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Questions about mini apps for Telegram and MAX

Everything asked before the first app is published — payments, data, MAX, plans and security.

What is a Telegram mini app?
It is an app that opens inside Telegram itself: there is nothing to download or install, it starts from the chat. Payments, automatic sign-in, messages from your bot and full-screen mode all work inside it, which is why shops, booking and ordering sit on it well.
Do I need coding skills to build a mini app?
No coding skills are required. Our visual drag-and-drop builder lets you create professional mini apps by selecting a template, customizing the design, adding your content, and configuring payment methods — all without writing a single line of code.
How long does it take to create a mini app?
You can create and launch a fully functional mini app in as little as 20 minutes. Choose a template, customize it with your branding and content, connect payments, and publish — your app is live and accessible to millions of users.
What payment methods are supported?
Cards work today, through your own merchant account: you connect YooKassa or T-Bank in the publishing dialog, and buyers pay you directly — we never hold the money, and the receipt is issued by your till. An app can also simply take an order through a form and deliver it to your Telegram instantly. Telegram Stars are still on the way; crypto is not planned.
Can the app use my own spreadsheet, or must the data live inside it?
Either way. Tables live inside the project by default, and nothing forces them to: you can import an Excel or CSV file once, or connect a live source and let rows keep arriving — a Google Sheet by link, a private Google Sheet shared with our service account, a workbook on Yandex.Disk, or any address answering JSON, which covers NocoDB, Teable, Baserow, Airtable and your own API. A connected source refreshes on a schedule and at every publish, so changing a price in your sheet changes it in the app without republishing; rows added inside the app can be written back into a Google Sheet. Beyond tables, the app talks to n8n, Make, Zapier or your own server through webhooks in both directions.
Can I use my mini app in both Telegram and MAX?
Yes — you build once, and one address works in both. In Telegram we bind the menu button for you. In MAX the address is pasted into the partner cabinet by hand: MAX offers no API method for it. Publishing in MAX is open to companies, sole traders and self-employed people who are Russian residents, and a bot is moderated within 48 hours on business days.
How much does the Mini App Builder cost?
There are four plans: a free 3-day trial with one published app, Start at 1 290 ₽/month, Pro at 3 490 ₽/month and Studio at 8 900 ₽/month. Building is free — a plan is what publishes an app. Subscriptions renew automatically and can be cancelled at any time; access lasts to the end of the period you paid for.
Which businesses are mini apps for?
Anyone who sells or takes bookings: online shops, restaurants and delivery, beauty salons, fitness clubs, clinics and car services, estate agencies, online courses, event organisers. If your customers already write to you in a messenger, the app has somewhere to open.
Is my data and my customers' data secure?
Sign-in goes through Telegram's own secure authentication: we store no passwords because there are none. Traffic is over HTTPS, and project and submission data sit on a server in Russia. We never touch card data — YooKassa, a PCI DSS compliant provider, takes the payment on its own side, and card numbers never reach our servers. Payments inside your apps will go through equally certified providers once we connect them (autumn 2026).

Mini apps by industry

Still deciding? The industry pages show what the app looks like in each trade.

