App development for iOS and Android
App development for iOS and Android, built for mid-sized companies
CIRO EFFORT develops apps for iOS and Android: for field sales and service, for your customers and for workflows that are faster on the move. We recommend native, cross-platform or a web app depending on what your use case needs. With AI in every step we are two to three times as fast as traditional development: first clickable version on real devices after two to three weeks, fixed price per project phase, source code and store accounts belong to you.
Across Germany for startups and mid-sized companies, with team members in Munich and Dortmund. Updated:
- faster and cheaper than traditional development
- 2–3×
- to the first clickable version on real devices
- 2–3 weeks
- from one team, including store release
- iOS & Android
What does a company need an app for?
An app pays off when it shortens a task people do every day on the move. Typical cases from mid-sized companies:
01
Field sales
Customer data, quotes and visit reports on the road, even offline. Synced with your CRM as soon as there is a connection.
02
Service and maintenance
Jobs, checklists, photos and signatures on site. The report is done when the technician leaves the yard.
03
Customer apps
Ordering, booking, tracking status, downloading documents. An app customers keep because it saves them work.
04
Employee apps
Shift plans, time tracking, knowledge and internal communication for teams without a desk.
05
Machines and devices
Connecting sensors, Bluetooth devices and machine controls: reading data, configuring devices, reporting faults.
06
AI in the app
Analysing photos, capturing speech, answering questions from your documents: wherever typing on a phone is tedious.
The AI advantage
App development: two to three times as fast as the traditional way
2–3×
less effort and time than traditional development
For apps this means: backend, sign-in and payments come from proven building blocks, and our test agents check every version on phone and desktop. The time goes into the features specific to your app.
Effort for a new feature
For example invoicing or time tracking in existing software. Index, traditional agency = 100.
- In-house team
- 120
- Traditional agency
- 100
- Offshore development
- 75
- CIRO EFFORT
- 35
Native, cross-platform or web app?
This decision shapes the rest of an app project. We make it with you in the first phase, based on these criteria:
| Native app | Cross-platform app | Web app (PWA) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Technology | Swift for iOS, Kotlin for Android | One codebase for both, e.g. React Native | Web technology, installable from the browser |
| Strength | Full device features and performance | One team, one codebase, two stores | No store needed, instantly on any device |
| Limits | Two codebases, more effort | Very device-specific features need native code | Limited hardware access and push on older devices |
| Suited to | Camera-, sensor- or Bluetooth-heavy apps | Most business and customer apps | Internal tools, portals, quick pilots |
Our founders introduced one of Germany's first large-scale installable web apps for Europe's largest electronics retailer. So we know from experience when a web app is enough, and when it is not.
From idea to app store: four phases
Each phase has a verifiable outcome and its own fixed price:
- 01Week 1
Understand
Who uses the app, where, for what? We prioritise features and decide platform and technology.
- 02Weeks 1–2
Design
User journeys, clickable prototype, architecture and integrations. Then the fixed price for implementation is set.
- 03Weeks 2–9
Build
First clickable version on your devices, test builds via TestFlight and Google Play, weekly increments.
- 04Weeks 10–12
Release
Store approval, monitoring, analytics. Then updates for new iOS and Android versions from one team.
An app needs more than developers
Whether an app gets used depends on UX and measurement at least as much as on code. That is why UX, measurement and development work in one team here:
- Consulting
- We clarify whether you need an app or a web app will do, and which feature the first version must carry.
- UX and design
- One-handed, standing up, wearing gloves: we design for the place where the app is actually used.
- Development
- iOS, Android and the backend behind them, including offline sync and store release.
- Analytics
- Privacy-compliant tracking with consent: which features are used and where users drop off.
- AI
- Analysing photos, capturing speech, answering questions, plus AI agents that test the app before launch.
What drives the effort of an app?
These factors matter most:
- One or two platforms, native or cross-platform
- Offline capability and sync with existing systems
- Number of roles, workflows and screens
- Device features such as camera, Bluetooth or location
- Requirements for security, sign-in and data protection
- Running costs: developer accounts with Apple and Google, operations, updates for new OS versions
We run a product ourselves
With CIRO.immo our team runs its own platform for the real-estate sector in production. So we know the work after launch first-hand: store reviews, updates for new operating systems, support requests, usage data that disproves an assumption.
We bring that experience into every client app. Above all, we agree before launch how we will measure whether the app does its job.
App development FAQ
What companies most often want to know before starting an app:
It mainly depends on platform choice, offline capability, integrations and the number of workflows. We work with fixed prices per project phase: after the first phase you know which technology fits and what implementation costs, before you commission it. For most business apps, a cross-platform app with one codebase costs less than two native ones. Running costs for developer accounts, operations and updates come on top. We name concrete figures in the initial call.
A first clickable version on real devices is ready after two to three weeks. Release in the App Store and on Google Play typically follows after two to three months, including review by Apple and Google.
For most business and customer apps we recommend a cross-platform codebase: one team, one codebase, both stores. We build natively when the app relies heavily on camera, sensors, Bluetooth or performance. If an installable web app is enough, we say so too, because then you skip the store processes entirely.
Often a web app that installs like an app is enough. A store app pays off when users open it daily, push notifications are central, device features are needed or the store presence itself is a sales channel. We check this with you in the first phase.
You do. The app is published under your developer account with Apple and Google, and source code, designs and documentation transfer to you completely. We work in a repository you can access from day one.
Yes. The app talks to your systems through an API; where no suitable one exists, we build it. For field apps we plan offline sync from the start, so nothing gets lost on the road.
Apple and Google release new operating system versions every year, and an app has to keep up. We take care of updates, operations and ongoing development for a monthly retainer and analyse which features are used, so usage data decides what goes into the next version.
Let's talk about your project.
We take care of strategy, design, development and data. Your intro call is directly with the founders: 45 minutes, no obligation.
Or directly: 089 24 88 31 22
