How much does app development cost?

A mobile app has become as important as a website for a business nowadays. If you don’t have an application targeting mobile users, you are losing out on great growth opportunities because your competitors have already moved forward to develop one for their customers. When coming to developing your business app, the app development cost is one of the top concerns for business operators. 

The following article, therefore, will provide helpful information to ensure you’ll get your desired application with the best app development cost:

1. The answer to why your business needs a mobile app
2. Statistics on the average cost to develop a mobile app
3. App development cost calculation
4. Checklist for choosing an app development company

How much to build an app

1. How do mobile apps benefit businesses?

Imagine you go to a coffee shop, enter a shopping mall, or wander in town. Have you seen so many people carrying a smartphone in their hands?

These days it is so convenient for consumers to shop, communicate, update news, entertain, and work… with just their mobile phones.

Above all, a custom mobile app for your business helps you serve current customers and attracts new customers, increases competitiveness, and brings high profits to the business.

2. Does my business need an app? 

Here are some key reasons why you need to invest in custom mobile app development for your business:

2.1 Personalized Experience

You would want your users to get the best-personalized experience as much as possible. The only way to do it is to leverage the benefits of a custom mobile application.

Features are integrated per the target audience, and the elements are created to fit the particular users’ needs.

Therefore, the end result is enhanced and aimed for the design and décor specifically fitting to ensure that users will get a better experience.

2.2 Integration with Your Business Model

Your business model would have specific characteristics and modalities, requiring certain processes to merge well. This is what a custom mobile application will provide you.

It will have features and functionalities adjusted and well-incorporated with your existing system to enhance the overall process and capabilities.

2.3 Scalability

As your business grows and expands, the related products will also need to be expanded. This is something a generic app won’t be able to cater to.

A custom app would be scalable in terms of functions and capabilities, which could be easily upgraded in a seamless way with your business model.

3. What affects app development costs?

3.1 Complexity Level of App Development

The complexity level of an app will depend on the number and the type of its integrated features and functionalities. Thus, the more comprehensive the app is, the more time the developers need to spend on the project. In other words, the app’s complexity determines how costly it will be to your business. As mentioned above, the level of comprehension in developing a mobile app can be broken down into 3 main categories: 

1. App with basic features

• Login
• Signup
• Search
• Notifications
• Admin panel or dashboard

2. App with API features

• In-App Purchases
• Geo-location
• Location Tracking

3. App with complex features:

• Messaging
• Video Calls

3.2 Customization of Visual Design

Before finalizing an app, UI/UX design is a must to help visualize the detailed look and user experience of the app. This piece of mock-up provides coders with insight to decide what features and functionalities to be employed in the mobile application. Therefore the complexity of UI/UX design will affect the app development cost. For example: 

• The number of screens needed to complete a process,
• The type of user interface (Native UIs cost more than hybrid interfaces),
• The number of animations in the design.

3.3 The Platform on Which the App Will Run

After having core information on how much an app development will cost in terms of app features and design complexity, the platform to operate the app is another factor you need to care about:

3.3.1  Develop Hybrid or Cross-Platform App

Hybrid app indicates an application that can either run on Android or iOS devices. Meanwhile cross-platform (aka multi-platform) is an application that can run smoothly on several operating systems. Note that the most crucial factor is to understand your target market well. Therefore, when deciding between Android and iOS, consider these 3 things:

• Market Share
• Device Fragmentation
• Prevalence

It is useful to find out the cost of iOS app development by knowing the market. You need to know where iOS is more prevalent than Android and vice versa.

3.3.2 Develop a native app

Different from a hybrid app, a native app can only operate on a single platform: Android or iOS. Hence, if you want to develop a native app running on both Android and iOS, you’ll need to hire 2  particular development teams. In other words, instead of spending money on one version, you will need to double the budget to get one team to build the Android version and the other to create an iOS version.

Then you might wonder what is the cost for an iPhone app and an Android app. The answer is the cost to develop an iPhone app and an Android app is the same.

3.4 Hidden app development cost

When calculating the cost to develop a mobile app, don’t forget to estimate the hidden cost your business has to pay on the project. The hidden cost is the unforeseen expense that adds to the purchase cost. It can be a minor cost that you can miss out on. We’ve listed out several additional costs that often pop up to develop an effective app as follows:

• Fee for third-party integration. For instance, push notifications, geolocation, SMS, etc
• Admin or management costs. For example, content manager salary.
• Additional fee for infrastructure. The payment for server, CDN, and integrations like Redis.
• Cost for app maintenance and upgrade (if needed) 

4. Is creating an app expensive? How much will app development cost?

How much does it cost to build a mobile app?