Do I need a website to sell in Telegram?
No. The app opens inside the messenger and needs no separate site. The reverse also holds: a published app runs only in Telegram and MAX — it will not become a browser website, not even on a custom domain. Online store in Telegram →
Where does the money for an order go?
To your own merchant account. You connect YooKassa or T-Bank in the publishing dialog and the buyer pays you directly — the platform is not part of the settlement. Online store in Telegram →
Can products live in a Google Sheet?
Yes. A sheet connects by link, a private one through our service account. Rows refresh on a schedule and at every publish, so a price corrected in the sheet changes in the app too. Online store in Telegram →
Why is this better than ordering through a bot?
A bot answers in messages; an app shows the whole menu — photographs, sections, the cart and the total. It opens in the same conversation and there is nothing to install. Restaurant and food delivery →
Can the menu change several times a day?
Yes. Table rows are edited from inside the app on a phone, and a connected Google Sheet refreshes on a schedule and at publish time. Restaurant and food delivery →
Do you take a cut of the orders?
No. Payments go through your own merchant account straight to you, and the platform costs a fixed monthly amount set by your plan. Restaurant and food delivery →
Where does a booking request go?
To the owner in Telegram as it is sent, and into the submissions list in the editor at the same time. From there a webhook can pass it to your CRM or to a scenario in n8n, Make or Zapier. Beauty salon and booking →
Can I collect the client’s phone number?
Yes. In MAX the app asks the messenger for the number and confirms it; in Telegram the person’s details arrive signed — the client never sets up a password. Beauty salon and booking →
Does the client have to install anything?
No. The app opens from the bot’s menu button inside Telegram or MAX; there is nothing to download. Beauty salon and booking →
Can I sell access to a course?
Yes, by card through your own merchant account — YooKassa or T-Bank. The money goes straight to you and your till issues the receipt. Online courses and education →
Is a student’s progress kept?
The app keeps their choices in variables, so progress marks survive between sittings. Online courses and education →
Can I email my students from the app?
Not yet: the bot writes to the owner — about a new enquiry, for instance — while broadcasts to an app’s visitors are still in development. The plan is published on the roadmap page. Online courses and education →
How does an attendee get their ticket?
The request reaches the organiser in Telegram and the editor’s submissions list; from there a webhook can hand it to your own scenario — sending the ticket out of n8n or Make, for example. Events and tickets →
Can I take payment in advance?
Yes, by card through your own merchant account. The payment goes straight to you; the platform is not part of the settlement. Events and tickets →
How quickly does the listing update?
Table rows are edited from a phone inside the app, and a connected external source refreshes on a schedule and at publish time. Events and tickets →
How does a client see their schedule?
The club’s timetable lives in the app’s table and opens as a screen; the app keeps the client’s choices in variables between visits. Fitness and wellness →
Can I sell memberships?
Yes, by card through your own merchant account — the money reaches the club directly and your till issues the receipt. Fitness and wellness →
Does this work in MAX?
Yes. The app is built once and one address opens in both Telegram and MAX; in the MAX partner cabinet the address is pasted by hand — they offer no API method for it. Fitness and wellness →
Will the client know the car is ready?
The status is a row in a table: the mechanic changes it from a phone and the client sees it in the app. We do not send notifications for you — the bot writes to the owner, not to visitors. Car service →
Can a photograph of the damage be attached?
Yes: images, PDF and documents up to 10 MB. The file reaches you as a link with the request in Telegram. Car service →
Does it suit a single mechanic?
Yes. A price list, booking and an address are enough to stop losing requests in chat; the same template with fewer rows. Car service →
Can medical details be collected in the form?
The form takes whatever you put in it, but responsibility for personal and medical data rests with the app owner. Sensitive detail is better asked at the appointment than in a request. Clinic and private practice →
Will a patient see their visits?
Yes, when the clinic’s own bot is connected: a visitor’s records are identified by its signature and survive a reload. Clinic and private practice →
How is an appointment moved or cancelled?
The booking row is edited in the table from a phone — the front desk does it between appointments, with no editor open. Clinic and private practice →
Is there a map with pins?
The card carries an address that opens in the phone’s map. The template does not draw its own map with pins inside the app. Real estate →
Can it read an export from our CRM?
If the CRM serves data at an address as JSON, yes — the app reads such a source. We have no ready connectors to particular CRMs. Real estate →
How fast can a sold property be removed?
By marking the row from a phone: it leaves the list immediately, with no republishing. Real estate →
Does it suit a single guide?
Yes: the same screens with fewer rows. One destination, the same itinerary and the same booking. Travel agency and guides →
Can we take the full payment online?
Payment goes through your own merchant account, so it is your call: in full or as a deposit. The money reaches you directly and we take no percentage. Travel agency and guides →
How are tours updated mid-season?
As table rows from a phone, or from your own Google spreadsheet — the app reads external sources too. Travel agency and guides →
Does this replace a website?
Only inside a messenger. A published app opens in Telegram and MAX; in a browser it shows a screen leading to your bot — it does not become a website, even on a custom domain. Services and portfolio →
What files does the form take?
Images, PDF, Word and Excel documents, RTF, plain text, CSV and ZIP up to 10 MB. The file reaches the owner as a link with the enquiry. Services and portfolio →
Does it suit one person?
Yes, that is the main case. The team screen is dropped and services and portfolio stay — the same blocks. Services and portfolio →
Are points added from a receipt automatically?
No. Points are a table row edited from a phone; the template has no link to a till receipt. Loyalty programme →
Can we send everyone a coupon?
No: broadcasting to visitors does not exist in the product yet. The coupon appears in the app and is seen by whoever opens their card. Loyalty programme →
How is the guest recognised at the counter?
By the QR code on the screen. The guest themselves is recognised from the messenger’s signature — no login and no password. Loyalty programme →
How does a CV arrive?
As a file: PDF, Word, an image or a ZIP up to 10 MB. The owner gets it as a link with the application in Telegram. Vacancies and hiring →
Can a team work through applications?
Editors can be invited into the app’s data and edit rows. Full team access to the editor itself does not exist yet; it is on the roadmap. Vacancies and hiring →
Is this for a job aggregator?
More for a single company: your positions, your application form and nobody else’s listings alongside. Vacancies and hiring →
Whose account does the money go through?
Yours — YooKassa or T-Bank. We never hold the money, take no percentage and are not part of the settlement; your till issues the receipt and handles refunds. Fundraising and foundations →
Can donations be recurring?
The template has no automatic monthly charge: a payment is created on a tap. Recurrence is your merchant account’s feature, if it has one. Fundraising and foundations →
Does it suit a personal fundraiser?
The screens are the same. But the merchant account and responsibility for the campaign rest with the app owner, and that is worth knowing before launching. Fundraising and foundations →

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