The answer to the question "how much does it cost to develop a mobile app?" is fundamentally complex. Mobile apps are not the same as they were even 5 years ago, and the app development process itself is subject to improvement. According to data for 2023, the average user uses 10 mobile apps per day.
Developing a mobile application is a complex process that requires a skilled team of specialists from different fields who will recognize your business needs and deliver a high-quality product complete in every way. In this article, we will help you determine how high the cost of implementing a project that carries a mobile app is. We will look at how the pricing of a mobile app is shaped by the types of features of the app, the attractive user interface, the choice of a particular platform, the complexity of the app on the backend side and the cost of maintaining the app.
When you decide to develop an application that will comprehensively support your business, the question of the cost of a mobile application in the context of a given project arises quite quickly. It is difficult to give a definite answer, because it depends on many factors. In this article we will discuss the key ones:
Table of Contents:
- Mobile app functionalities vs. the cost of developing it: What do you need to know?
- Types of mobile applications: Key differences
- Aesthetics meets functionality: How does graphic design affect the cost of an application?
- Building the backend of a mobile application, or backend and database
- How do you choose a contractor for your mobile app? Key factors to consider
- Maintaining a mobile app: Costs you may not know about
- How to reduce the cost of developing a mobile app?
- How much does it cost to develop a mobile app? Summary
The above factors affect the final cost of a mobile application. In order to provide maximum clarity on the costs involved in developing an app, we will now describe them in detail.
How much does it cost to develop a mobile app?
The development of a mobile application begins with determining its functionality. The cost of creating a mobile application depends on the number of functionalities it has and the time spent on its development. Each additional feature of the application increases its complexity, lengthens the development process and affects the so-called minimum viable product (MVP). This is the minimum working version of an application that can be released to the market. It allows you to determine how many features you need to program in order to observe its reception from the user's point of view.
The pricing of a mobile app depends on many factors. Thus, it is difficult to clearly define the cost of its creation. For simple applications it can range from PLN 30,000 to PLN 80,000, while for advanced projects it can range from PLN 80,000 to even PLN 500,000.
In addition, building an app with advanced features, such as integration with external APIs, user management or push notifications, can significantly increase the cost of app development. The price of a mobile application is also affected by whether it is to run only locally on the user's device, which significantly reduces costs, or whether it will use an external database and server application (back-end). In the latter case, the cost of creating the application increases.
Increasing user engagement: The key to success
User interaction can take place in any area where the mobile application performs authorization, alert sending and connection functions. For example, the authorization process can be simple, requiring only basic user login information such as email and password.
However, for applications that require higher levels of security, the authorization process can become more complex and involve multi-step authentication processes or biometric authorization methods.
| Type of application | Price |
| Mobile application of simple complexity | From $16,000 to $32,000 |
| Mobile application of medium complexity | From $32,000 to $48,000 |
| Highly complex mobile application | Over $72,000 |
Consumer apps often use features such as email, push notifications and social media sharing. In addition, the cost of an app increases when advanced graphic animations and integrations with external services come into play. Advanced animations can make your app more appealing and engaging, but keep in mind that implementing such solutions can incur additional costs.
Support for in-app purchases
Apple Pay and Google Pay are the most popular payment methods in mobile apps. Integration with payment processing tool providers requires additional time for the work of the development team creating the mobile application. In any case, the addition of one or all payment methods ultimately affects the cost of developing a mobile app.
Harnessing the potential of mobile devices: Native features
The device's basic native features include integrations with the operating system in the form of network support, Bluetooth usage, accelerometer data, camera hook-up and geolocation data download. When more advanced features and their support, such as NFC technology, are needed, developers' work takes longer. Nevertheless, these features can bring great benefits in terms of user engagement and application usability.
Multi-platform support: How does it affect the cost of application development?
If you want your mobile app to run on iOS and Android smartphones, consider the system share of your target user group. If you are developing a cross-platform app, you can either hire two teams of developers, which significantly affects the cost of creating a mobile app, or choose a team programming in cross-platform technologies such as React Native.
