6 ms·

Ask HN: What mobile app did you make and how much are you making from it?

25 points by tagabek 14y ago

Be as specific or as general as you want.

melling 14y ago
To be honest, I haven't sold many copies of my Spanish language app. The last time I scrolled through a generic search on my iPad, I was down around 147th out of 150. Downloads picked up a bit once I released the iPad version in January. However, it's a crowded market and I've got a long way to go. A new version is coming out in the next 2-3 weeks. More words, more audio, another game, etc. https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/h4-spanish-lite/id388918463?mt=8 https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/h4-spanish-lite/id388918463?... Feel free to click the feedback link in the app and tell me what you think I need to focus on next. At the moment, I'm scratching my own itch, plus learning iOS at a deeper level now. It's also a thrill to see people from all over the world using my app.
- tagabek 14y ago
  That's awesome! Good luck with continuing to grow h4 Spanish Lite!
kevinyun 14y ago
We made Fitsby (http://fitsby.com http://fitsby.com) and aren't making a miniscule amount from it.
- tagabek 14y ago
  Cool! I saw an article on this a little bit ago. I'll definitely give it a go when the iOS version hits the App Store! How is the transition from Android to iOS?
taybenlor 14y ago
http://whether.io http://whether.io - Australian Store only. I've made about $100 in around 6 months. No advertising beyond initial push on social networks. Made about $40 in first week (all people I know, I assume). Now I get around 1 purchase each week.
- tagabek 14y ago
  I like how Dark Sky reminds you when rain is coming, but I like this app's simple layout better.
speedyapoc 14y ago
http://feelthemusi.com http://feelthemusi.com - allows you to stream audio from YouTube on iPhone About -$20 per month.
- tagabek 14y ago
  Wow, that's a really cool app. I really like how easy it is to use.
mansigandhi 14y ago
With two we make <$20 a month, with another we make >$300 a month. The more successful one is https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/soundbox-for-youtube/id444661413?mt=8&ls=1 https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/soundbox-for-youtube/id44466...
elango 14y ago
We make about 10$ a week. Kiddy TV - YouTube for Kids Kiddy TV comes packaged with 100’s of safe, fun, entertaining and educational YouTube videos for your kids. What's more, we arrange these into neat playlists so you don't have to take all that trouble. And on top of that, we keep adding new YouTube videos regularly so your kids can have more new fun everyday. https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/kiddy-tv-youtube-for-kids/id606149986?mt=8 https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/kiddy-tv-youtube-for-kids/id...
- ZenzerNet 14y ago
  Looks great, I've had the same idea. Probably not alone in that :) - But I'm a little curious - 25m+ likes on itunes, 7.2m+ likes on App Store, and still doesn't make more than $10 per week? How? I'd not hesitate to pay for it, except I'd need it in my (3y son's) native tongue and on Android.
  - elango 14y ago
    Thank you for giving me a surprise, but it was short lived. The likes that you see is not for our app, but for iTunes and AppStore. you should give this feedback to Apple.
    - ZenzerNet 14y ago
      Aahh... Yeah that was a bit silly both of me and Apple. :) But the idea is still sound, keep at it.
bjplink 14y ago
US Golf Courses (http://www.usgolfcoursesapp.com http://www.usgolfcoursesapp.com) was the first and most successful app I made back when I was starting with iOS development in the early spring of 2011. Over the course of it's lifetime it has averaged about two sales per day but out of the gate it did well after a mention on Mashable. I wrote a short article last year about how the app fared when I had both a paid and free version: http://www.brianjlink.com/sucks-not-working http://www.brianjlink.com/sucks-not-working I haven't updated US Golf Courses at all since April of 2011. The app is currently both out of date and has a broken weather feature but still seems to generate at least some minimal interest every day.
tommy_ 14y ago
A minimalist wallpaper app https://itunes.apple.com/app/id595197158 https://itunes.apple.com/app/id595197158 About $30 a month.
ceeK 14y ago
Firework Flare (https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/firework-flare/id513766705?ls=1&mt=8 https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/firework-flare/id513766705?l...). 'Twas my first iOS app. Took a lot longer than expected to make mostly due to inexperience, taking on iOS, Cocos2D, UIKit + xCode and a lot of design work done myself. I make nothing from it these days even though it has IAP available. It ranks favourably under "firework" and a bit less favourably under "fireworks". It gets about 2-12 downloads a day, maybe more during July 4th, new year etc. I've considered switching it to paid just to see what it would pull in but haven't as of yet.
