How Much Does It Cost to Build a Mobile App?

The technology advances have deeply impacted and transformed our lives making it easier, faster, better and more fun. In today’s fast-paced digital world, users are becoming more addicted to smart-phones that flight booking, grocery shopping, business, banking, food ordering, everything seems just a click away.

All this has been possible using mobile applications that act as a medium to connect businesses with millions of customers. With the increasingly dominant role that smart phones play in users’ lives, the worldwide apps market is also growing faster every year. Research predicts that the global mobile apps market will rise at 15.14% CAGR by 2021.

Apps have become a crucial part of a business to reach users that are rapidly going mobile. Having an app is a smart choice for companies that are looking for a new channel to boost profits. One question that comes to our mind is how much does a mobile app cost?

Though there is no fixed price for building a mobile app, the cost depends on a lot of factors like the platform on which the app is being developed, in-app complexity, developing team’s experience, back end servers, etc. Before beginning the journey of app development, it is important to understand the business and revenue generation plans, as it is the biggest factor that affects the app.

Let’s check out some of the top variables that have a direct impact on determining the cost to create an app.

1. Who is your Target Audience?: For every business, customers are the king. Identifying your target audience that will buy/access your app is very essential for business success. Not knowing your customers can be the biggest drawback as such companies will be defeated soon by their competitors that offers specially defined services to cater to their customers ‘needs.
2. Looking for Free, Paid or eCommerce App?: Free apps are available free of cost and such apps make money through different ways like advertising, email marketing, sponsorship, etc. For Paid Apps, there is earning through the number of downloads as users need to pay some amount for using the app. Decide the right price for the app by checking out the users’ willingness to buy. E commerce apps are mostly free, and they earn money by selling products and getting commissions from sellers.
3. Which App Type? Native/ Web/ Hybrid: Choosing the suitable type of app- web, native or hybrid can be a difficult choice. Web apps are the websites optimized for mobile phone users while native apps are the mobile apps built for OS i.e. Android or iOS available for download at app stores. On the other hand, a hybrid app is simpler than the native app as it functions on a single programming language and can work on both platforms.
4. Platform? iOS or Android: After choosing the app base, we need to figure out the platform, depending on which the app will be accessible across platforms like iOS, Android, or both. Since both the platforms have different interfaces, functionalist & systems, apps built for them are different. It is advisable to go for both if you have the budget. Go for Android if you are targeting a larger customer base and iOS would be a better option if you are focusing only on the rich class customers.
5. Additional Functionality: There is no limit to what an app can do! Every unique functionality will cost an extra buck. An app that works with other platforms/applications through APIs can lead to higher costs. The most complex apps are gaming apps as they use many technologies like AI, 3D environments, etc., which can cost a lot more than normal apps.
6. App Features: Your mobile app development cost may add up according to the features like login via mail/phone number, profile section, push notifications, social integration, payment, etc. It is completely your choice to add any other specific features in your app to make it run smooth. However, that will require more time and cost to develop.
7. UI/UX & Design: Design is one of the main reasons that attract users towards the app in the first place. As the app market is highly competitive, it is advisable that you make a good design aligned with the latest technology while developing your app. Another important thing is user experience, which depends on how your app performs its functions and how easily it is navigable to other screens.
8. Development Cost: After deciding all the factors, there is another variable- who is developing your app? Freelancers can be a cheap option for developing your app, but it may cost you later and have a risk of getting delayed or not getting delivered. Small agencies can be a wise choice as they are more skilled & consistent, though you may have to pay a little extra. Lastly, the experienced team will be the costliest as they are fully capable and can address your needs more efficiently.

Conclusion

One thing is clear, we get what we pay for. Any extra functionality/feature you add will cost you extra bucks. One cannot build an amazing app in just a few dollars. However, spending a ton doesn’t contribute to business success automatically. Though it is difficult to find out the exact cost, the average costs will help you get a quick idea.

A relatively complex app can cost around $10k to $40k but the cost may add up according to the platform or location where the app is being built. If you are planning to build a very complex app, you need experienced developers from a top mobile app development company in California that has experience in working with APIs, social media integration and other complicated features. Find out everything you need to know about the project estimation cost before developing one for your business.