compliance specialists, social-feed engineers, and QA. Depending on complexity, this can involve anywhere from 10 to 60+ developers.

• Third-party integrations are also required. Market data services, identity verification APIs, payment processors, and notification systems each contribute to the overall cost and ongoing fees.

• Infrastructure requirements also increase due to the social layer. Feeds, notifications, and copy-trading executions introduce more load on servers, especially when market conditions trigger high user activity.

• Taking all these factors into consideration, building a platform like eToro generally costs $300,000 to $1,000,000+, depending on how advanced the social, analytics, and copy-trading features need to be.

3. How Much Would It Cost to Develop a Crypto Trading App Like Coinbase?

• A crypto trading app like Coinbase has a much heavier technical footprint compared to equity trading apps. Along with standard trading features, it requires secure cryptocurrency wallet management, deep blockchain integration, and high-grade protection against fraud.

• A Coinbase-style application needs features such as viewing crypto pairs, executing trades, storing digital assets, handling withdrawals, tracking network fees, and monitoring confirmations on various blockchains.

• The app also requires wallet infrastructure. This usually includes hot, warm, and cold wallets, along with secure key-management processes. Designing this safely requires specialized cryptography and backend engineering.

• UI/UX requirements are also significant. Users need easy access to balances, charts, conversion tools, asset details, and deposit/withdrawal flows. Small UX mistakes in crypto can lead to irreversible financial losses, so more design time is needed.

• Development teams for crypto platforms tend to be larger. Blockchain engineers, backend developers, mobile developers, wallet specialists, and QA teams often work together. Projects of this type may involve 10 to 70+ developers depending on the number of supported tokens and features.

• Third-party integrations include blockchain analytics tools, identity verification APIs, market data sources, and custody providers. These services add both development effort and ongoing subscription or usage fees.

• Infrastructure costs also rise significantly. Crypto networks fluctuate in load, and exchange traffic spikes during market volatility. This demands more robust servers, monitoring systems, and uptime management.

• With these requirements in mind, building a Coinbase-like crypto trading platform typically costs $120,000 to $1,000,000+, depending on the number of supported assets, wallet structure, and advanced features such as staking or multi-chain compatibility.

Cost of Hiring a Development Team for a Trading App

• Salaries and rates of software developers vary according to their location but more importantly, the specific tech stack required, and the cost to develop an app in Python can be very different from an app developed in Node.js.

• The right language and framework to choose can be difficult and critical to the long-term maintenance and functioning of your trading app. Check out our comparison of Node.js and Python to learn the differences and which is better.

• When evaluating development costs, it’s important to distinguish between hiring an in-house team and engaging offshore developers. In-house staffing extends beyond base salaries; expenses such as benefits, insurance, onboarding, equipment, and paid leave typically increase total employment costs by 20% to 40%, depending on the region.

Below are typical annual, monthly, and hourly salary ranges for mobile and backend developers in key tech markets. These figures help estimate the cost whether you're hiring full-time employees, contractors, or outsourcing the development work, sourced from Indeed:

Mobile App Development Firms

One way to avoid the hassle of creating a production plan, organizing developers and assigning them tasks, acquiring key infrastructure such as office space and computers, and many more tasks such as overheads and getting licensing for third-party integrations.

This can all be forwarded to a software development agency to whom you can outsource the entire development of your trading app as well as long-term maintenance and updates.

A popular strategy in this method is outsourcing software development to a firm in India to take advantage of specialized skills and low costs.

Here are the rates of some of the most prominent mobile app development firms, with data sourced from Clutch:

• Code B offers its services at $25 to $49 per hour

• Algoworks charges their clients $25 to $49 an hour

• Goji Labs is priced at $100 to $149 an hour

• Mercury Development’s services cost $50 to $99 per hour

• Emzin Tech charges less than $25 an hour

If you are interested in finding out about top companies that you can hire to develop your applications, check out:

• 10 best Python development firms in India
• 10 best companies to outsource software development to India
• 9 best Node.js developers in India

Conclusion

In conclusion, the development of trading apps involves a thorough understanding of the several factors influencing cost, such as design, feature complexity, and time.

With the rising trend of mobile trading apps, the complexity and costs associated with development have increased significantly as competitors keep pushing the limits with new features.

While basic trading apps may require 3 to 6 months and cost between $50,000 and $200,000 to develop, advanced apps like Robinhood can take 12 to 16 months or more, with costs ranging from $500,000 to $1,500,000 or more.

Factors such as platform selection, features, UI/UX design, security measures, and regulatory compliance contribute to development costs.

Moreover, considerations such as developer salaries, third-party integrations, and outsourcing options impact the overall investment required. 

Whether developed in-house or outsourced to mobile app development firms, creating a trading app demands careful planning, strategic decision-making, and allocation of resources to deliver a high-quality product that meets user needs and industry standards.

Frequently Asked Questions