it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be… I t...
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it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be… I thought the cost would be much higher because of the expensive model I'm using (projecting $3K) this is probably the most expensive app I've ever launched because of the cost, usually it is only a few hundred dollars because of the tools that I use really good lesson since I plan on launching a few more AI products in the future and need to account for the testing period where I'm eating all of that cost 🥲 #softwaredeveloper #coding #appdesign

Feb 03, 2026 4,219
@chris.raroque
221 words 90% confidence
This is how much it cost me to launch my app. Let's break it down. This was over a period of two months. That's how long it took me to go from idea to live. I pay $200 a month for Cloud Code, so $400 in total. Totally worth it. It's what wrote all the code for my app. For Cursor, I pay about $40 a month, so $80 in total. I'm specifically paying for their bug bot feature to review my code and look for issues. As a solo developer who can't review his own code, this is totally worth it, even if I'm already paying for Cloud Code. Now here's the expensive one. Perplexity Sonar was $900. This is the AI model I'm using. Every time someone types something in my app, it uses this AI provider, which cost me half a cent. Doesn't sound like much until 1,000 people try your beta, and it added up really fast. Superbase was $25 a month, so $50 in total. The domain was $12, and the Apple developer account is $100 a year. So in total, it was $1,542 to get my app live. The good news is we're finally making revenue and slowly recouping the costs. I'm building this app in public, so follow along to see how it goes.

Summary

Chris Raroque details the costs involved in launching his app, totaling $1,542. He emphasizes the importance of tools like Cloud Code and Cursor for development and testing.

Key Points

  1. Total cost to launch the app was $1,542 over two months.
  2. Cloud Code cost $400 for two months, essential for coding.
  3. Cursor's bug bot feature cost $80, crucial for code review.
  4. Perplexity Sonar was the most expensive at $900 for AI usage.
  5. Superbase and domain costs added $62 to the total.
  6. Apple developer account cost $100 annually.
  7. Revenue is starting to come in, helping to recoup costs.

Tags

softwaredeveloper coding appdesign ai-products

Repurpose Ideas

  • LinkedIn post: breakdown of app launch costs.
  • Tweet: key tools for solo app developers.
  • Checklist: essential expenses for launching an app.

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