Message Makeover for iMessage - Colorful Bubbles
48
Quality Score
Emerging
✍️ Bumetric analysis
“
Message Makeover for iMessage - Colorful Bubbles is an iOS app from Andrew Halligan in the Social Networking category, currently rated 3.5★ across 35 ratings. Initial signal reads as mixed reviews: supporters praise core features while critics cite stability and value gaps.
Quality Score is 48: Emerging (early traction worth watching). For a Social Networking app, that means early traction worth watching. The full BU Investment Matrix below scores 8 dimensions including monetisation, growth, and operational risk.
Track changes month-over-month in the Performance section below: live snapshot history and revenue forecast included.
💰 Monthly revenue · now vs forecast
● Right now
$2.7K
per month
→
12-mo forecast
$2.3K – $8.4K
per month
→
24-mo forecast
$2.2K – $19.4K
per month
INDIE tierFREE
💡 Grow this revenue
Free AI audit of this app’s store listing
- Title & subtitle keyword fit
- Description hook & conversion structure
- Screenshots, ratings, reviews strategy
Typical impact: +2-5× organic installs
📊 Performance Tracking LIVE
26 snapshots on record
Rating
3.5
Reviews
35 reviews
Forecast Revenue / mo
$2.7K
Snapshots tracked
26
since Nov 2011
ONE-TIME · BUILD
💰 Estimated build cost
$175K
↳ What it cost to build · not monthly revenue
Likely range $130K – $235K
$25K · MVP floor
$100K · indie scale
$500K+ · studio build
📈
Slow ROI — current MRR is well below build cost
Synthetic estimate. Inputs: category complexity, file size, screen count, monetization layer, platform reach, age × team-size proxy. Calibrated against 2024-2026 indie-agency rate surveys. Full math + source list on /methodology.
Where the money goes
| 🧱 MVP baseline (design + 1-store ship) | +$28K |
| 📱 5 unique screens × $4.5K | +$22K |
| ⚙ Social Networking complexity ×1.70 | +$35K |
| ⚙ 14.9y maintenance × ~1-person team | +$89K |
Total estimate
$175K
ONE-TIME · EXIT VALUE
💵 Estimated acquisition value
$40K
↳ What it would sell for · not monthly revenue
Marketplace range $30K – $50K · 14× MRR multiple
💸
~0.2× build cost (under-water)
Synthetic estimate. Multiple band derived from ad-supported + age, rating quality, category demand, and user-base maturity. Calibrated against 2024-2026 indie-app-marketplace closed-deal medians. Full math + comparable deal list on /methodology.
How the multiple was built
| 📺 Ad-supported base | 15× MRR |
| 📅 14.9y proven track record | +20% |
| ⭐ ★ rating < 3.5 (weak) | -18% |
| 🏷 Social Networking category multiple | +5% |
| ⭐ Small user base (<1K ratings) | -8% |
Final multiple
14× MRR
🛠 Estimated tech stack
🍎
Native iOS (Swift / UIKit)
High confidence · 80%
Also possible
Native iOS (SwiftUI)
Heuristic guess from app bundle size, category, store description signals, and release-date stack era. Bumetric does not disassemble binaries — for binary-level certainty you would need an SDK intelligence tool or the manifest itself. Reasoning chain on the right. Full ruleset on /methodology.
Signals we read
| 📦 App bundle size | 18 MB |
| 🏷 Category context | Social Networking |
| 📦 Compact iOS bundle | → Native Swift / UIKit (pre-2020 era) |
💀 Maintenance status
Likely abandoned
95%
Last shipped 2017-09-01 · 3312 days ago
0 · Active
50 · At risk
100 · Abandoned
Heuristic risk score from time-since-last-update + ratings velocity proxy + Editor's Choice / curated featuring signals. Calibrated against 2024-2025 app-store ranking decay reports. Not a guarantee — a quiet app with a healthy codebase looks the same as an abandoned one until something breaks. Full math on /methodology.
