Shopify app development that ships and passes review
We design, build and launch Shopify apps — public App Store apps, custom single-merchant apps, and Theme App Extensions. Hire a Shopify app developer who has already shipped a public app, so review, Billing API and the API-version treadmill are problems we've already solved.
Most Shopify app projects don't fail in the build. They fail in review.
The code is rarely the hard part. The hard part is the Billing API, the GDPR mandatory webhooks, OAuth scope hygiene, performance budgets, and a listing that survives Shopify's review queue — the things a team discovers on submission number four. We build for that from day one, because we've already shipped a public app through it.
What we build
Every Shopify app distribution type, plus the unglamorous maintenance work that keeps a shipped app alive.
Public App Store apps
Listed, reviewed apps built for many merchants — Billing API, OAuth, GDPR webhooks and a listing built to pass Shopify review without a six-cycle back-and-forth.
Custom single-merchant apps
Direct-install apps for one store or a Plus org. No App Store review, full control of hosting and data, scoped to a single merchant's workflow.
Theme App Extensions
Storefront UI delivered as app blocks the merchant drops into the theme editor — no theme-code edits, upgrade-safe, and the only sanctioned way to inject storefront UI in 2026.
Embedded admin apps
Polaris + App Bridge apps that live inside Shopify admin with session-token auth — the pattern we used to ship our own App Store-listed product.
Review-rejection rescue
Stuck in the review queue or inherited a half-built app? We audit against the current App Store requirements, fix the blockers, and get it shipped.
Maintenance & API upgrades
Shopify ships breaking API versions on a fixed quarterly cycle. We keep apps current so a deprecation notice never becomes an outage.
How an engagement runs
Fixed scope, mapped to the API before a line of UI gets built.
Scope & fixed quote
You tell us the app type and the merchant problem. We return a fixed-scope build estimate within 48 hours — no open-ended hourly drift.
Architecture & API mapping
We map the data to the Admin GraphQL API up front, including bulk operations for stores that scale past 50k orders, so the build doesn't get rewritten at launch.
Build with Polaris
UI in Shopify Polaris, auth via App Bridge and session tokens, data in Prisma + Postgres. The app looks native because it uses the native component system.
Review & compliance
GDPR mandatory webhooks, the Billing API, performance and security checks — all handled before submission, which is where most first-time submissions fail.
Launch & iterate
Listing copy, screenshots and post-launch iteration. For custom apps, handover with deployment docs and an upgrade plan.
We ship our own Shopify app
FirstBridge Analytics is our public, App Store-listed profit dashboard — built on the same stack, with the same review discipline, that we bring to client work. When a client asks what a clean, review-passing 2026 Shopify app looks like, we point at a live one we operate.
Same team, same stack, same Billing-API and GDPR-webhook plumbing. If you're scoping a Shopify app, you're not our first.
Our build stack
- UI
- Shopify Polaris + App Bridge
- Auth
- Session tokens, OAuth scopes
- Data
- GraphQL Admin API + bulk ops
- Storage
- Prisma + Postgres
- Billing
- Shopify Billing API
- Compliance
- GDPR mandatory webhooks
Before you brief an agency
The reading we'd want a client to have done first.
Shopify app development cost (2026)
Public, custom and private budgets phase-by-phase, plus the hidden costs quotes leave out.
The app development process
What a real Shopify app build looks like, from scope to App Store launch.
App Store listing best practices
How to write a listing that ranks in App Store search and survives review.
Frequently asked questions
Can I hire a Shopify app developer from First Bridge?
Yes. You can hire a Shopify app developer from us for a full build, a fixed-scope piece of work, or to embed alongside your in-house team. Every developer has shipped against the current App Store requirements — Billing API, GDPR webhooks, OAuth scopes — so you're not paying someone to learn Shopify on your project.
How much does a Shopify app cost to build?
Budgets in 2026 run roughly $5k–$25k for a private/dev-store app, $18k–$95k for a custom single-merchant app, and $45k–$220k for a public App Store app — driven mostly by whether the app touches checkout, payments or B2B. Use our free Shopify App Cost Estimator for a range, or read our full cost breakdown.
How long does it take?
A Theme App Extension or focused private app is typically a few weeks. A public App Store app — including the review cycle — usually runs two to four months depending on scope and how many checkout/payments surfaces it touches.
Public app or custom app — which do I need?
If you're selling the app to many merchants, you need a public App Store app. If it solves a workflow for your own store (or a handful of stores you control), a custom app is faster, cheaper and skips Shopify review entirely.
Do you handle the App Store review submission?
Yes. We build against the current App Store requirements from day one — Billing API, GDPR webhooks, performance, OAuth scopes — and manage the submission. Getting review right up front is the difference between a one-cycle approval and a six-cycle one.
What stack do you build on?
Remix or Next.js with Shopify Polaris for the admin UI, App Bridge with session tokens for auth, the GraphQL Admin API with bulk operations for data, and Prisma + Postgres for storage. It's the same stack we used to build and ship our own App Store-listed app.
Can you take over an abandoned or rejected app?
Yes. We audit the existing codebase against the current requirements, document what's blocking review or causing instability, and either fix it or rebuild the parts that can't be salvaged.
Looking to hire a Shopify app developer?
Tell us the app type and the merchant problem. We'll come back with a fixed-scope build quote within 48 hours.