What shapes an app project in the United States
An American app answers to the two store owners first and to a moving set of federal and state laws second. Both have changed quickly, which is why the table below carries a review date.
| Topic | What it means for your app | Decide early |
|---|---|---|
| App store payment rules | Digital goods and subscriptions sold inside an app go through the stores' own billing, with their commission. Court orders in the United States now require Apple, and Google in a separate case, to let apps point to purchases outside the store. What fees may apply to those purchases was still being argued in court when this page was reviewed. Physical goods and services use ordinary payment providers | What the app sells, and through which payment route |
| Children and age | COPPA requires verifiable parental consent before collecting personal data from children under 13, and its updated rule took full effect in 2026. Texas, Utah and other states have passed laws that ask app stores to verify age and share an age category with apps, some of them under legal challenge | Whether children or teens will use the app, and how age is handled |
| Privacy and tracking | Many state privacy laws treat precise location as sensitive data that needs consent. The stores add their own layer: Apple's tracking permission prompt, and the privacy details both stores publish for each app, which have to match what the app really does | Every kind of data the app collects, and every third-party kit inside it |
| Health information | An app working for a hospital, clinic or insurer handles data under HIPAA. A consumer health app outside HIPAA still falls under the Federal Trade Commission's health breach rule and, in Washington State, a consumer health data law | Whether health data is involved, and under which regime |
| Biometrics | Illinois requires written consent before a company collects face or fingerprint data, and lets individuals sue. Using the phone's own face or fingerprint sign-in avoids this, since the app never receives the biometric | Whether any feature captures faces, voices or fingerprints |
| Texts and notifications | Push notifications need the user's permission in the operating system. Text messages need consent under federal law, in writing for marketing, and carriers expect the sender to be registered | Which messages the app sends, by which channel, on what consent |
| Accessibility | Disability law is applied to apps as it is to websites. Screen readers, text scaling and contrast settings are built into both platforms and need to be supported, not overridden | The accessibility level in the brief, and how it is tested |
Workflows we build for the US market
Four app journeys where the American rules above change the design.
Subscription with two ways to pay
For content, fitness and software apps that sell access.
- User reaches the paywall
- In-app purchase offered
- Link to web checkout offered where store rules allow
- Access granted on either route
- Subscription managed in one account
- Cancellation available in the app
Age-aware onboarding
For apps that younger users may download.
- Age category received from the store or asked
- Under-13 path requires parental consent
- Teen accounts start with protective defaults
- Adult path continues normally
- Choice recorded
Clinic check-in
For healthcare groups that want patients to arrive ready.
- Patient signs in
- Identity confirmed
- Forms completed on the phone
- Insurance card photographed
- Arrival confirmed
- Reminders sent without medical detail on the lock screen
Field service app
For contractors and service fleets with crews on the road.
- Jobs downloaded for the day
- Work recorded offline
- Photos and signature captured
- Data synced when signal returns
- Invoice issued
- Payment collected by card or bank transfer
What we build
iOS and Android apps
Native apps, or one cross-platform codebase where it suits the product. Our comparison of React Native and Flutter looks at the main options.
Payments and subscriptions
In-app purchase, web checkout links where permitted and ordinary card payment for physical goods, with one record of who has paid for what.
Privacy by design
A data inventory, permission prompts that explain themselves and store privacy details that match the code, including the kits from third parties.
Age and consent flows
Age handling, parental consent and protective defaults for younger users, designed with your counsel.
Health and regulated data
Architecture for apps under HIPAA or the health breach rule, with access logs and a host that will sign the agreements you need.
Accessible interfaces
Support for VoiceOver, TalkBack, larger text and high contrast, tested on real devices.
What we need from you
- What the app sells, and whether it is digital or physical
- The ages of the people who will use it
- Every kind of personal data it will collect
- The systems it connects to
- Your counsel's view on the laws that apply
Ownership and licensing terms are defined in the project agreement.
A readiness checklist for a US app launch
Before development starts
0 of 8 checkedPlanning a first release? Our guide to planning a mobile app MVP helps decide what belongs in it.
What to do next
Tell us what the app does, who will use it and how it earns money. We will reply with a technical approach, the store and legal points that apply and a sensible first release. Start a conversation or book a 30-minute call.
Common questions
Can we avoid app store commission in the United States?
Partly, and the position is still moving. Court orders now require Apple, and Google in separate litigation, to let apps in the United States link to purchases outside the store. Whether and how much the stores may charge on those purchases was unsettled when this page was reviewed. Sales of physical goods and services never used store billing. We design the payment layer so that either route can be switched on.
Do the new state age-verification laws affect our app?
They may. Texas, Utah and other states have passed laws that put age verification on the app stores and ask stores to pass an age category to apps, with parental consent for minors. Some are in force and some are being challenged in court. If your app can be downloaded in those states, it should be able to receive an age signal and respond to it.
Should we build native apps or use a cross-platform framework?
For most business apps, a cross-platform framework delivers both stores from one codebase, usually at lower cost, and on typical screens users notice no difference. Native development earns its place when the app leans on device hardware, heavy graphics or the newest platform features. The decision should follow the feature list. Our native vs cross-platform comparison goes through the trade-offs.
Does our app need to comply with HIPAA?
Only if it handles health information on behalf of a provider, a health plan or one of their vendors. A fitness or wellness app that people use for themselves is usually outside HIPAA. It is not outside the law: the Federal Trade Commission's health breach rule and state laws such as Washington's reach consumer health apps. Your counsel decides which regime applies, and we build to it.
Where to go from here
Related serviceMobile App DevelopmentFrom first sketch to both app stores