How to make an app for an optical shop

An optical shop keeps a lot in its head: each customer's last prescription, which order went to the lab for lenses, who paid an advance, and whose glasses are ready. An app for the counter keeps every order and prescription in one list, so you can answer 'is mine ready?' in a few seconds.

Updated 2026-11-09

Who uses the app

The shop: owner, counter staff and the person who fits lenses. One phone at the counter can keep the data on that phone. If two or more staff use their own phones, or you have a second branch, connect your own Supabase database so everyone sees the same orders.

The screens an optical shop app needs

Orders: Every glasses order with its stage: frame chosen, lenses ordered, fitting, ready, delivered
New order: Customer, prescription, frame, lens type, price, advance paid and promised date
Customers: Search by name or phone; each customer's prescriptions by date and past orders
Prescription: Right and left eye readings as written on the prescription, who tested and the date, with a photo of the slip attached
Payments: Advances and balances, and orders where money is still due
Stock: Frames and contact lens boxes in the shop by type and price, entered by hand

Features worth asking for

A 'ready for pickup' button that opens WhatsApp with the customer's name and order ready
An order slip or bill as a PDF to share or print from the phone
Order stages so the counter can see which glasses are waiting for lenses from the lab
A list of customers whose last eye test was over a year ago, with a WhatsApp reminder to visit
Contact lens customers due for a new box, based on the date of their last purchase
A photo of the prescription slip attached to the customer's record

Where the data lives

If only the counter phone uses it, the data stays on that phone and works without internet. For more staff phones or a second branch, connect your own Supabase database from the chat; to take advances online, connect your own Razorpay account too.

How to make it with AppCub, step by step

Decide what the app does. List the screens you need, for example: Orders, New order, Customers, Prescription, Payments.
Describe it to AppCub. Paste the request below, changed to your own business and details.
Check the plan. AppCub shows the screens and features it will build. Change them in the chat until they are right; seeing the plan is free.
Try it on your phone. The app runs live next to the chat. Scan the QR code to install it, and ask for changes.
Share it. Share it as a web link, an APK file, or publish it on Google Play from your own developer account.

Copy this request, change the details to match your optical shop, and paste it into AppCub:

Make an app for the counter of my optical shop, Sri Lakshmi Opticals, Vijayawada. Screens: orders, new order, customers, prescription, payments and stock. Each order has a customer, prescription, frame, lens type, total, advance and promised date, and moves through stages: lenses ordered, fitting, ready, delivered. Store right and left eye readings by date with a photo of the slip. Add a WhatsApp 'your glasses are ready' button, an order slip PDF, a list of customers due for a yearly eye test, and contact lens customers due for a new box. Navy and white colours.

Tips for an optical shop app

Start with orders and customers. Add stock and recall lists once the counter uses the app every day.
Ask AppCub to lay out the prescription fields the same way as your test slip, so typing them in is quick.
Use the stage names your shop already says out loud, such as 'gone to lab' or 'for fitting'.
Customers' prescriptions are personal data; keep the counter phone locked and add sign-in if staff use their own phones.
Run a week of real orders alongside your order book before you stop writing it.

What it costs

Describing your app and seeing AppCub’s plan for it is free.
A new app usually takes 60 to 110 credits. Start with the 2-day trial for ₹99 (150 credits, enough for one app and a few changes) or the one-time App Pack for ₹499. Starter is ₹1,599 a month for 700 credits.
Google Play needs a paid plan (it includes the Play Store bundle and your app’s signing key) and your own Google Play developer account, a one-time US$25 fee to Google.
Work that fails or is rolled back costs no credits.

See all plans

Good to know

AppCub doesn't connect to eye testing machines, lens edging machines, barcode scanners or billing machines; readings and stock are typed in. Messages go when staff tap the WhatsApp button, not by themselves.
AppCub builds Android apps. You can also share the app as a web link that opens on any phone; for the iPhone App Store, AppCub’s team can do it for you.

Questions

Can the app store a customer's power?

Yes. Ask for right and left eye fields as written on your test slip, saved by date, so you can see how the power changed over the years.

Can it tell customers their glasses are ready?

A button opens WhatsApp with the message ready, and the counter staff send it. Nothing is sent automatically.

Can I track orders sent to the lens lab?

Yes. Ask for order stages, such as lenses ordered, fitting and ready, and a list of orders waiting longer than the promised date.

Can the app import readings from the testing machine?

No. AppCub doesn't connect to testing machines; staff type the readings in or attach a photo of the printout.

Can I keep stock of frames in the app?

Yes, as a simple list you update by hand, with type, colour and price. If frames carry barcodes, the installed app can scan them with the phone's camera; it doesn't connect to separate scanner machines.

Can customers check their order status themselves?

Yes, if you connect your own Supabase database and give customers their own screen with sign-in. Most shops simply send a WhatsApp message.

Make your optical shop app

Seeing the plan is free. Building starts with a 2-day trial for ₹99.

Start building