From idea to App Store in weeks: how I built Snappit with KMPShip

The best way to prove something works is to use it yourself

What is Snappit?

• Journaling takes too much time and discipline
• Photo albums require curation and organization
• Video content creation is overwhelming and performative

• Weekly montages (~35 seconds)
• Monthly compilations (~2.5 minutes)
• Yearly recaps (~30 minutes)

Why I chose to build Snappit with KMPShip

1. One codebase, two platforms, native performance

2. Real code sharing that actually works

3. KMPShip gave me a massive head start

• Project structure and build configuration
• Dependency injection with Koin
• Navigation with Voyager
• HTTP client with Ktor
• Database with Room
• Push notifications
• In-app subscriptions with RevenueCat
• Analytics integration
• CI/CD pipelines

The KMPShip features powering Snappit

Clean architecture that scales

snappit/
├── shared/
│   ├── core/          # DI, design system, analytics
│   ├── data/          # Repositories, Room DB, data sources
│   ├── domain/        # Entities, use cases, interfaces
│   ├── presentation/  # ViewModels, Compose UI, screens
│   └── gamification/  # Badge and rewards system
├── androidApp/        # Android-specific code
└── iosApp/            # iOS-specific code

Dependency injection with Koin

kotlinCopy
// From Snappit's MainScreen
val viewModel = koinViewModel<MainViewModel>()
val alarmeeService: MobileAlarmeeService = koinInject()

Navigation with Voyager

• Tab-based navigation for the main app (Home, Record, Timeline, Settings)
• Stack navigation for flows like onboarding and paywall
• Modal navigation for video playback and settings sheets

kotlinCopy
// Tab navigation in Snappit
TabNavigator(
    tab = HomeTab,
    tabDisposable = { TabDisposable(it, tabs) }
) { tabNavigator ->
    Scaffold(
        bottomBar = {
            NavigationBar {
                tabs.forEach { tab ->
                    NavigationBarItem(
                        selected = tabNavigator.current == tab,
                        onClick = { tabNavigator.current = tab },
                        icon = { Icon(tab.options.icon) },
                        label = { Text(tab.options.title) }
                    )
                }
            }
        }
    ) { paddingValues ->
        CurrentTab()
    }
}

Room database for offline-first architecture

• RoomClipModel - Video clips with metadata
• RoomMontageModel - Generated montages
• RoomStreakCacheModel - Streak calculations
• RoomBadgeModel - Unlocked badges
• RoomMemoryCardModel - Memory cards
• RoomUserProgressModel - User progress tracking
• RoomPointsTransactionModel - Reward points
• RoomCosmeticModel - User customizations

RevenueCat for subscriptions

kotlinCopy
// From Snappit's RevenueCatDataSource
suspend fun purchaseProduct(productId: String): Result<Unit>
suspend fun isUserSubscribed(): Boolean
fun isUserSubscribedAsFlow(): Flow<Boolean>

• Weekly subscriptions ($2.99)
• Yearly subscriptions ($24.99)
• Free trials (7 days)
• Purchase restoration

Push notifications with Alarmee

kotlinCopy
// Daily reminder scheduling in Snappit
alarmeeService.local.schedule(
    alarmee = Alarmee(
        uuid = RECORD_CLIP_REMINDER_ALARM_ID,
        notificationTitle = title,
        notificationBody = body,
        scheduledDateTime = clipReminderAlarm,
        repeatInterval = RepeatInterval.Daily,
        androidNotificationConfiguration = AndroidNotificationConfiguration(
            channelId = DAILY_RECORD_CLIP_NOTIFICATION_CHANNEL_ID
        ),
        iosNotificationConfiguration = IosNotificationConfiguration(),
    )
)

Analytics for data-driven decisions

• Mixpanel for event tracking
• AppsFlyer for attribution
• Firebase Analytics for general analytics
• Sentry for crash reporting

kotlinCopy
// Event tracking in Snappit
analyticsTracker.trackEvent(AnalyticsEvent.SnappitRecorded)
analyticsTracker.trackEvent(AnalyticsEvent.MontageGenerated(type = montageType))
analyticsTracker.trackEvent(AnalyticsEvent.BadgeUnlocked(badgeId = badge.id))

Firebase authentication

kotlinCopy
// Auth state management in Snappit
val isUserAuthenticated = IsUserAuthenticatedUseCase()
val setAuthProvider = SetUserAuthProviderUseCase()

Beyond KMPShip: Snappit-specific features

Video recording and processing

• Android: CameraX with Camera2 for video capture
• iOS: AVFoundation with AVCaptureSession

Montage generation

• Reading video files from storage
• Concatenating videos in chronological order
• Adding date overlays to each clip
• Generating thumbnails for previews
• Saving the final montage

Gamification system

• 27 collectible badges across 4 categories
• Streak tracking with current and longest streak
• Reward points for various actions

The results: what shipping with KMPShip looks like

Development timeline

Code sharing metrics

• 95%+ code shared between Android and iOS
• 8 shared database tables with identical schemas
• 27 shared ViewModels powering the app
• 1 codebase to maintain instead of 2

App quality

Lessons learned building Snappit

1. Start with Scale tier if you're building a real product

2. The architecture matters more than you think

3. Platform-specific code is fine when needed

4. RevenueCat is worth every penny

Try Snappit yourself

• App Store - iOS, iPad, Mac (Apple Silicon)
• Google Play - Android

Build your own app with KMPShip

• A video app like Snappit
• A social app with feeds and notifications
• A subscription-based service
• A productivity tool
• An e-commerce experience

• Discover tier (Free) - Try KMPShip with no commitment
• MVP tier ($169) - Ship your first product fast
• Scale tier ($349) - Build a real business like Snappit

Frequently asked questions

Continue your KMPShip journey

• KMPShip pricing: a tier for every stage - Find the right tier for your project
• How to set up Kotlin Multiplatform: complete guide - Get started with KMP development
• Big Tech's secret weapon: how Netflix, McDonald's & Cash App ship faster with KMP - See who else uses KMP