4.1 App development cost benchmark

If you’re looking for an offshore development company to take over your app project, you might prefer to have a look at the pricing model in the outsourcing market. There are some common options that the market can offer you: 

• Fixed price: You’ll determine the app development costs before starting the project. This pricing model is suitable for small-scale projects within a specific time frame. Based on your requirements and estimated timeline, the outsourcing clients will provide you with the project’s total budget. 

• Time & material: Regarding the more complex projects with unidentified criteria at the beginning and needing further modification during the process, the payment method is hourly rates. In other words, the total cost will be calculated by multiplying the hourly charge by the total hours spent on each development stage.

We’ve comprised the general cost range for developing a mobile app:

App development cost benchmark

4.2 Cost of app development by type

Different type of application requires a specific time range to finish. Hence app type is a factor that can significantly affect the app development cost. The following table provides a list of the most popular types of mobile applications and the average development cost involved:

4.3 Cost of app development by region

Sometimes, higher app development costs do not indicate higher product quality. The cost of developing an app can vary due to the difference in the average salary across countries. The table shows a clear comparison of developer’s rates in different territories. 

App development cost in different regions

The table can surprise you that the money you have to pay for the highest-priced app developer in the US is up to 150$/h while a skilled one in India or Vietnam only charges you $50 or even $25. This means six times cheaper yet the product quality can be the same. It is such good news for SMEs and startups who hope to have their app with a tight budget.

Generally, a minimum app development project is about $10,000 and enterprise mobile app development costs much higher depending on requirements.

5. How much does it cost to build an app in Vietnam?

It depends on a lot of factors. The average cost starts from $10,000. The minimum budget requirement is 10,000 USD. At InApps Technology, we still take projects around $5,000 to below $10,000 in case it is a pilot project and have a roadmap for the next phases.

How much does it cost to make an app?

6. Checklist for choosing app development company

6.1 Search for reviews and feedback from previous clients

Looking for customer feedback and review is one of the shortcuts to identifying an ace app development company. In some cases, it can be even better if you can directly contact one of their clients. By talking to previous customers, you can gain helpful information on the pros and cons of the company. Up to now, customer feedback is still one of the most credible sources of information to analyze the quality of one service/product. 

6.2 Evaluate the company portfolio

A sharp UI/UX design can partly prove the experience of its developer. Therefore, you should ask the clients for their portfolios, scrutinize them, and ensure to keep an eye on those providing a user-friendly interface with attractive visuals. 

Moreover, you should evaluate whether their logic in designing is suitable and aligns with your app’s vision. Since it’s a crucial point your companion should be the one who shares the same ideas with you. 

6.3 Determine your project’s goals and budget

Before starting any project, it’s important that you clearly define your goals and product requirements. The more detailed your plan is, the more likely you will have the final product align with your vision. 

It’s also ideal to provide your client with a specific budget range. This helps the process become easier since the client can consult you with suitable options within your estimated budget. 

7. About InApps

With InApps, you can save thousands of dollars (reduce up to 70% of IT cost or only from $20,000 to $40,000/project). We offer full services with:

• Transparent cost and commitment.
• Free consultation and completed proposal.
• Free design mobile application concept.

Moreover, we’re proud to be a reputable partner who’ve provided mobility solutions, mobile app design and development for +60 international startups, SMEs & enterprises from many industries namely heallthcare, dating, gaming, payment, Food & Restaurant,…

Reliability is one of the elements to make the best decision! Hence, we shall show you our reputation via our case studies.

8. Common FAQs on app development cost

iOS vs Android, which is better? 

Thanks to the speedy development of technology, especially the strong support of well-known frameworks, we often recommend our clients to start with both iOS and Android platforms. We have optimized development time and cost when using React Native to be able to develop mobile apps running simultaneously on both iOS and Android.

However, if the customers want to choose only one platform to start with because they plan to have a free download app or an MVP test the market, we would recommend it should start with Android development, as Android’s users are more than iOS’. Plus, it’s easier to deploy to the Store.

Android or iOS, Native or Hybrid — which platform is best to build your app? 

noted that the cost to develop a native app is more than that of a hybrid one. And this is for obvious reasons. You require double the human resources and effort to build two apps simultaneously. As for now, React Native can do almost everything that native iOS and Android can do. It is also helpful regarding cost and time-saving. We would recommend React Native (iOS, Android).