Platform Exit Cost

Platform Exit Cost is the framework for pricing how much of a client app you can actually walk away with. No-code builders let agencies publish native iOS and Android apps fast, but the asset usually lives inside the vendor's runtime: screens, data models, and integrations are configured in a hosted editor rather than owned as source. The framework asks three questions before signing a retainer: can the app be exported or rebuilt elsewhere, who holds the App Store and Google Play developer accounts, and what happens to client data if the subscription lapses. BuildFire and GoodBarber both run white-label reseller programs, which raises the stakes because the client sees your brand on a dependency you do not control. Forrester's October 2026 warning that distinct AI providers converge on shared infrastructure is the same concentration logic applied to app delivery: redundancy on paper, one failure point in practice.