Building an App or Website in Türkiye in 2027: A Practical Guide

To build an app or website in Türkiye in 2027, start by naming the project type, then decide between a ready platform and a custom build, choose your platforms (web, iOS, Android and an admin dashboard), and plan for local requirements from day one: Turkish, Arabic and English content, KVKK data protection, e-Fatura and e-Arşiv invoicing, and card instalments at checkout. A simple website can be live in a few weeks, while a full app or an ERP system is usually delivered in phases over several months.

This guide walks through each of those decisions in order. It builds on our guide for Gulf app projects, because most planning questions are the same; what changes in Türkiye are the languages, the regulations and the way customers expect to pay.

Project types and what each involves

Most projects in Türkiye fall into one of these types:

• Simple website: up to about five pages in one language, with a contact form and basic search optimisation
• Corporate website: 10 to 25 pages with content management, usually in Turkish, Arabic and English
• Online store on a ready platform: catalogue, cart, local payment methods and an admin panel
• Custom online store or marketplace: custom flows, several sellers, integrations and companion apps
• Mobile app MVP: one Flutter app for iOS and Android covering the core journeys, with a basic admin panel
• Full app with dashboard: several user roles, online payments, integrations and reports
• ERP or internal system: sales, stock, purchasing, HR and approvals, usually delivered in phases

Property portals and learning platforms combine several of these, for example a public website, user accounts and an admin dashboard. Our website design, mobile app development and ERP systems services cover each of these project types, and many clients combine them, for example an online store with a companion app.

These are only highlights: each project type can include many more features than we can list here.

Ready platform or custom build?

If your project follows a well-known pattern, starting from one of our ready platforms usually gets you live sooner, because the core features already exist and have been tested in real projects. Vega Real Estate powers property portals such as House EX, with map search and lead routing to agents, and Skylineist, which guides international buyers district by district; the Rumeli and Number One Property sites present residential, commercial and off-plan listings. Vega Education runs online academies such as Siraj Academy and the Islamic Education Academy, and Vega Ecommerce is behind stores like the Kitabi Alhadef bookstore, whose search is tuned for Arabic titles and authors.

A custom build makes sense when the product itself is your business, when your workflows are unusual, or when you need deep integrations a platform does not cover. It gives you full flexibility over every screen and journey, with the code written around your own processes. The Sankari exchange app, for example, is a custom iOS and Android app for an exchange house, with buy and sell orders, alerts, gold bar orders and wallets with a full operations log.

In both cases, ownership matters more than the starting point. Agree in writing who owns the source code, the data, the domain, the hosting account and the store listings, and how you would move the product to another team if you ever needed to.

These are only highlights: each platform and project includes many more features than we can list here.

Choosing your platforms: web, iOS, Android and dashboard

• Web: a website or web app that works on every device and is found through search engines
• iOS and Android: one cross-platform Flutter app for both stores, or two separate native apps when you need deep device features
• Admin dashboard: where your team manages content, orders, users and reports; almost every app needs one
• Companion apps: for example a driver, staff or vendor app alongside the customer app

Many projects start with the web and one mobile app, then add the other pieces once real usage shows what is needed.

What is specific to Türkiye

• Languages: Turkish for local customers, plus Arabic and English for visitors, investors and export markets, with right-to-left layout designed in from the start rather than added later
• KVKK: Türkiye's personal data protection law sets rules for consent, privacy notices, where data is stored and how long it is kept
• e-Fatura and e-Arşiv: many businesses must issue electronic invoices, so stores and ERP systems often connect to an approved e-invoice provider
• KDV: tax lines on invoices and receipts must be calculated and shown correctly, which your e-invoicing and accounting integration should handle
• Card instalments (taksit): Turkish shoppers expect to split card payments into instalments at checkout, so the payment gateway and cart should support it
• Local integrations: SMS and OTP providers, Turkish shipping companies and your accounting software

These are only highlights: depending on your sector there may be many more local requirements and features to plan for.

Integrations are where plans most often go wrong. Connecting a modern, well-documented payment gateway may take days; connecting an older internal system with no API may take weeks. Ask each team how they plan each integration, not just whether it appears in the list.

Timelines and phases

• Simple website: 2 to 4 weeks
• Multilingual corporate website: 4 to 8 weeks
• Online store on a ready platform: 3 to 6 weeks
• Custom online store: 2 to 4 months
• Mobile app MVP: 3 to 4 months
• Full app with dashboard: 4 to 8 months
• ERP system: 3 to 9 months, in phases

A typical project moves through five phases: discovery and a written scope, UX and interface design, development with weekly demos, testing and store submission, then launch and handover. A short discovery phase at the start usually saves more time than it takes, because it turns assumptions into a written scope before any code is written. Timelines depend as much on how quickly content, decisions and approvals arrive as on development itself.

After launch: support, updates and hosting

Launch is the start of the product's life, not the end of the project. Plan for these from the beginning:

• Domain names (.com.tr or .com) and SSL certificates, renewed every year
• Hosting: from simple website hosting to cloud servers for apps with a backend, with monitoring and backups
• Store accounts: an Apple Developer account and a Google Play developer account, ideally registered in your company's name
• Updates for new iOS and Android versions, security patches and small improvements
• Third-party services such as payment gateways, SMS packages, maps and email delivery
• A support agreement that states response times and who to contact

Agree before launch who handles each of these, how quickly issues are fixed, and how new features are planned after the first release.

How to choose a software company in Istanbul

Istanbul has hundreds of agencies and freelancers, and first impressions are a poor way to compare them. Our guide on how to choose a software company covers this in detail; the short version is:

1. Ask for live projects you can open and use, ideally in your sector.
2. Get a written scope that lists roles, journeys, integrations and what is excluded.
3. Check that the contract gives you the source code and the accounts: domain, hosting and store listings.
4. If you need Arabic, ask to see right-to-left work that is live, not promised.
5. Ask what support includes after launch and how quickly issues are handled.
6. Meet the team that will build your project, not only the sales contact.

Vega SDS has its head office in Başakşehir, Istanbul, and a second office in Sharjah, UAE. We hold ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 certification, every project has a written scope, weekly demos and a shared board, and our team works in Turkish, Arabic and English.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to build a website in Istanbul?

A simple website usually takes 2 to 4 weeks, a multilingual corporate website 4 to 8 weeks, and an online store on a ready platform 3 to 6 weeks, depending on how quickly content and approvals arrive.

How long does it take to build a mobile app in Türkiye?

A focused MVP for iOS and Android built with Flutter usually takes 3 to 4 months. A full app with several user roles, payments, integrations and an admin dashboard usually takes 4 to 8 months.

Should I use a ready platform or a custom build?

Use a ready platform when your project follows a known pattern, such as a store, a property portal or an academy, and you want to launch quickly. Choose a custom build when the product is your business or your workflows are unusual.

Does my app need to comply with KVKK?

Yes, if it collects personal data from people in Türkiye. Plan consent, privacy notices, data storage and retention from the start rather than adding them just before launch.

Can my online store issue e-Fatura and offer card instalments?

Yes. A store can connect to an approved e-invoice provider for e-Fatura and e-Arşiv, and to a payment gateway that supports instalments (taksit) at checkout.

Can you build in Turkish, Arabic and English?

Yes. Our team works in all three languages, and we design right-to-left Arabic layouts together with the Turkish and English versions from the start.

Tell us about your project

If you are planning a website, app or system in Türkiye, tell us about your project with a short description of your idea. We will turn it into a written scope with phases and a timeline, and suggest whether a ready platform or a custom build fits best.