There is no single number, because the build fee is usually the smallest part. A custom Power App costs a build fee, then per-user or per-app licensing, then premium connectors, environments and support for as long as it runs. Price the life of the app, not the day it ships.
At a glance: a focused Power App on SharePoint data can run on the Microsoft 365 seats a business already pays for, no extra Power Apps licence needed. Add a premium connector, Dataverse, or serious data volume, and Microsoft moves the whole app onto Power Apps Premium, roughly USD 20 per user per month, or a pay-as-you-go rate around USD 10 per active user per app per month. The build fee is charged once. The licence arrives every month the app is running.
If the app replaces an old database, the migration side of the cost is on the Power Platform migration hub.
If the comparison in your head is with Airtable or monday.com rather than with a build, Power Apps vs Airtable, Notion and monday.com prices that first. If it is whether you need an app at all, Microsoft Lists, a Power App, or a Form is the shorter read.
Why is the build often the cheapest line item?
Ask three Power Platform consultants to quote the same brief and you'll get three different numbers, and none of them are necessarily wrong. That's because "the cost of a Power App" usually only means the build fee, and the build is often the smallest piece of what the app costs over its life.
A straightforward Power App that reads and writes SharePoint data with a handful of screens typically costs $4,000 to $8,000 to build in NZ, rising to $10,000 to $22,000 once it grows to include approval flows, several integrations, or an agent on top. That's the market range NZ Power Platform consultancies, Kove included, tend to quote. See how those tiers break down if you want the full picture.
What that build fee doesn't include is what the app costs to keep running. Unlike a subscription with one sticker price, a Power App's ongoing cost isn't fixed at the point of sale. It depends on which licence tier the app forces every user onto, how much data it stores, and whether a connector quietly reclassifies the whole thing as premium. That's the part most builders don't walk you through before you sign.
When is per-user licensing cheaper than per-app licensing?
Microsoft has changed this more than once, so this is the position as at July 2026. Check it again on the day you budget, because it moves.
Power Apps used to offer a Per App plan: a licence tied to one specific app, cheaper than a full seat. Microsoft pulled it from general sale on 2 January 2026. Existing Enterprise Agreement customers can keep renewing it, and Microsoft restored CSP access in April 2026, but it's no longer something most businesses can simply buy fresh. Confirm it's available through your purchasing channel before assuming it's on the table; the full timeline of that plan's death and half-revival is in its own post.
The plan carrying most conversations now is Power Apps Premium, the renamed per-user plan. Microsoft's NZ list price is NZ$32.40 per user per month (USD 20 on the US price list), dropping to NZ$19.40 at 2,000-plus licences, a tier irrelevant to almost every NZ business reading this. That licence covers a person building or running any number of apps, so it's the better buy once someone's using more than one or two Power Apps regularly.
There's also a pay-as-you-go option, priced by active user per app rather than by seat, reported around USD 10 per active user per app per month, so a business only pays for people who actually open the app that month. It suits a small or occasional user base better than a flat per-seat licence. The full break-even maths against Premium is in Power Apps pay-as-you-go pricing in NZ.
| Plan | Priced by | Roughly (USD) | Fits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Power Apps Premium | Per user, per month | ~$20 (~$12 at 2,000+ seats) | Anyone using several apps regularly |
| Pay-as-you-go | Per active user, per app, per month | ~$10 | Small or occasional user base |
| Per App (legacy) | Per user, per app, per month | Not on general sale since Jan 2026 | Existing EA renewals, some CSP |
Microsoft publishes an NZD price list, so use it rather than converting: Power Apps Premium is NZ$32.40 a user a month, Dataverse database capacity NZ$64.70 per GB a month, both paid yearly (checked September 2026). The capacity you get before paying that, and what 1 GB holds, is on Dataverse pricing in NZ. If clients or suppliers need to log in to the app, that is Power Pages, priced per site in what Power Pages costs. Where only a USD figure exists, 1 USD sat at about NZD 1.72 in late July 2026 and the rate moves, so treat converted figures as a guide, not a quote.
What extra costs come from connectors, environments and support?
Three things push the ongoing cost up after the build is signed off, and none of them show up on the first invoice unless someone specifically warns you about them.
Premium connectors don't carry their own fee, they carry a consequence. The moment an app uses one, a SQL Server connection, an approvals action, a custom API connector, Microsoft treats the entire app as premium for every person who opens it. A five-screen app on standard SharePoint connectors can run inside the Microsoft 365 seats a team already holds. Add one premium connector and every one of those users needs a Premium licence, even if the rest of the app never touches it. Custom connectors are always premium, no exceptions.
