# Create an iPhone app when you're starting from zero > To create an iPhone app, start by defining one user, one useful action and the result they should get. Build that flow, check it on a real device, then prepare distribution and payments if your app offers them. Here are the decisions, the proof to gather and the guides to move forward on your own; the iOS Kit also packages this path into four steps, with the starter code from my apps. Original page: [Create an iPhone app from scratch](https://devoria.fr/en/expertise/create-an-iphone-app) Author: [Mehdi Azizi](https://devoria.fr/en/mehdi-azizi) Last reviewed: 2026-10-09 ## What you'll learn ### Your idea boiled down to one feature You learn to shrink your idea to what the app does on first launch, and to write down what will wait for the next version. ### Your tech foundation set up from day one Expo, your Apple developer account, your code project: everything is in place from the first step, not the day you need it. ### AI as a tool, not a crutch You see how to ask an AI for a screen, review what it produces and fix it when it's wrong. If you'd rather code without it, that works too. ### Your app on your own iPhone You install your test build with TestFlight from step two, so you judge your work on a real screen. ## Step by step 1. You pick the idea, audience and price, and your tech foundation is set up. 2. You build the core feature and test it on your iPhone with TestFlight. 3. You add onboarding, the paywall and the subscription. 4. You prepare your App Store listing, check your submission, then send it to Apple. ## Where do you start with your first iPhone app? Write a one-page brief before picking a tool: for whom, in what situation, which action, what data to keep and what will wait for the next version. For a made-up reading log, the flow could be: add a book, note the page reached, close the app and find that page again. A catalog of twenty screens doesn't tell you yet whether that result works. Move forward with four deliverables: the brief, an install where the core flow works, proof of a purchase and a restore if you sell a subscription, then the App Store submission. At each pass, note what was tried and what's left to test. If a feature serves none of these deliverables, ask yourself whether the first version needs it. [Fill in the spec with an explained example](https://devoria.fr/en/blog/mobile-app-requirements-document-one-page-template) [Download the brief template and its checklist](https://devoria.fr/ressources/cahier-des-charges-app-ios.md) ## How do you check that your app really works? Test a fresh install on your iPhone, with no dev tools open. Finish the core flow, close and relaunch the app, cut the network and deny the requested permissions. Also check the required screens on the smallest and largest supported sizes, with the keyboard showing. For each test, keep the build number, device, action and observed result. In my TradaZen case study, I describe a lesson that never ended even though the automated tests were green. The useful check was playing the lesson all the way through. For your app, pick an observable result the same way: finding saved data, finishing a session or accessing purchased content. "The button responds" isn't enough to validate the flow. [Install a TestFlight build and organize your testing](https://devoria.fr/en/blog/testflight-test-iphone-app-before-submitting) [Download the 16 test scenarios sheet](https://devoria.fr/ressources/recette-premiere-app-ios.csv) [Read the mistakes and fixes from TradaZen](https://devoria.fr/en/blog/tradazen-case-study-launching-iphone-app) ## What budget should you plan before picking tools? Separate launch costs, fixed fees and usage costs. A missing computer or iPhone, the publishing membership, your coding tool and calls to a paid API aren't the same line item. Estimate testing and maintenance time too. An app that runs locally and one that analyzes every photo on a server don't cost the same, even with the same number of screens. Before settling on no-code or a coded stack, check what your project requires: App Store publishing, in-app purchases, native features and access to the code. Then fill in the budget with provider pricing, its date and each plan's limits. The cost guide breaks down these items; the sheet lets you compare your own assumptions without mistaking another app's budget for yours. [Understand what an iOS app costs, publishing and usage included](https://devoria.fr/en/blog/how-much-does-an-iphone-app-cost) [Download the budget sheet for your project](https://devoria.fr/ressources/budget-premiere-app-ios.csv) [Compare what no-code and AI can and can't do](https://devoria.fr/en/blog/build-app-without-coding-no-code-ai) ## Why learn with me I publish my own iOS apps: Solys, TradaZen, Nolera, and Vigie are on the App Store, another one in review at Apple. I went through the same steps as you, from idea to Apple rejection, and I wrote that path down in the iOS Kit, with the starter code from my apps. [TradaZen case study](https://devoria.fr/en/blog/tradazen-case-study-launching-iphone-app): timeline, rejections and launch. ## FAQ ### I've never coded. Is that OK? Yes. The kit is built for beginners, but you need to be ready to work with an AI like Claude Code or Cursor: the kit gives it the rules and skills to write clean code. What matters most is the time you put in each week. ### Will my app definitely get published? Nobody can guarantee that: Apple decides. The iOS Kit includes the Apple Review Kit: the pre-submission checklist, my fixed rejections and skills that review your app. ### How much is the kit? €129.99, one time, with 1 year of updates included, then €49.99 a year if you want to keep going. The iOS Kit is available. Instant download after payment. ### What about Android? The kit's code compiles for Android, but all the polish is done for iPhone. The kit is built for the App Store. ## Free guides - [How to Make an App: The 4 Steps to Follow](https://devoria.fr/en/blog/how-to-make-an-app-4-steps) - [Build an App Without Coding: No-Code, AI and Limits](https://devoria.fr/en/blog/build-app-without-coding-no-code-ai) - [Make an iPhone App for Free: What It Really Costs](https://devoria.fr/en/blog/make-iphone-app-free-real-cost) - [Lovable vs Rork vs FlutterFlow for building a mobile app](https://devoria.fr/en/blog/lovable-vs-rork-vs-flutterflow-mobile-app) ## The kit for this step [iOS Kit](https://devoria.fr/en/kits/ios): Build your iPhone app with Claude Code: the starter code behind my apps, skills that check its work, and the Apple Review, Screenshots and ASO kits. 129,99 €.