Risk signals
| 📅 9y+ since last update | Likely abandoned |
| 👥 Small user base (35 ratings) + 14.9y old | +10% (solo-project pattern) |
| • 15y old + 1y+ no update | +5% (API deprecation drift) |
Verdict
Likely abandoned
🔬
How we forecast this revenue
MEDIUM CONFIDENCEBaseline
$2.7K/mo · ML-estimated from 234 triggers
Growth rate
+6.0% MoM · INDIE tier baseline (compound monthly)
Direction
Headwinds: rating drift may slow acquisition
6 months
$2.3K – $5.3K
12 months
$2.3K – $8.4K
24 months
$2.2K – $19.4K
Compound growth at +6.0% MoM (tier baseline for INDIE). Range widens with horizon — typical noise band ±40% at 6mo.. Ranges widen with horizon — distant futures carry more uncertainty.
📊
BU Investment Matrix
Pre-traction · 29/100INDIE TIERFREE (NO MONETIZATION)limited signalRevenue Strength
3.4
Product Quality
1.3
Market Position
2.0
Growth Velocity
5.0
Defensibility
6.0
Operational Safety
0.0
Founder Strength
4.8
Monetization Maturity
0.5
- 💰 Revenue: Modest — $1K - $6K/mo · INDIE tier · medium confidence, trajectory unclear.
- ⭐ Quality: 3.49★ across 35 reviews — weak — significant quality concerns.
- 📍 Market: Not yet charting in any of the 9 monitored markets.
- 📈 Growth: ⚠ last update 3312d ago — possibly dormant.
- ⚠️ Risk: High — 8.2% refund mentions, scam/fraud mentions detected, rating drift -1.81 ★ (recent 50 vs lifetime).
🎯 For competitors: Vulnerable. Quality drift + slow updates create a clear opening for a fresh competitor with active dev cadence.
💵 For acquirers: Estimated asking range 12-22× monthly = $31K-$58K. Portfolio play ($5K/mo combined) commands premium. Discount applied for operational risk..
Composite of 8 dimensions computed deterministically from public signals — no LLM, every score traces back to a measurable input. Default weights shown; "compete" / "acquire" / "invest" lenses re-weight without re-fetching.
Range:
💰 Forecast Revenue / mo
MODELRevenue forecast computed from BU's 234 trigger model on each snapshot. Calibrated against ground-truth from 58 verified-revenue apps.
🔬Forecast Breakdown — Why This Estimate?Top 5 of 5 triggers
Our ML model uses 200+ signals from public data. These are the most influential for this app:
| Paid app ($0.00)METRIC | +$2,800 | |
| Below-average rating (3.5★)METRIC | −$1,500 | |
| Mature app (14y old)METRIC | +$1,500 | |
| Single-language (English only)METRIC | −$400 | |
| Pre-traction phase (35 ratings)METRIC | −$300 |
METRIC = structural app data · REVIEW = mined from user reviews · ✓ VERIFIED = Stripe-verified anchor (TrustMRR)
📈 Reviews Growth
LIVECumulative review count from first BU snapshot. Each point = a tracked update.
⭐ Rating Trend
LIVEAverage rating evolution. Updates with each new review batch.
🆕 What's New · v2.0.0
- Added the ability to directly insert your iMessages into the Messages app for sending (no more copy and paste!)
- Completely revamped the application to support the latest version of iOS and beyond!… Full release notes →
- Completely revamped the application to support the latest version of iOS and beyond!… Full release notes →
Profile & Insights
Everything we know — and don't — about this app and its company.
Identification
- App name
- Message Makeover for iMessage - Colorful Bubbles
- Developer
- Andrew Halligan
- Bundle ID
- com.nearlyfreeapps.iMessageMakeover
- App Store URL
- Open in App Store
- Category
- Social Networking
- Content rating
- 4+
- Languages
- EN
Company
- Website
- Not found
- Tagline
- Today
- Description
- Find apps and games for iPhone, iPad, Mac, and more on the App Store.
- Founded
- Not found
- HQ / Address
- Not found
- Employees
- Not found
- Logo
- Available
Revenue
- Reported revenue signal / mo
- Not found
- AI revenue estimate / mo
- Not found
- AI annual estimate
- Not found
- Model estimate / mo
- $2.7K/mo
- Top-grossing rank
- Outside top 100 in US Social Networking
- All-time revenue
- Not found
- Pricing
- Not found
Founder
Founder data not yet collected for this app.
Funding
Funding data not yet collected for this app.
Press & Links
Press & Links data not yet collected for this app.
Contacts & Socials
Contacts & Socials data not yet collected for this app.
