Editor’s note: This article was first published in May 2014; the app names, prices, ratings and download figures are from that time, and some of these apps may no longer exist or may cost something different. The rise in SafeSession Voice downloads reflects concern about NSA surveillance, then in the news.
There are countless free mobile apps, and the dream of the entrepreneur behind each one is for it to be downloaded by millions of users and to make money from advertising. Other apps are built in the hope of being sold to a tech giant. And at the other extreme are entrepreneurs who create apps aimed at a specific audience or industry, for which some people are willing to pay anywhere from $99 to $1,000, which is another way of making apps profitable.
Business Insider has gathered some of the most expensive apps in the App Store. Bearing in mind that some of them have no competitive advantage over other apps that can be downloaded for free, we show the ones that are already a small success despite their high price. Take them as ideas for entrepreneurs who, instead of looking for the magic formula in free apps, decide to aim their creation at a more specific market in an innovative or original way.
1. SafeSession Voice
This app lets you make secure VoIP calls over the internet. The company says your calls are protected by voice encryption algorithms. For this to work, the person you call must also have the app installed on their phone.
The app costs $299, and downloads have increased amid concern about NSA surveillance.
2. Mobile Cam Viewer
Mobile Cam is an app that lets you monitor and view all your installed security cameras in real time. Several people can watch the same camera at once. The app costs $349 to download.
3. DDS GP YES
This app is designed for dentists, helping them with their patients’ treatment plans. The app costs $499.
4. BarMax CA
This app was created by Harvard Law School graduates to help aspiring lawyers pass the bar exam. It includes more than 50 hours of audio lectures by professors and all the information students need to pass. The app’s reputation and proven success mean that many students download it even though it costs $999.
5. Alpha-Trader
This app is aimed at professional investors, with real-time quotes, alerts, risk indicators and charts. It costs $999, although I have to say there are probably already free apps for investors that are every bit as good as Alpha Trader, unless it has something special that we are not aware of.
6. CyberTuner
This app costs $999 and, curiously, it already has dozens of downloads even though its market is piano tuners. It has a five-star rating, and users agree that it is very accurate and easy to use.
7. VIP Black
This app is known as the millionaires’ app. To download it, the company first has to verify that your assets are worth more than $1 million before you are accepted. Once you are verified, you get VIP treatment at all the businesses affiliated with the app. Probably a great entrepreneur who knew how to appeal to the ego of the 1% by creating an exclusive app just for them. It costs $999.
See also: 22 business ideas for women who want to start their own business
The list also includes other kinds of apps, aimed at vets, and football games that can be downloaded for $300.
Perhaps one of the most interesting apps on the list is TouchChat AAC with WordPower, designed for people with autism, Down syndrome or people who find it hard to use their own voice: they only need to tap icons or letters, and the app speaks for them.
As we can see, for entrepreneurs with a clearly technical profile there is still a lot left to invent in this area if we forget about everything-for-free entertainment apps and focus on a smaller but more professional market.
Further reading
- Profitable business opportunities in booming markets
- You can now buy and sell celebrities on the stock market
- How to validate your business idea in 5 minutes
Featured image: Henry Heatly from Chicago, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