jonasingvar 14y ago
I made an app called BHive Tasks. I did it originally for BlackBerry since I saw there was very little competition there. On a good day it would make $150/day ... and it's probably made 40K so far. http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/7327/ http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/7327/ I also tried to make the same app for Android, Windows Phone and BlackBerry 10... The Android app has done ok (a few thousand dollars so far). The windows phone app was a complete disaster. Even though it was at one point #3 in productivity, it was only getting a few sales a week (I decided to never developer for windows phone after that). https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bhivetasks.full&hl=en https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bhivetasks...
mstockton 14y ago
Group Texting Pro (https://itunes.apple.com/app/group-texting-pro/id377826384 https://itunes.apple.com/app/group-texting-pro/id377826384) I released it in June 2010 and have made over $10k after Apple's cut. My best month was just about $1k (Oct 2011) The download counts decreased significantly after the iOS6 / app discovery changes came out. The app is 6th when you search for 'Group Texting' -- I think not having the 'list view' search result really hurt the downloads. Nonetheless, I'm happy with it's limited success - it didn't take long to build and it's fun / rewarding to have happy users. I wrote a post about it here: (http://mattstockton.com/2012/12/05/why-my-crappy-looking-iphone-app-made-me-over-10k/ http://mattstockton.com/2012/12/05/why-my-crappy-looking-iph...) I have 5 other apps in the store. None of those make over $200 a year
freshfey 14y ago
I outsourced my app "Keep Calm - create a funny poster" (https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/keep-calm-create-funny-poster/id582348408?ls=1&mt=8 https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/keep-calm-create-funny-poste...) in the middle of December 2012 (coded 60% myself, 40% outsourced - for 500 USD) and make around 300-500 USD every month off it (no marketing at all). Gonna prep two other apps to release in April. If any of you need help with your app (revenue), I'd love to help. Also, tagabek you should put your email in your profile, so that people can contact you :)
- tagabek 14y ago
  Thanks! I just updated it. What apps are you prepping for April?
  - freshfey 14y ago
    A photo effects app and a caption creator :)
jamesjguthrie 14y ago
I built a couple of calculators for use in my Motorsport Engineering course at Uni. They are free to download and make about $20 every 3 months in advertising. I've just launched my first SAAS app which is a staff management product but it's yet to make a penny.
- tagabek 14y ago
  That's great! Do you feel like your apps can be used by future students that will be taking the same class later on? Something like this could have the college textbook effect and end up supporting the course for years to come. I would love to see a wave of apps that helped students accomplish course-related tasks easier.
  - jamesjguthrie 14y ago
    Yeah the class is taught every year and I've tried to let the new students know about the apps. Downloads are still increasing so hopefully it is the students using the apps.
askar 14y ago
PrayerTime iPhone app, https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/prayerti.me/id555243169?ls=1&mt=8 https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/prayerti.me/id555243169?ls=1... The idea is to help Muslims know their obligatory prayer times and also to help them keep track of their prayers. Learned iOS and built it all by myself including the design work. I launched it for $0.99, made $10 or so and then made it free and since then saw a significant increase in downloads but since it's a free app without any ads it's not making any money right now. I would love to hear from you on how to possibly monetize this without compromising the good intentions of making this app.
- tagabek 14y ago
  Could you find a way to license your app to certain religious organizations?
  - askar 14y ago
    Don't know what exactly that means? Do you mean let those orgs buy bulk license and distribute to their groups? Can you please explain a little bit?
    - tagabek 14y ago
      I am not experienced with licensing out pieces of software like this, but that is the general idea. Maybe another HNer could shed some light on this topic?
- askar 14y ago
  Anyone else have any suggestions? Would appreciate your input.