Dataverse is the more capable, relational data store Power Apps can run on instead of SharePoint, and it pays for itself on apps that need real structure or row-level security. It also comes with its own storage cost once a tenant outgrows the free entitlement, a modest tenant-wide allowance, with capacity beyond that billed by the gigabyte per month. Attachments, photos from a mobile inspection app, and a few years of records add up faster than people expect. Get a sense of data volume before committing to Dataverse over SharePoint, and ask whoever is building it to cost both.
Then there's support. A build that goes live rarely stays untouched, Microsoft changes the platform continually, and something eventually needs a fix. Some consultancies fold a warranty period into the build itself (mine runs 60 days), then move to a retainer or ad hoc rate after that. Budget for this as an ongoing line, not a one-off.
How much do three realistic app sizes cost?
Put approximate numbers on three shapes of app, based on the ranges above and what's typical to quote in NZ.
| Size | Build | Typical licensing | Data backend |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small: one team, standard connectors | $4,000–$8,000 | Usually $0, covered by existing M365 seats | SharePoint |
| Medium: several teams, one premium connector | $10,000–$22,000 | NZ$32.40/user/month (Premium) + possible Dataverse capacity | SharePoint or Dataverse |
| Large: business-wide, agent or automation layer | $22,000+ | Premium across headcount + Dataverse capacity + ongoing support | Dataverse |
The pattern across all three: build cost is fixed and paid once, while licensing recurs, scaling with who uses the app and how much data it holds. Three years on, that recurring number is what decides whether the app was cheap.
What makes a quote go up, and which extras are worth paying for?
A few things reliably push a Power Apps quote higher. Some of them earn it.
- Premium connectors and Dataverse are worth it when the job genuinely needs relational data, row-level security, or a system Power Apps can't reach through a standard connector. Not worth it when a connector got added out of habit, for data that would sit fine in a SharePoint list at no extra cost.
- Separate dev, test and production environments are worth it once an app is business-critical and a bad update can't go straight to everyone using it live. For a small internal tool used by four people, one environment and careful testing is usually enough.
- AI Builder or Copilot components are worth it when they replace a genuine manual step: reading a form, summarising a note, flagging an exception. Not when they're added because AI is the theme of the year. Each call draws down credits, and it's easy to pay monthly for a feature nobody uses.
- Multiple integrations and custom code alongside the low-code app add real build time, and that's the one category where a bigger number usually reflects a bigger job rather than a padded quote. Past a certain point you've left the customised canvas app behind and you're building a code app, and it's better to know that before the quote lands.
If you want an exact number instead of a range, that's what a proper scoping pass is for. I run that as the Workflow Review, a fixed $3,500 engagement that prices the build and the licensing in the same document. Sometimes that exercise is where it becomes clear Power Apps is the wrong platform, which I've covered in when Power Platform is the wrong answer. How I think about custom automation cost more broadly sets a Power App against the other routes to the same outcome. And if Power Apps is the right shape for your problem, the wider Power Platform work I do covers what sits around it: flows, agents and SharePoint as the backbone.
If clients, not just staff, will log in, the licence is different: Power Pages licences for clients logging in.
Common questions
Is a Power App free if we already pay for Microsoft 365?
Often, yes, for the app itself. A Power App that reads and writes SharePoint data using standard connectors can usually run inside the Microsoft 365 seats a business already holds, with no extra Power Apps licence. The moment the app needs a premium connector or Dataverse, that changes, and every user touching it needs a paid Power Apps licence on top.
Can I still buy a Power Apps per app license in 2026?
Not for most new customers. Microsoft pulled the per app plan from general sale on 2 January 2026. Existing Enterprise Agreement customers can keep renewing it, and Microsoft restored access through CSP partners in April 2026, but it's no longer the default option most businesses can just buy. Confirm with whoever is quoting you whether it's available for your purchasing channel before assuming it's on the table.
What's the biggest hidden cost in a Power Apps project?
Usually the licensing tier the app forces every user onto, and Dataverse storage once you outgrow the free allowance. A single premium connector added late in a build can push the whole app, and every person using it, from a free-to-run app onto a paid seat. That cost lands after go-live, and it only lands in the build quote if someone prices it up front.
Want a rough number for your own app?
Free 30-minute call. Show me what you're trying to build and I'll say roughly where it lands, build and licensing both, before you spend anything.