How much does an MVP cost in the UK?

Between £15,000 and £40,000 excluding VAT for a first version built well enough that real users and investors take it seriously, typically 8 to 12 weeks. Market guides quote £5,000 to £30,000, and the bottom of that range buys a prototype rather than a product.

How long does an MVP take?

Usually 8 to 12 weeks. What sets the timeline is scope, and the shorter the feature list, the sooner you learn something you can act on.

Will investors take an MVP seriously?

Yes, when it is built properly. A live product with real usage data beats a deck every time.

Then the foundations matter. We build MVPs on the same stack as our full products, so scaling is a roadmap conversation rather than a rebuild.

Should I use no-code instead?

Sometimes, and we will say so if that is the answer. No-code is a good way to test whether anyone wants the thing at all. It runs out of road once you need real integrations, real data volumes or an app store presence, and rebuilding from it costs more than starting properly would have.

MVP Development Agency UK

The point of the MVP is to find out whether the idea works with the least amount of money possible. That means fewer features than you have in mind, built well enough that real users and real investors take it seriously.

We have been building first versions since 2011, and the best advice we ever gave a founder was to spend £100,000 less than they had planned.

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What we mean by minimum

Most MVP briefs contain three products. The work is choosing the one that tests the riskiest assumption, shipping it, and letting evidence decide the rest.

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You get a working product in users’ hands, data you can put in front of investors, or prove to the business it works, and a codebase that survives success rather than needing a rewrite the moment traction arrives. No-code tools can get you a demo. They rarely get you a business, and we will tell you plainly which side of that line your idea sits on.

What an MVP build includes

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01

Discovery and scope: the assumption to test, the features that test it, and a firm line under everything that waits

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02

Design that looks credible on day one, because users judge in seconds and investors are users too

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03

The build itself, on iOS, Android or the web, on foundations that scale

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04

Launch support, analytics wired in from the start, and a plan for the version after this one

For founders, and for established businesses

About half our MVP work is startups. The other half is established companies testing a new product line without betting the company on it. The discipline is the same either way: build the smallest thing that answers the question, and get it in front of real users quickly.

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Check out discovery process

What it costs

An MVP runs £15,000 to £40,000 excluding VAT, typically 8 to 12 weeks. You will see lower numbers quoted elsewhere, and they usually describe a demo rather than a product you can build a business on. Full ranges are on the cost guide.

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See how much would it cost

Projects that speak for themselves

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Cinetopia Connect

A hub of activity around filmmaking and filmgoing based in Edinburgh

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Swigable

Water bottle that tracks your hydration automatically, so you stay hydrated

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Aidaptus

Bluetooth connected injectors helping users track usage and dosage

See more projects

Common questions

Contact us

If you're ready to build a mobile app that gets opened, used, and remembered—we're ready to help.

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