29 Innovative App Ideas for Startups

People love using their cell phones, so what better way to make money than to create a mobile app? If you can’t come up with a unique app idea right now, don’t worry. We’ve put together this list to help you ideate, brainstorm, and get to work.

Wouldn’t it be great if everyone could learn a language in the comfort of their own homes? What about learning from a VR tool rather than a real person to avoid high tutoring costs or the scheduling problems that come with live courses? These are a few problems that VR tools can solve.

The world is evolving, and people need to know more than one language more than ever before. Creating a VR app startup lets you get ahead of the curve, creating a chatbot, speech program, and other helpful tools that let people practice real-life conversation with an automated system. To be successful, bring in people who speak the languages you want to teach to help train the AI.

If you’ve ever looked at a piece of furniture and wanted to know if it would fit in your space, you know how great an interior design AR app could be. Why not solve the problem once and for all with your own interior design AR app startup? 

With your app, you could suggest different styles of furniture or make it easy for someone to take a photo and place it into their room virtually. Make sure the measurements match up for the best VR experience, and the app will thrive.

If there is one thing that authors and writers know, it’s that they often don’t have time to do more writing after their day is over. Your business can come in to help in a pinch by offering to take one major task off their hands: social media management. 

Creating an app that makes it simple for authors to promote their new books is an awesome way to build a community that relies on your company. To succeed in this industry, make sure you make social media easy—consider adding templates and having agents ready to assist.

Sometimes, businesses need gas or diesel delivered to them. What better way to take advantage of this need than to provide an app that helps them get the deliveries they need? 

You can choose to make an app that connects with major fuel providers and schedules deliveries or set up an app that compares prices to help them find the best deal. Either way, it’s all a win-win.

No one likes to wait in line when they want to get a bite to eat, so help them save time by creating a startup focused on reservations. Your app can help schedule tables at hard-to-access restaurants, or you can opt to work with restaurants to fill in last-minute openings. 

People will love it if they get late-night recommendations (and last-minute date-night reservations) at the click of a button. Make the app easy to use with minimal fuss to get people to use it regularly.

Feeling inspired? Learn how to start your own app by visiting our comprehensive guide on how to start a startup.

Planning a vacation is hard. Not only do you have to think about where you want to go, but you also have to think about what you need to take and how much money you’ll have to spend. Take the guesswork out of the game by creating a vacation planning app for your startup. Your app can tackle issues like the itinerary or help people find savings on hotels or flights. 

A good vacation planning app will need to compete with (or work well together with) major companies, so good organization and partnerships can help it all come together. Whether the app schedules an itinerary for someone or just has simple organization techniques, vacation-goers will be entranced.

Not everyone can afford to take their dog to training classes or hire a trainer, but your venture could offer a fantastic solution. Dog training apps can have videos, tutorials, tips, and tricks to help train dogs. 

You might also consider offering virtual training sessions or pairing up with dog food or dog treat companies to offer training aids. There are plenty of avenues for success with this kind of app.

For those in a rush, going through a grocery store, shopping, then unloading everything from their carts at the checkout is a huge hassle. A grocery store checkout app could be the solution. 

A grocery store checkout app helps people check out directly from their carts — they scan items as they shop, pay, and walk out of the store. To be successful, consider teaming up with local grocery chains.

There are plenty of dating apps out there, but one based on interests could be the next big thing. For your startup, consider a dating app that is niched down into specific interests only some people share.

Try a surfer’s dating app, one for those with dogs, or an option for those with chronic health conditions. The options are endless.

Almost everyone has run into a time when they weren’t sure if their food was still good. Maybe they opened the milk a week ago and forgot on which date, or they put canned goods into storage and forgot about them. The nice thing about this kind of app is that it helps cut down on food waste while encouraging people to eat what they’ve already purchased.

To make an app like this one successful, consider adding a way to track all the food in someone’s panty. Also, consider adding recipe plans or spaces for expiration dates, so they know what they can do with the food they have (and when they need to use it by). You could also try to work with specific grocery stores or food companies to get your app promoted.

As a landlord, one of the hardest parts of the job is making sure to have good tenants. However, good tenants can be hard to come by. To find them, landlords are likely to need to run background checks, seek out application fees, and more. 

With the right startup app, though, your company could become wealthy by helping landlords match up with the right kind of tenants. Consider an app that helps landlords search for prospective tenants that already passed a background or credit check, for example. A fee-based platform might make the most sense and allow everyone to get the access they need to both rentals and potential tenants.

Anyone who drives an electric vehicle knows the struggle of finding an EV charging station. With the emergence of more electric vehicles, you’d think that they’d be easier to find, but they’re not located in typical places. 

Help people solve the problem by creating a startup that tracks all the latest EV charging station locations. To make the tool useful, consider using mapping technology and GPS to help them find the closest stations to them.