25 points by tagabek 14y ago

Be as specific or as general as you want.

To be honest, I haven't sold many copies of my Spanish language app. The last time I scrolled through a generic search on my iPad, I was down around 147th out of 150. Downloads picked up a bit once I released the iPad version in January. However, it's a crowded market and I've got a long way to go. A new version is coming out in the next 2-3 weeks. More words, more audio, another game, etc. https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/h4-spanish-lite/id388918463?mt=8 https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/h4-spanish-lite/id388918463?... Feel free to click the feedback link in the app and tell me what you think I need to focus on next. At the moment, I'm scratching my own itch, plus learning iOS at a deeper level now. It's also a thrill to see people from all over the world using my app.

tagabek 14y ago
That's awesome! Good luck with continuing to grow h4 Spanish Lite!

kevinyun 14y ago

We made Fitsby (http://fitsby.com http://fitsby.com) and aren't making a miniscule amount from it.

tagabek 14y ago
Cool! I saw an article on this a little bit ago. I'll definitely give it a go when the iOS version hits the App Store! How is the transition from Android to iOS?

taybenlor 14y ago

http://whether.io http://whether.io - Australian Store only. I've made about $100 in around 6 months. No advertising beyond initial push on social networks. Made about $40 in first week (all people I know, I assume). Now I get around 1 purchase each week.

tagabek 14y ago
I like how Dark Sky reminds you when rain is coming, but I like this app's simple layout better.

speedyapoc 14y ago

http://feelthemusi.com http://feelthemusi.com - allows you to stream audio from YouTube on iPhone About -$20 per month.

tagabek 14y ago
Wow, that's a really cool app. I really like how easy it is to use.

mansigandhi 14y ago

With two we make <$20 a month, with another we make >$300 a month. The more successful one is https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/soundbox-for-youtube/id444661413?mt=8&ls=1 https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/soundbox-for-youtube/id44466...

elango 14y ago

We make about 10$ a week. Kiddy TV - YouTube for Kids Kiddy TV comes packaged with 100’s of safe, fun, entertaining and educational YouTube videos for your kids. What's more, we arrange these into neat playlists so you don't have to take all that trouble. And on top of that, we keep adding new YouTube videos regularly so your kids can have more new fun everyday. https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/kiddy-tv-youtube-for-kids/id606149986?mt=8 https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/kiddy-tv-youtube-for-kids/id...

ZenzerNet 14y ago
Looks great, I've had the same idea. Probably not alone in that :) - But I'm a little curious - 25m+ likes on itunes, 7.2m+ likes on App Store, and still doesn't make more than $10 per week? How? I'd not hesitate to pay for it, except I'd need it in my (3y son's) native tongue and on Android.
- elango 14y ago
  Thank you for giving me a surprise, but it was short lived. The likes that you see is not for our app, but for iTunes and AppStore. you should give this feedback to Apple.
  - ZenzerNet 14y ago
    Aahh... Yeah that was a bit silly both of me and Apple. :) But the idea is still sound, keep at it.

bjplink 14y ago

US Golf Courses (http://www.usgolfcoursesapp.com http://www.usgolfcoursesapp.com) was the first and most successful app I made back when I was starting with iOS development in the early spring of 2011. Over the course of it's lifetime it has averaged about two sales per day but out of the gate it did well after a mention on Mashable. I wrote a short article last year about how the app fared when I had both a paid and free version: http://www.brianjlink.com/sucks-not-working http://www.brianjlink.com/sucks-not-working I haven't updated US Golf Courses at all since April of 2011. The app is currently both out of date and has a broken weather feature but still seems to generate at least some minimal interest every day.

tommy_ 14y ago

A minimalist wallpaper app https://itunes.apple.com/app/id595197158 https://itunes.apple.com/app/id595197158 About $30 a month.