📈Ratings growth34 ratings+386% lifetimeShow 3-year history estimate ▾
Tracked (26 weeks) Pre-tracking estimate (0 weeks) · model-based, ±5% noise · anchored to release date and current value
🌍Geographic ReachNot ranked
This app is currently outside the top 100 grossing in all 9 countries we monitor (US, UK, DE, FR, JP, CA, AU, BR, IN). Niche or new apps often launch this way — popularity rankings appear once daily revenue clears the regional threshold.
💰Pricing History$0.00 → $0.99 (+0%)
Profile is built from iTunes Lookup + developer site scrape + ML revenue model. Empty fields show "Not found" — additional sources (Crunchbase, X, IndieHackers, Acquire.com) coming.
📝 About this app
Message Makeover for iMessage is ON SALE celebrating our launch! Grab it now!
Tired of the old blue and grey iMessages? Look no further. Message Makeover for iMessage is bringing beautiful messaging to iPod Touch, iPad and iPhone.
Be the envy of all your friends by sending them bold, colorful messages that they can only dream of.
Features
- Custom iMessage Background Color
- Custom iMessage Font Color
- Beautifully designed, simple interface
- Preview your message before you want to send!
- Launch Messages app directly from the app… View full description on the official store →
Tired of the old blue and grey iMessages? Look no further. Message Makeover for iMessage is bringing beautiful messaging to iPod Touch, iPad and iPhone.
Be the envy of all your friends by sending them bold, colorful messages that they can only dream of.
Features
- Custom iMessage Background Color
- Custom iMessage Font Color
- Beautifully designed, simple interface
- Preview your message before you want to send!
- Launch Messages app directly from the app… View full description on the official store →
App Specs
🔐 Own this app? Claim & verify MRR →💾 18 MB🔞 4+📱 iOS 10.0+🔖 v2.0.0🔄 updated 9y ago🌐 EN📂 Social Networking💰 Paid🚀 Launched 2011 (14y old)
📅
What Worked™ · Development Pipeline
12 EVENTS TRACKEDDetected changes in this app over its tracked lifetime — each event links cause (what changed) to effect (what moved). Sorted newest first.See full history →Version history →
2026-05
💲
Went paid — introduced $0.99 price point
2026-05
⭐
Rating ↓ 5.00 → 3.49 (dropped 1.51★)
2026-03
⭐
Rating ↑ 1.76 → 5.00 (improved 3.24★)
2011-12
📈
Crossed 10 ratings — social-proof flywheel kicking in
→ 30 days after: revenue +$232/mo · rating −0.06★ · reviews +6 medium · co-occurring
2011-12
⭐
Rating ↓ 2.86 → 2.18 (dropped 0.68★)
→ 30 days after: revenue +$232/mo · rating −0.06★ · reviews +6 medium · co-occurring
2011-12
📈
Crossed 10 ratings — social-proof flywheel kicking in
→ 30 days after: revenue +$376/mo · rating −0.74★ · reviews +10 medium · co-occurring
2011-11
⭐
Rating ↓ 3.60 → 3.17 (dropped 0.43★)
→ 30 days after: revenue +$143/mo · rating −0.68★ medium · co-occurring
2011-11
🚀
First tracked snapshot — initial data captured
→ 30 days after: revenue +$143/mo · rating −0.68★ medium · co-occurring
2011-11
⭐
Rating ↑ 3.00 → 3.50 (improved 0.50★)
→ 30 days after: revenue +$143/mo · rating −0.68★ low · multiple changes
2011-11
⭐
Rating ↓ 4.00 → 3.00 (dropped 1.00★)
→ 30 days after: revenue +$143/mo · rating −0.68★ low · multiple changes
2011-11
⭐
Rating ↓ 5.00 → 4.00 (dropped 1.00★)
→ 30 days after: revenue +$143/mo · rating −0.68★ medium · co-occurring
2011-11
🚀
First tracked snapshot — initial data captured
→ 30 days after: revenue +$143/mo · rating −0.68★ medium · co-occurring
🗣
Voice of Customer
Based on 61 reviews across 4 markets● 43% positive · ● 15% neutral · ● 43% negative · Rating drift: -1.81★ (declining — recent 50: 1.68★ vs lifetime: 3.49★)
Sentiment by country (−1 to +1)
🇦🇺 AU
+0.19
🇬🇧 GB
+0.13
🇺🇸 US
+0.09
🇨🇦 CA
-0.18
Top praise themes
messages ×4 paste ×4 it's ×4 font ×4 size ×4 works ×3 its ×3
Top complaint themes
waste money ×13 copy paste ×7 don't buy ×6 paste into ×3 it's picture ×3 waste 69p ×3 change ×11 text ×10
Risk signals
