The pharma industry has dawned a new era in digitalization, driven by changing customer expectations and global healthcare concerns. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the transition to online services across industries, with pharmacies and the health industry in general taking the lead. Lockdown, social distancing, and healthcare system overloads made it hard for people to access services. As a result, consumers began using digital solutions that provide convenience, safety, and accessibility. This shift made online purchases of medicine and digital pharmacy tools not just popular but also a must.
Even though 2020 witnessed some decline in pharmacy sales, the industry recovered faster than the majority of industries, including hospitals. It stood at $1.4 trillion in 2023, according to Fortune Business Insights, and is anticipated to rise consistently at 4.20% annually from 2024 to 2029. The e-pharmacy business segment, along with digital channels and applications of pharmacies, rose even quicker. Statista says that its revenue is $97.18 billion in 2025, and it will be 130.46 billion by 2029. This reflects a high compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.64% over the period.
This digital growth goes far beyond just ordering medications. Today’s online pharmacy landscape features platforms for tracking prescriptions, managing health data, and even remotely overseeing entire pharmacy networks. In this blog post, we will discover how to enter this growing market by creating a modern online pharmacy app from scratch. Let's discover where to start, which features are a must, and what to expect in terms of development expense.
Types of the Pharmacy Apps
Let's start with the fact that when launching an online app for pharmacies, your business model will largely determine the type of app you create. While there are many options, most of them belong to a few broad categories.
1. Marketplace apps
Marketplace apps for pharmacies work as aggregators, bringing together different suppliers' and chain pharmacy products into one platform. Consumers shop, compare, and purchase medicine without committing to one supplier, but with a myriad of products brought together in one app.
Examples: Indian website NetMeds offers products from multiple pharmacies and allows you to order them according to price, delivery time, or brand. PharmEasy offers prescription and over-the-counter drugs from various suppliers, lab test ordering, and doctor consultation.
2. Apps for online stores
These apps are customized to operate for a single pharmacy or pharmacy chain and are essentially a branded online store. These apps allow customers to order, deliver, or arrange pick-up.
Examples: Walgreens apps allow customers to refill prescriptions, purchase health products, and earn loyalty rewards. Boots in the UK offers similar services by integrating online shopping with in-shop service.
3. Store chain management apps
These apps are used internally in a chain of pharmacies to keep inventory, logistics, and analytics among the locations.
Examples: McKesson Connect allows pharmacy chains to order, manage inventory, and track store performance. Some large chains also build bespoke enterprise software for branch managers and supply-chain groups.
4. Reference apps
These knowledge-based apps provide verified and regularly updated information about medications for pharmacists, doctors, and patients.
Examples: Epocrates provides healthcare professionals with comprehensive drug information, dosing recommendations, and interaction screening. Medscape has a vast medical reference library that includes disease reviews and treatment recommendations.
Some modern pharmacy apps do more than just ordering. Some of them offer marketplace shopping combined with telemedicine, where patients can consult doctors, order lab tests, and get medications all from the same app. The Walgreens app offers prescription management, live tracking of orders, and vaccination scheduling.
With the worldwide transition to digital healthcare, particularly post-COVID-19, selecting the right kind of pharmacy app is about fulfilling the demands of your user base and upcoming market trends.
Must-Have Features of a Pharmacy App
Once you have selected the type of application, you should then determine which features are most commonly used that people expect to find in a pharmacy application. Below is a list of mandatory and optional features that would be useful in your app and that you can implement depending on your needs, pricing policy, and resources:
Seamless login and user profiles: A must-have feature to enable fast and convenient registration, where users can store personal information like address, payment preferences, bonus balance, and contact details. If your app is selling prescription medications, it's good to include secure verification processes, health queries, and age verification to satisfy regulations like HIPAA.
Intelligent search and filtering: This extension helps users in locating the appropriate drug or substitute with superior search filters, auto-suggestive properties, and error-prone results. For instance, if a person makes a typo about "amoxicillin," the application should be able to provide relevant results nevertheless.
Full e-commerce functionality: From browsing catalogs online and placing products into a cart to buying, users need an easy shopping experience. Offer multiple payment options: credit cards, mobile payments, and even saved payment details within the app.
Prescription management: Allow users to upload prescriptions into the app themselves. Verify them manually by pharmacists or accelerate the process using AI/ML. Include medication reminder schedules and refill reminders to maximize treatment compliance.
Order tracking: Real-time tracking, similar to DoorDash, has become a user expectation. Customers should be able to see the exact status of their order and when it will be delivered.
Push notifications and reminders: Reminders for promotions, discounts, product deliveries, and daily offers are a must. Provide flexible settings to allow users to customize what they think is important and relevant to them.
Localization and accessibility: Providing support for many languages from the start will save you money in the future and will boost your user base. Accessibility features such as large text and voice search can make the app accessible to all.
Direct communication channels: Give customers the ability to contact pharmacists, couriers, or support directly via chat, phone, or email. For more advanced support, integrate telemedicine so patients can consult with doctors directly in the app at any time.