ceeK 14y ago

Firework Flare (https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/firework-flare/id513766705?ls=1&mt=8 https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/firework-flare/id513766705?l...). 'Twas my first iOS app. Took a lot longer than expected to make mostly due to inexperience, taking on iOS, Cocos2D, UIKit + xCode and a lot of design work done myself. I make nothing from it these days even though it has IAP available. It ranks favourably under "firework" and a bit less favourably under "fireworks". It gets about 2-12 downloads a day, maybe more during July 4th, new year etc. I've considered switching it to paid just to see what it would pull in but haven't as of yet.

jonasingvar 14y ago

I made an app called BHive Tasks. I did it originally for BlackBerry since I saw there was very little competition there. On a good day it would make $150/day ... and it's probably made 40K so far. http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/7327/ http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/7327/ I also tried to make the same app for Android, Windows Phone and BlackBerry 10... The Android app has done ok (a few thousand dollars so far). The windows phone app was a complete disaster. Even though it was at one point #3 in productivity, it was only getting a few sales a week (I decided to never developer for windows phone after that). https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bhivetasks.full&hl=en https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bhivetasks...

mstockton 14y ago

Group Texting Pro (https://itunes.apple.com/app/group-texting-pro/id377826384 https://itunes.apple.com/app/group-texting-pro/id377826384) I released it in June 2010 and have made over $10k after Apple's cut. My best month was just about $1k (Oct 2011) The download counts decreased significantly after the iOS6 / app discovery changes came out. The app is 6th when you search for 'Group Texting' -- I think not having the 'list view' search result really hurt the downloads. Nonetheless, I'm happy with it's limited success - it didn't take long to build and it's fun / rewarding to have happy users. I wrote a post about it here: (http://mattstockton.com/2012/12/05/why-my-crappy-looking-iphone-app-made-me-over-10k/ http://mattstockton.com/2012/12/05/why-my-crappy-looking-iph...) I have 5 other apps in the store. None of those make over $200 a year

freshfey 14y ago

I outsourced my app "Keep Calm - create a funny poster" (https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/keep-calm-create-funny-poster/id582348408?ls=1&mt=8 https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/keep-calm-create-funny-poste...) in the middle of December 2012 (coded 60% myself, 40% outsourced - for 500 USD) and make around 300-500 USD every month off it (no marketing at all). Gonna prep two other apps to release in April. If any of you need help with your app (revenue), I'd love to help. Also, tagabek you should put your email in your profile, so that people can contact you :)

tagabek 14y ago
Thanks! I just updated it. What apps are you prepping for April?
- freshfey 14y ago
  A photo effects app and a caption creator :)

jamesjguthrie 14y ago

I built a couple of calculators for use in my Motorsport Engineering course at Uni. They are free to download and make about $20 every 3 months in advertising. I've just launched my first SAAS app which is a staff management product but it's yet to make a penny.

tagabek 14y ago
That's great! Do you feel like your apps can be used by future students that will be taking the same class later on? Something like this could have the college textbook effect and end up supporting the course for years to come. I would love to see a wave of apps that helped students accomplish course-related tasks easier.
- jamesjguthrie 14y ago
  Yeah the class is taught every year and I've tried to let the new students know about the apps. Downloads are still increasing so hopefully it is the students using the apps.

askar 14y ago

PrayerTime iPhone app, https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/prayerti.me/id555243169?ls=1&mt=8 https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/prayerti.me/id555243169?ls=1... The idea is to help Muslims know their obligatory prayer times and also to help them keep track of their prayers. Learned iOS and built it all by myself including the design work. I launched it for $0.99, made $10 or so and then made it free and since then saw a significant increase in downloads but since it's a free app without any ads it's not making any money right now. I would love to hear from you on how to possibly monetize this without compromising the good intentions of making this app.

tagabek 14y ago
Could you find a way to license your app to certain religious organizations?
- askar 14y ago
  Don't know what exactly that means? Do you mean let those orgs buy bulk license and distribute to their groups? Can you please explain a little bit?
  - tagabek 14y ago
    I am not experienced with licensing out pieces of software like this, but that is the general idea. Maybe another HNer could shed some light on this topic?
askar 14y ago
Anyone else have any suggestions? Would appreciate your input.