How much does it cost to build a mobile app? This is a question we more often get asked by clients. Unfortunately, we can’t give a simple, straightforward answer to it, as many factors affect the mobile app development cost.
And, because every app’s requirements are unique, and the prices heavily depend on them, it would become somewhat challenging to answer this question without evaluating those requirements.
However, if we are to throw a lump sum, we wouldn’t be exaggerating by saying an average mobile app development cost could range from $500 to a whopping $500,000+. At first, this could seem vague, and it indeed is.
But as we have already said, the cost is prone to influence by various factors, including features, complexities, platforms, and to what extent your developer offers android or iPhone app development services.
The mobile app development price we have given here could discourage some SME businesses. However, you can reduce the cost of app development to some extent if you follow these tips.
Pick the right platform
This is the first choice you would be making when starting your mobile app development. And it can significantly affect the cost of building your mobile app. To select the right platform, you must consider various points like your audience, geography, device preferences, design specifics, project goals, etc.
If you want to build an app that targets a global audience, cross-platform development can be an excellent cost-saving option. It can save you up to 70% of the cost. However, your app requirement may not be suitable for cross-platform development.
And if you choose to go for a native approach, simultaneously developing both apps can double the app development cost. So, focus on building one app at a time.
Use libraries, frameworks, and third-party services
Nowadays, many libraries, frameworks, and third-party services help speed up the development process. You don’t have to build everything from scratch; these tools allow you to incorporate pre-written code to build desired features and functionalities. This reduces the development time and eventually cost as well.
For example, if you wish to incorporate voice message functionality, you can use existing tools like Twilio. Similarly, if you want to integrate advanced technologies like AI, ML, AR, or such, there are plenty of libraries with pre-programmed algorithms.
Reuse existing digital system
Mobile applications are often built as complementary systems to the existing ones. For example, companies have a website or desktop applications and wish to expand to mobile for an omnichannel experience. In this case, you can use some of the components and logic from the existing system.
For example, you can pull data through an API, reuse third-party libraries and integrations from websites, and keep the business logic running in the background. This will help you reduce the time and cost of developing a mobile app and offer a more consistent experience to users.
You might want to Read:
- How Can BI(Business Intelligence) Mobile App Development is Transforming Businesses
- Utility App Development: Tips That Make Your Development Easy!
Outsource mobile app developers
Outsourcing could also be a cost-effective mobile app development option compared to hiring in-house teams. Nowadays, there are numerous platforms from which you can hire remote iOS swift developers online. An expert development team can make your development process simpler and more seamless.
They put their expertise and experience from ideating to researching and growing that idea into a full-fledged mobile app system. An expert team will also help you make essential architectural decisions, choose the tech stack, and, most importantly, optimise the mobile app development cost.
Be thoughtful at choosing features
At first, you might get tempted to add as many features to your app as possible to provide your audience with the best user experience. But this could also increase the cost of building a mobile application. Therefore, well-thought feature prioritisation is essential for ensuring the success of your application.
Rather than putting all functionalities at once, figure out what you need to launch a working version of your application in the market. And after that, you can build your app iteratively depending on users’ feedback.
Initiate with Minimum Viable Product (MVP)
MVP approach is similar to what we discussed in the previous tip, but instead of building a full-fledged mobile application, we are building an initial version of an app with enough features here. This is a very feasible choice for startups and entrepreneurs who wish to try their idea and want to showcase them to early adopters or investors.
If you are building a new-concept application and want to build, you can leverage custom iOS or custom Android app development services to build MVP. This requires a little investment at first, and you can check whether your idea is successful in the real market or not.
Consider scaling your app
Whether starting with an MVP or building a full-fledged application, always keep the scope of scalability in mind. This will help you save your mobile app development cost in the long run. For example, your app might need significant scaling after two years. And you might want to expand your audience reach and language support.
You would want to scale your application and add new features and functionalities. In that case, considering all these factors will help you make the right choices today. Moreover, it enables you to avoid significant restructuring and changing of your app, which might add up to more costs in the future.
Conclusion
The cost of mobile app development can reach up to the sky. However, the tips we have given here can be helpful to you in cutting a high price from your app development budget. If you want to know more about mobile app development or hire an android application developer or iOS application developer for your app development project, contact the best app development company.
You might want to Read:
- How to Write a Business Plan for Mobile App Development?
- 6 Most Leading Open Source Software in Mobile App Development For 2022
- What Are the Essentials for a Mobile App Development Startup?