This technology enables native mobile applications developed by one team for two platforms in real time. From a business perspective, this significantly reduces the cost of the entire project, shortens the project time and guarantees high application performance. For this reason, it is worth considering that native apps are an investment in the future of app development.
Types of mobile applications: Key differences
The type of application determines the choice of technology, which is the basis of the mobile application development project. Its choice will also dictate the scope of work that the development team will undertake. Here are the most important differences between mobile applications developed in the given technologies.
Native applications: Specifics and advantages
When a mobile application is developed using a language that is unique to the device's platform or operating system, it is referred to as a native application. This involves the use of a programming language, for example:
- Java or Kotlin for the Android platform,
- Swift or Objective-C for iOS.
The main advantage of native applications is their better performance. The disadvantage, on the other hand, is that you need to hire two separate development teams to create an app for two operating systems. Consequently, this raises the cost of creating a mobile application. Nevertheless, when budgeting for mobile apps, we must also take into account the issue of app development, which in this case can allow for greater capabilities. You can read more about native apps in our article on React, React Native.
Hybrid applications: When are they a good choice?
A hybrid mobile app allows you to build a mobile application using three basic web technologies - HTML, CSS and JavaScript - with frameworks such as Ionic and Cordova. They are based on the use of web applications, placed inside a mobile framework. Choosing a hybrid app reduces the price of the app at the expense of truncated development capabilities, lack of access to native device solutions and performance.
However, it is worth noting that the hybrid application has its uses, for example, when we develop social applications. In particular, when we are time-sensitive or have a significantly limited budget.
Multi-platform applications: A universal solution at an affordable price
A multi-platform mobile app is our recommended option. It allows the development of a native mobile application by one team, for two platforms in real time. From a business perspective, this significantly reduces the cost of the entire project, shortens the project time and guarantees high performance. One code base for two mobile platforms means ensuring the development of the application on each platform. The native application directly improves this process during implementation.
Cross-platform technologies allow you to build an application in one language and automatically compile its structure into native code for Android and iOS platforms. An example of such a solution is a framework called React Native. Its efficient and effective use in the application development process is handled by developers.
Aesthetics meets functionality: How does graphic design affect the cost of an application?
Dedicated graphic design provides the best user experience associated with the product. This is the basis for the success of the project. The degree of sophistication of the mockup is tailored to the individual needs of the project and specific types of mobile applications. One can distinguish between mockups of minimal complexity (Lo-Fi) and those of medium complexity and higher (Hi-Fi). Regardless of its complexity, it is not uncommon for the mockup to change according to the requirements set by the client.
When the low cost of an application is a priority, it is possible to use paid graphic templates, duplicate common components or use objects provided by the operating system. However, such an approach assumes a lack of consideration for the cost of application expansion, where a given template meets the limits of its limitations.
How does the UI mockup affect the cost of a mobile app?
The number of screens in an app's UI mockup is a factor in determining how much it costs to develop a mobile app. Most often, the more functionality a mobile app has, the more extensive the graphic design requires. In such a case, the cost of a mobile app increases to some extent.
Nonetheless, it is important to remember that the costs of the app itself overall can be reduced just by doing so. Mobile app development is a development-oriented process. The better one manages to design a product, the lower the cost of a mobile application during its implementation. Then changes would be much more costly.
Building the backend of a mobile application, or backend and database
We can colloquially define the term "backend" as the brain of the application. It is crucial in processing and storing data, performs functionality and takes care of infrastructure security. It synchronizes and exchanges data between devices, updates content and controls business application logic. The server application connects external APIs to facilitate data exchange between the mobile application, the database and independent providers. The more complex the structure of a key part of the application, the higher the cost of creating it.
Content updates and application business logic are usually managed on the backend. The more complex the business logic of a mobile app, the more complex the backend must be. Similarly, if a mobile app requires frequent content updates, the backend must be able to handle these changes, which also increases the cost of app development.
The backend of a mobile app is critical to its performance and effectiveness. Every element of it, from user management to integrations with external APIs to content updates and business logic, affects the cost of developing a mobile app. That's why it's important to understand these costs early in the project planning stage and include them in the budget.
