Building an app for Australian users
Australians are heavy iPhone users and expect apps to be quick, accessible and private by default. These are the decisions we work through with Australian clients before development starts.
Privacy: build for the reformed Act
The first tranche of privacy reforms became law in December 2024. People can now sue for serious invasions of privacy, the OAIC has stronger enforcement powers, and from December 2026 your privacy policy must explain when computers make significant decisions about people. A second tranche, released as an exposure draft in August 2026, proposes a "fair and reasonable" test for any handling of personal information and a 72-hour deadline for notifying the OAIC of breaches. It has not been passed yet, so we build every app as if the stricter rules already applied: clear notices, consent where it matters, minimal data and fast responses to access requests.
Payments that suit Australians
Phone wallets such as Apple Pay and Google Pay now account for close to half of card payments. For larger amounts and recurring payments, PayTo lets customers approve direct debits from their banking app, and PayID makes bank transfers simple. Buy-now-pay-later is popular, and since June 2025 providers such as Afterpay and Zip need a credit licence — which affects how you present them at checkout, not whether you can.
Hosting, identity and government work
We deploy Australian apps to Sydney or Melbourne on AWS, Azure or Google Cloud, keeping latency low and data in the country. For government agencies and their suppliers, we choose services assessed under the Information Security Registered Assessors Program (IRAP) and follow the Essential Eight mitigation strategies. Federal agencies pay valid Peppol e-invoices within five days, and the Australian Government Digital ID System is due to open to private businesses from 1 December 2026, so apps will be able to verify customers with myID.
Working across the time difference
Our day starts in your early afternoon. A typical rhythm is a stand-up at 2 or 3 PM Sydney time, development through your evening and night, and a written update waiting in your inbox the next morning. You review a new build every week.
As a rough guide, a focused MVP costs US$5,000–$15,000, a mid-sized app $15,000–$40,000 and complex platforms start from around $40,000. Read our app development cost guide for what drives the price.