Backend for mobile apps
The server side is the half of a mobile product you don't see in the App Store — and without it the app stays a demo. Manvi Digital builds backends on Node.js and TypeScript: REST APIs against an OpenAPI contract, authentication, payments, business logic, third-party integrations, databases and realtime. The same TypeScript runs on the client, so request and response types stay shared between frontend and server instead of drifting apart with every release.
We build the backend as part of a full cycle (Discovery → MVP → Production → Support), not as an isolated task: the server is designed around the actual screens and flows of your app, not in the abstract. We take on a server side from scratch for a new product, and we also extend or rework an existing API for a React Native client.
What the server side includes
Baseline scope: a REST API documented in OpenAPI (Swagger), authentication and sessions (JWT, OAuth, refresh tokens, roles and permissions), server-side business logic and validation, database work (PostgreSQL as the primary store, Redis for cache, queues and sessions), files and media, background jobs and queues. On top of that, whatever your app actually needs: payments and subscriptions, push notifications, chat and realtime, geo and search flows.
Every endpoint maps to a concrete screen and user action in the mobile client — the server isn't designed in a vacuum, it grows out of what the app really does.
Payments, integrations and external APIs
We connect payment providers and subscriptions, third-party APIs (maps, delivery, analytics, notifications, CRM/ERP systems) and the client's own services. External integrations sit behind adapters: if a provider changes or a second one is added, it's a change in one layer, not a rewrite of half the backend.
We've shipped integration-heavy products: travel and business trips (BestTrip), express delivery and B2B SaaS (Jiffy), ride and marketplace flows (Devis Group) — domains where the server lives at the intersection of many external systems and payments.
Realtime, database and infrastructure
Realtime scenarios (order statuses, chats, live updates) run over WebSocket; heavy and deferred operations move into queues and background workers so the mobile client never waits. We design the database schema for load and data growth and keep migrations versioned.
Infrastructure is set up per project: Docker, dev/stage/prod environments, logging and monitoring, backups. CI/CD is configured so server deployment is predictable rather than manual — which matters when the mobile and server releases need to ship in sync.
A single source of types for the frontend
The backend and the React Native client are both written in one TypeScript. The API contract becomes a single source of truth: DTO types and validation schemas are reused rather than hand-duplicated on two sides. In practice that removes a whole class of "the server sent something the client didn't expect" bugs and speeds up wiring the frontend to the API.
It also removes the usual pain of having separate vendors for the mobile and server teams: here one engineer/studio owns both sides, so context isn't lost at the client–server boundary.
Timelines and how we work
Rough guide: a baseline MVP backend (API, auth, database, one or two key integrations, deployment) runs around 3–6 weeks; a full server side with payments, realtime and several integrations is 2–4 months. We give a firm estimate after Discovery, once the list of endpoints and integrations is clear.
We work remotely across Russia and abroad. After launch we stay on support: we watch the server, handle incidents, and extend the API for new app features rather than handing it over "as is" and disappearing.
FAQ
Can I order just the backend if the mobile app already exists?
What stack do you build the server side on?
How much does a backend cost and how long does it take?
Tell us about your product — a path to production follows
A 30-minute call: the task, the risks and the format of working together. No obligations.