Whether it’s a wedding or a birthday party, there are challenges when event planning. Your potential business could take advantage of the lack of know-how and help people get on the path to a perfect party with the right app. Hooking them up with decorations, a checklist, and invitation templates? All great ideas. 

Good party planning is all about organization. If you want to make your app successful, remember to do what you can to make it as organized as you can. Think of all the little things people need for parties, and figure out how to deliver them (or make them easier to find).

Hunger is a real issue, but an app can be the solution. With a food donation app, your startup can help food get into the hands of the people who need it.

There’s a great opportunity to help neighbors connect, spread out food supplies, and make sure people don’t go hungry. Using a delivery service, pickup, or drop-off options could help this become a success.

It’s tough when you get to a location and can’t park. Fortunately, a parking spot locator can help.

Your app can track the spots available via GPS or other meals, letting people know where they can park. Or, consider assigned spaces, and work with a local business to make parking simpler.

Dieting is hard, but a simple, easy-to-use food tracker can help. Your company can help people get healthy by not only tracking the foods they eat but also the improvements in their health.

Consider adding educational materials, organization tools, and other products to the app. When your app is a resource, people will keep turning to it.

Everyone needs to learn throughout their lifetimes, so it makes sense to run a tutoring startup. You can niche down into specific industries, too. 

Consider tutoring adults, those with disabilities, children, or other specialties to make your app stand apart from the competition. You might try live or recorded tutoring sessions, too.

Not everyone has the money or time to hire a human to help them train. Fitness lovers will adore working with an AI fitness trainer who can keep them on track, though.

For your venture, consider building an AI that helps walk people through common exercises. From yoga to basketball, AI fitness trainers can do it all.

Want to compare prices on the go? You’re not alone.

Creating a price comparison app helps people identify when they’re getting a deal (and when they’re paying too much). Consider adding coupons and information on sales to make the app even more beneficial.

Carpooling is great for the environment, but not everyone has someone to drive with. A carpooling app helps pair people up so they drive together.

Consider a location-based app with GPS. Background checks can help minimize risk.

Chatting with anyone, at any time, anywhere? That’s cloud-based chatting. 

Design an app for teams, individuals, or those who want to chat privately—it’s up to you. Best of all, the chat service is accessible from any device.

Everyone can use health and beauty reminders. Creating a health and beauty tips app gives your startup the opportunity to help people thrive. 

Offer beauty tips, exercise tips, or forums where people can talk about their goals and how they’re reaching them for an inclusive experience. There is a lot of variety in this app niche.

An ecommerce app is a great tool for selling. Your business can take advantage by selling your own products or routing people to other businesses as they search for products through your app.

A good ecommerce app shows pricing, is easy to navigate, and is based on a niche. Offer help finding clothing, food, vehicle rentals, or other products through your startup app.

Whether it’s finding a pet-friendly hotel or a dog park, it can be hard to travel with pets on the go. A great app can help identify pet-friendly locations and rate them based on positive experiences.

You might consider a location-based app or choose one to show reviews. Either way, you’ll help pet parents find more spaces for their animals.

Can’t decide what kind of gift to give? Then you know the struggle your audience faces.

Create a gift-giving suggestions app that offers unique ideas that people might not have thought about. Then, route them to Amazon, Walmart, or other retailers to make their purchases.

When a person gets sick, they can call an ambulance or telehealth provider. But what about animals? That’s where an on-demand veterinarian can come in.

Consider creating a startup that helps animals anywhere they are. People can speak directly with a vet or request a call at home, saving time (and potentially lives).

Accessible medical care is a vital aspect of getting everyone the support they need in the United States (and beyond). One app your startup could run is a mental health or therapy app that brings telehealth providers into clients’ spaces. You could also consider an AI mental health app that uses automation to talk people through meditation or relaxation techniques, for example. 

There are plenty of options in this space, so consider a mental health app that offers support to those in need. From issues like dealing with ADHD to seeking help for depression, there are dozens of niches to consider.

Not everyone likes to try on clothing. Whether they’re just feeling uncomfortable or they’re limited on time, trying on every little thing can be exhausting. 

Your AR clothes shopping app could offer a solution. With AR, people can take a photo of the item they want to try on (or search for items in your own catalog). They’ll have that item projected onto them, so they can see what it looks like. Bonus points if the measurements match up and they can see if the item will fit.

Have you ever gotten to a mall and realized that you didn’t know your way around? Of course, malls usually have a map inside, but what if you’re not right next to it? This is where your navigation app could make a huge difference for consumers. 

A digital mall navigation app is on your mobile phone and in the palm of your hand. The digital maps of all the malls around the user help with directions, so they can navigate them well. Additionally, you might consider adding extra information or tools, such as an option to pay for parking in the app or a way to get discounts wherever someone is.

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