Advanced Features for a More Sophisticated App
Once you have decided on the core features, adding advanced features can transform your app from a simple ordering tool to an indispensable healthcare companion. You don't have to make these features independent, they can complement core features and make the entire experience more cohesive, swift, and personalized.
Medication information and comparisons: Allow users to check manufacturer, ingredients, and compatibility with other medications. For example, alert if two medications cannot be taken together or suggest other safe alternative drugs.
Chat and video calls: Offer live consultation support from doctors or pharmacists without leaving the app. In addition to answering quick questions, this enables telemedicine consultations, making it more confidence-boosting and convenient.
Click-and-Collect (order and pick up): Implementing this feature will allow customers to pay for items in advance and pick them up at a store convenient for them — this is useful for those who want to avoid delivery.
Social interaction: Users can rate an item, review it, or tell others about their experience. Social proof allows customers to feel safe while buying.
Family accounts: Allow one person to manage recipes for multiple family members, track adherence, and reorder medications for elderly relatives from their own device.
Accessibility features: Inclusivity is paramount in today's world. Support large fonts, voice commands, and screen readers so that people with all abilities can comfortably use your app.
Mobile wallet and insurance integration: Users can top up their balance in the app, enable auto-top-up, and even connect their health insurance for seamless coverage and copay processing. Loyalty rewards and points can also be stored here.
Order history: An in-depth history of past purchases and prescriptions in the app enables users and healthcare providers to follow treatment over time.
Web portal for pharmacies: On the business side, pharmacists need tools for order management, inventory, prescription verification, EHR integration, analytics, content, customer profiles, and marketing campaigns. Role-based access ensures that each team member sees only what is relevant to their job.
How to create a successful app for an online pharmacy?
Creating an app for an online pharmacy may seem like a daunting task, but if you break it down into clear, understandable steps, the process becomes much easier. From understanding user needs, selecting tools, and choosing the type of app to launching and scaling your app, here is a quick plan to help you create an app for your pharmacy that truly meets your customers' needs and stands out in a competitive market.
Step 1: Define your business goals and conduct market research
The first thing to do in developing a successful pharmacy app is to identify your business goals. Determine whether your app will primarily serve customers who order prescriptions, serve as a comprehensive online platform for pharmacies, or include advanced health care features.
It is also essential to understand your target audience, know their needs, preferences, and pain points. Set measurable goals to track the success of your app, such as user acquisition, retention, or sales targets.
Once you have defined your goals, conduct thorough market research by studying existing pharmacy apps and competitors. Study what users desire most, gaps or shortcomings in the current solutions, and watch for upcoming trends such as AI-based healthcare solutions, incorporation of telemedicine, and on-demand delivery solutions. This research will help you select features and technologies and re-design your pharmacy app in a way that not only meets user expectations but also delivers differentiated value in a competitive market.
Aligning clear business goals with a comprehensive understanding of the market provides a solid foundation for creating a user-centric, scalable app for pharmacies.
Step 2: Define the app's features and choose the app type
Once you have clearly defined your business goals and target market, the next step is to determine the core features your pharmacy app should have. It's better to start with a minimum viable product (MVP) – an MVP is a light version of your app with core features such as prescription management, medicine catalog, safe payment methods, and real-time order tracking.
An MVP allows you to get into the market quickly and test your idea on real users at a minimal development cost. Besides feature planning, determine what type of app would work for your business model: be it a market aggregator that brings together multiple pharmacies, a branded app for a single pharmacy or chain, or a telemedicine and consultancy mashup app. This targeted strategy allows you to develop a functional, accessible app that fulfills customer requirements and creates a foundation for the introduction of future features and growth.
Step 3: Choose the right development approach and find developers
Once you have determined your goals and conducted marketing research, the next step is to decide how you will design your pharmacy app. You can opt for custom development and enjoy total freedom to create a unique user experience, or you can use a turnkey solution for developing online pharmacy apps to get your app launched faster and at less expense.
When making this decision, remember to consider scalability, future support, and the ability to add future technologies such as artificial intelligence or blockchain to ensure that your app can easily evolve with new advancements.
After that identify the right developers to make your idea a reality. There are three main options: outsourcing, freelancers, or assembling your team. Outsourcing is the most cost-effective option, as it will be cheaper and save you time. Choose a development partner with experience in healthcare or pharmacy app projects that understands the unique challenges of the industry and the compliance issues. This approach will help in making your app regulatory compliant and easy to use from day one.
Step 4: UI/UX design and mockups
During the design phase, an app begins to take shape, and the focus is on creating an intuitive and user-friendly interface. It's a good idea to start with a mind map to visualize your concept in a clear, non-linear form. Then create mockups – rough sketches showing the most essential elements and layout of each screen. The goal is to make the interface simple so that patients can easily order medication and get help without being bewildered.
Second, create a concept and develop a set of interface components, including fonts, icons, buttons, and other graphics. Along the way, add customer input to refine the look and feel of the app.
At the end of this stage, create an interactive prototype to demonstrate how the app will perform before coding. This makes it easier for you to iterate the UI/UX design based on real users' feedback without incurring costly development time and money, and future changes.
