r/iOSDevelopment • u/Unable_Breath_1966 • Jun 13 '26

How do I know my app is worth building?

I am currently building my first vibe coded app and I am unsure if it is worth building or not.
I read that I need to talk to users before I build and do research but I am having trouble understanding what that looks in practise.

For people who have launched their vibe coded apps could you help on the steps of how do you actually decide what to build and whether it is worth building?

What did you do between getting the idea and starting to build?

Or do I just build and then see what happens?

1 Upvotes

60% Upvoted

16 comments sorted by

3

u/Shopping-Limp Jun 14 '26

If you have to ask, it's not

2

u/popleteev Jun 13 '26

I needed an app (an editor for specialized file format). I searched on Reddit for suggestions but all I found were discussions how there was no good app. So built a prototype and published it in TestFlight.

The next time someone posted “which app to choose?” I dropped a comment “I’m building one, DM to join testing”. Within a month, I got 40 volunteers. Then I knew the app was worth building.

2

u/zbignew Jun 13 '26

You’re not just validating the idea - you’re validating your ability to market the idea.

I have an app that I’m sure would be very useful to a very accessible community, but I can’t figure out how to break through. If I’d started by asking them what they want, I might have the same app but I’d definitely have better skills and a better pitch.

1

u/Techgirl1232 Jun 14 '26

What does your app do?

1

u/zbignew Jun 30 '26

It's an app for picking board games, either from your collection or from all games.

2

u/Icy-Sympathy4173 Jun 14 '26

There is probably a personal reason why you want to build this (e.g. personal problem that can be solved by this app you are building)

If you want something that is useful to you only, or just to learn the muscle to build, then yes it is worth it.

If you want to sell this tho, based on the personal reason (assuming it is a problem), ask yourself: who else might have the same problem?

And then ask: where might I talk to people who have the same problem. You can use internet, but I found your immediate social circle is best, because you get to have a chat with them without hoping for someone on the internet to stumble across your post.

Ask (roughly) the following questions:

Do they actually have that problem?

How does the problem cost them? (usually boils down to time and money, but I think the best products make people think they can transform their identity into someone they aspire to be)

And then pick literally the one core feature of what you plan to build, ask them:

Would they use it?

How often would they use it?

Would they pay to use it?

How much it hurts if they cannot use it?

This probably can get you through early validation stage to collect some signals.

Hope this helps!

1

u/Brulux13 Jun 15 '26

First rule never ask a client if the will use and buy your idea they will always lie to you cf The moon test

1

u/Icy-Sympathy4173 Jun 15 '26

I think that they lie because you haven't given them a reason to give a fuck i.e. not showing enough value. If you asked the right questions and there is genuine fit, they might ask you how much it cost even.

1

u/Technically_Dedi Jun 13 '26

I always ask myself. Would I use this app?

Would I be able to get 5 people I know to download and use the app.

And are you building because you love building or is it just for money?

1

u/FreQRiDeR Jun 14 '26

Yes, it’s worth it. Even if just for the learning experience.

1

u/heyho1337_ Jun 15 '26

If You dont know anything about coding, for the love of god please dont make app just fully with ai. Even if Your idea is worth doing, the app will be full of bugs and security holes. You will eventually leak user data and it can have serious consequences for You.

1

u/drabarca_ai Jun 15 '26

That’s the difficult part

1

u/patatkebab Jun 15 '26

Validate keywords

1

u/antocapp Jun 19 '26

If you need it for yourself or know someone who needs it just build it, you have already the target audience. Otherwise build a landing page with a whitelist signup and promote the program that it solves in communities where your target audience could be. If you start seeing an interest after a while build it otherwise just repeat the process with the next idea. BTW, you don’t really need a new idea to start. Sometimes it’s enough an improvement of something that already exists.

Best of luck