Real-time messaging, group chats, media sharing, push notifications, and read receipts — shipped in 2–4 weeks.
Timeline
2–4 weeks
Starting from
$3,460
Full platform
up to $30,000
React Native / Expo
Mobile apps (iOS + Android)
Supabase Realtime
WebSocket messaging
Cloudflare R2
Media file storage
Expo Push / APNs / FCM
Push notifications
Stream.io and SendBird are battle-tested chat SDKs at $399/month+. Supabase Realtime covers 85% of chat use cases at $25/month. We pick based on scale requirements and budget.
Real-time messaging needs ordered delivery, optimistic updates, and offline queue sync. Using a sequence ID and local SQLite cache (MMKV in React Native) handles this without full CRDT complexity.
FCM and APNs have different reliability guarantees. Messages can be lost if the app is killed. Build a 'missed messages' notification aggregation system for users who haven't opened the app in 24h+.
Rough estimates per feature. Our fixed-price MVP bundles all of these — see the full Chat & Messaging App cost guide.
| Feature | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Auth + user discovery | $300 – $1,500 |
| 1:1 and group messaging | $800 – $4,000 |
| Media upload and sharing | $400 – $2,000 |
| Read receipts + presence | $300 – $1,500 |
| Push notifications | $300 – $1,500 |
| Message search | $400 – $2,000 |
| Reactions + replies | $300 – $1,500 |
| Total estimate | $2,800 – $14,000 |
We ship production-ready chat & messaging app MVPs in 2–4 weeks at a fixed price. No hourly billing, no scope creep surprises.
A basic messaging MVP (1:1 chat, groups, media, push notifications) costs $10,000–$25,000. A WhatsApp-comparable app with end-to-end encryption, voice/video calls, and status features costs $60,000–$150,000.
Use Stream or SendBird if chat is a secondary feature of your app. Build from scratch with Supabase Realtime if chat is the core product — you'll have more control and pay 10× less in monthly fees.