Businesses that previously relied on their websites for selling their goods or services are moving into the mobile app space as well. For a business, having an app can provide more control over the customer journey and can provide a more personalized experience.
There are plenty of ways that you can create an app for your business, from using a simple app-building software to paying an app developer to create native apps from scratch. Depending on what you need your app to do, the cost can vary greatly.
Factors That Impact How Much an App Costs To Make
- App Functionality: This should be obvious, but the simpler your app is the cheaper it should cost to develop. More complex features take longer to implement and often require paying more experienced, more expensive app developers.
- Device/OS Support: Developing an app for both iOS and Android is not as complicated as it used to be. Cross-platform frameworks and app-builders have made it simpler to publish apps to both iOS and Android app stores. If your app is more complex and requires control of a device’s hardware, building separate native apps for iOS and Android may be necessary. In that case, the development process can be longer and, as a result, more expensive.
- Third Party Integrations: Your app may require other information from third party APIs or data sources. If the service your app communicates with offers an API, this can be a simple process. If not, it can be a lengthy and expensive process to get those features implemented.
- Visual/Graphic Elements: If your developer has basic skills in graphic design or Adobe Photoshop, they can likely handle much of the design needed for your app. If you want more complex visual elements like animations or cartoons, you may have to hire a graphic designer for that work.
- Updating and Maintenance Needs: If you don’t have an internal development team at your company, you’ll likely have to pay someone else to make changes to your app whenever you want to make updates. These costs can pile up quickly if you run into any bugs or problems with your app.
Average App Development Costs
According to Business of Apps, the average development cost of a mobile app is as follows:
- Average cost to develop an iOS app: ~$28k
- Average cost to develop an Android app: ~$23k
- Average cost to develop a Windows Phone app: ~$18k
These costs are just the costs to develop the app, there will likely be additional expenses to maintain and upgrade your app as needed. According to Glassdoor, the average salary for a mobile application developer is around $96,000 per year. If mobile applications are a main facet of your business, it could be worth hiring a developer internally to keep your app running smoothly.
How To Cut Down on App Development Costs
- Provide Clear Requirements and Expectations: This should be a key part of any project involving developers. When you provide a clear picture of what you’re looking for, it’s much easier for developers to execute on that vision. You should expect to go through a revision process after receiving the “finished” version of your app, but setting clear expectations can drastically speed up this process.
- Cut Out Unnecessary Functionality: It can be tempting to make your app do everything for everyone, but that can actually end up taking away from the core functionality. Adding additional features not only will make the development process longer, but it can also potentially confuse users.
- Choose The Right Mobile App Developer: It is important to be selective when choosing a developer or development company to build your app. An inexperienced developer may be unable to execute all of the requested features of your app, which can extend the development timeline.
- Set a Realistic Timeline: You should discuss the timeline for delivery of your app before selecting a developer for your project. It’s important to find a developer that can deliver your app in a timely manner, but rushing can lead to an incomplete or sloppy end product.