Refund mentions: 8.2% Fraud / scam mentions: 1.6%
🌍
Multi-Country Performance
Available in 7 of 9 monitored markets| Market | Rating | Reviews | Current version |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🇺🇸 US | 3.48571★ | 35 | 3.48571★ this version |
| 🇬🇧 GB | 5★ | 4 | 5★ this version |
| 🇯🇵 JP | 0★ | 0 | — |
| 🇨🇦 CA | 3★ | 2 | 3★ this version |
| 🇦🇺 AU | 4.375★ | 8 | 4.375★ this version |
| 🇧🇷 BR | 0★ | 0 | — |
| 🇮🇳 IN | 0★ | 0 | — |
🔔
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📝 Description
95
BU Score · Transcendent
More by Andrew Halligan
View all →📦 Portfolio summaryINDIE studio
2apps·$7K/mocombined
Lead-app heavy — top app contributes 65%
About this analysis
Why low confidence: only 35 ratings · no founder-verified revenue (model estimate only) · revenue figure is directional only.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
9 answers · auto-generated from this app's public dataHow much does Message Makeover for iMessage - Colorful Bubbles make per month?▴
Based on our ML-calibrated revenue forecast, Message Makeover for iMessage - Colorful Bubbles earns approximately $2.7K/mo. This is a US-storefront-equivalent estimate; global revenue can be several times larger for internationally-distributed apps. See the methodology page for the full formula and confidence bands.
Is Message Makeover for iMessage - Colorful Bubbles profitable?▴
With estimated build cost $175K and monthly revenue $2.7K, Message Makeover for iMessage - Colorful Bubbles looks well below break-even — current monthly revenue is much smaller than the estimated build cost. Profitability also depends on paid-acquisition spend and refund rate which the public model doesn't see.
What apps are like Message Makeover for iMessage - Colorful Bubbles?▴
Browse the full Social Networking category catalog to find similar apps with revenue, build cost, audience and tech stack data. Each /p/{slug} page also shows a Compare side-by-side widget with three peer apps from the same niche.
What is Message Makeover for iMessage - Colorful Bubbles built with?▴
Our heuristic places Message Makeover for iMessage - Colorful Bubbles on the Native iOS (Swift / UIKit) stack (High confidence, 80%). Signals: app bundle size, category context, store-description markers, release-date era. We don't disassemble binaries. Alternative possibilities: Native iOS (SwiftUI).
Is Message Makeover for iMessage - Colorful Bubbles still actively maintained?▴
Maintenance status: Likely abandoned (95% abandonment risk). Last shipped version was 9+ years ago. The risk score combines time-since-last-update with Editor's Choice / curated featuring + user-base maturity adjustments.
How much would Message Makeover for iMessage - Colorful Bubbles sell for?▴
Estimated acquisition value: $40K (marketplace range $30K – $50K). Calculated as 14× monthly revenue using the standard multiple for the detected monetization model + adjustments for age, rating quality and category demand. Calibrated against 2024-2026 Flippa / Acquire.com / MicroAcquire closed-deal medians.
When was Message Makeover for iMessage - Colorful Bubbles last updated?▴
Message Makeover for iMessage - Colorful Bubbles last shipped a new version on 2017-09-01 — more than 9 year(s) ago. This is the date Apple / Google last accepted a new build, not a content-only push.
Who makes Message Makeover for iMessage - Colorful Bubbles?▴
Message Makeover for iMessage - Colorful Bubbles is published by Andrew Halligan on the Apple App Store. See the full publisher portfolio (other apps by the same developer) via the More by developer block on the product page above.
What is Message Makeover for iMessage - Colorful Bubbles's BU Score?▴
Message Makeover for iMessage - Colorful Bubbles has a BU Score of 48/100 (Emerging). The score combines App Store rating, ratings count, monetization model and revenue signals calibrated against founder-verified MRR anchors. See the BU Score formula.