Step 5: App Development
After you have completed the design, it is now time to have your pharmacy app developed. Work together with the development team to create the app according to the specifications you have established. Since most individuals would like to order medicine using their mobile phones, it would be beneficial to start with a mobile version and target both Android and iOS platforms.
With cross-platform development using React Native or Flutter, it’s possible to develop apps for both platforms from a single code base, saving costs and offering high performance and reliability.
Use strong encryption, role-based access control, and encrypted storage of data to protect user data. Pharmacy apps handle sensitive health data, so they must comply with industry rules such as HIPAA. Incorporate compliance and security into your app from the very start to avoid costly fixes down the line and earn user trust.
Step 6: Testing, deployment, and maintenance of your app
Before a pharmacy app can be launched, there is a need for comprehensive testing to ensure that the application is free of bugs. The testing includes functional testing to ascertain that all features work flawlessly, usability testing to determine if the application is easy to navigate and use, and performance testing to verify that the application is running well under various loads. It is beneficial to identify and fix bugs or glitches now before the launch because it can prevent negative user experiences when it is released.
Once your app has passed through all the test phases, establish a launch strategy. Distribute your app to applicable platforms, such as the Apple App Store and Google Play. Marketing and user engagement will also be needed to create some initial buzz and encourage use.
After a successful launch, ongoing attention is required, especially for pharmacy apps handling sensitive healthcare information. Regularly review app functions, track user feedback, and release updates to fix issues, improve security, and add new features. Stay updated with the most recent developments in healthcare law and technology trends to ensure your app remains compliant, secure, and competitive. This process of continuous improvement is critical to winning user trust and long-term success.
How much does it cost to develop a pharmacy app in 2025?
As we defined, the cost of developing a mobile app for an online pharmacy in 2025 will primarily depend on the app's complexity, the features you need, integrations, and the developers you hire. If you are rebuilding an MVP or a complex AI-powered telemedicine platform, your budget will range from $30,000 to over $150,000.
Here is a brief overview of estimated costs based on how complex the app is:
MVP (Simple app): This includes login, uploading prescriptions, a drug database, a simple shopping cart, and a basic admin panel typically costs from $30,000.
Mid-level app: This includes order tracking, intelligent search, payment gateways, reviews, refill reminders, and chat with a pharmacist. It usually costs between $30,000 and $70,000.
Pro Advanced app: This includes AI-powered recommendations, video consultations, electronic prescriptions, inventory synchronization, augmented reality guidance, security, voice commands, and smart medication reminders. Costs for such an app exceed over $150,000.
Bottom Line
Technology is evolving, changing the way that customers engage with healthcare services and their expectations from them. Successful development of pharmacy apps starts with the clear identification of your priorities and objectives. Identify your users' most critical needs and address them by prioritizing the must-have features to build a minimum viable product (MVP) that will deliver concrete value within a limited timeframe. By doing so, you will be able to launch your app earlier, test its concept in the market, and gather feedback for further improvement.
It’s possible to develop your app by adding new features and innovations that respond to emerging trends and customer demands. By combining a clear strategic vision with innovative technologies, your pharmacy app can stay ahead, facilitating access to health, improving customer service, and positioning your business as a trusted leader in digital health.
FAQ:
What types of pharmacy apps can I develop?
Common types include marketplace apps (aggregators of multiple pharmacies), branded online store apps (for single pharmacies or chains), store chain management apps (for internal operations), and reference apps (providing verified drug information). Some apps combine features like telemedicine and lab testing for a more integrated healthcare experience.
What are the must-have features in a pharmacy app?
Essential features include secure login and user profiles, intelligent search and filtering, e-commerce functionality, prescription management, real-time order tracking, customizable push notifications, multi-language support, accessibility options, and direct communication channels with pharmacists.
How much does it cost to develop a pharmacy app?
Costs depend on app complexity, features, integrations, and development team. Basic MVP apps start around $15,000–$30,000, mid-level apps $30,000–$70,000, and advanced apps with AI or telemedicine features can exceed $150,000. Additional costs include testing, deployment, maintenance, compliance, and marketing.
What are the main steps to create a pharmacy app?
To develop a pharmacy app, begin by clearly defining your business goals and understanding your target audience. Then, perform thorough market research to analyze competitors and customer expectations. Afterward, decide on the key features your app should include, such as prescription refills, chat support, and payment integration. Partner with an experienced online pharmacy app development team to manage design, development, and testing. Finally, launch your app and continuously improve it by incorporating user feedback to enhance its performance and usability.
What security and compliance measures should be considered?
Pharmacy apps handle sensitive health data and must comply with regulations such as HIPAA. Implement strong encryption, role-based access controls, and secure data storage from the start to protect users and avoid costly fixes later.
Which platforms should my pharmacy app support?
Since most users order medicines via mobile, focus on mobile-first development for both Android and iOS. Cross-platform frameworks like React Native or Flutter allow you to develop for both platforms efficiently using a single codebase.