How doyou choose a contractor for your mobile app? Key factors to consider
The choice of the person or team responsible for the product affects the cost of developing a mobile application. Depending on the choice of company, the hourly rates of programmers can be extremely different.
An example team involved in the development of a mobile app consists of React Native developers, a project manager (Scrum Master), a software quality tester (Quality Assurance Engineer), a User Experience and User Interface designer. To be able to answer exactly how much a mobile app costs, we need to take a closer look at the above roles.
UX/UI Designer
It is difficult to create a great product without the help of an experienced mobile interface designer. He analyzes competing applications from a graphical point of view, researches the preferences of target consumers, creates mock-ups of the application, target graphic design and clickable prototype of the application. Ultimately, he should perform so-called usability tests, taking care of the app development process. He uses tools such as Figma, Sketch, Adobe Illustrator or Axure.
Scrum Master
His role is to manage the process involved in software development. The Scrum Master creates the conditions to ensure that the development team works efficiently. He sets and coordinates weekly goals, oversees execution increments, troubleshoots problems and takes care of communication with the application owner.
React Native mobile app developer
The React Native mobile application developer creates, tests and develops mobile applications using JavaScript or TypeScript programming language. Writes mobile apps according to the assigned tasks by the Scrum Master, adapting them to the graphic template provided by the UX/UI (User Experience, User Interface) team. Mobile app development is the core of the programmer's work, a key role in the team to create an app that benefits.
QA Engineer
The QA engineer identifies application performance issues. He provides invaluable support in the development of the application and the rollout of future updates. When necessary, he works with developers to create solutions. To do so, he uses varied test scenarios, making sure that the mobile application in question works flawlessly. The result of the work is not only to ensure the quality of the application's functioning, but also to assess its stability and confirm its compliance with the project's documentation.
Team or freelancer? Who better to create your mobile app?
For simple applications, consider the option of hiring a freelancer. This is a cheaper option due to lower rates. However, if you work with a freelancer, you have to expect less experience, which is often associated with poorer quality of the final version of the product, as well as the fact that the functionalities will not work as you expected.
When working with a freelancer, you are the project manager, overseeing the progress and independently assessing the quality of the technical layer it creates. This kind of cooperation may work well for simple projects, but for complex business applications it is worth considering and taking other options into account. Unfortunately, not every application generates a profit, and when a team of specialists watches over the project, you can be sure that the success of your application is guaranteed.
Maintaining a mobile app: Costs you may not know about
Many potential mobile app developers ignore this topic, or take a cursory approach. Making an app is not the end of the cost, and the extent of the cost is not determined solely by the complexity of the app. It needs to be maintained and updated according to market changes or user requirements.
Maintaining an application entails that the project must be ready for changing trends in order to remain attractive and competitive. For this reason, maintenance and updating are key elements of the application development process and also affect the as-built price.
Mobile app maintenance: What do you need to know?
Maintenance costs for mobile applications average between 5% and 20% of the initial price. Their maintenance is a necessary service, closely related to the development of mobile applications. Over time, as your mobile app becomes more complex and the number of users increases, the fees will increase.
Maintenance of mobile applications includes the following:
- Adding support for the latest operating system versions,
- Develop and implement new features, test applications,
- Support for the latest versions of third-party services (external API update),
So the cooperation with your technology partner does not end the day the mobile app is released to stores. Each software development company has its own rules for support after the first version is made.
How to reduce the cost of developing a mobile app?
Developing a mobile app is an investment that can bring significant benefits to your business. However, the cost of developing an app can be high, especially if you are at the beginning of your journey in the world of mobile apps. Nevertheless, your first mobile app doesn't have to carry a lot of expense at all. There are several ways that can help lower the cost of a mobile app.
First, bet on choosing a cross-platform technology. This way, one development team will work on iOS and Android versions simultaneously. You don't need to hire two separate teams, which will positively affect the cost of developing your app. In addition, the advantage of choosing such an option is to speed up the process of deploying your app to both platforms. This will increase the range of possible audiences, thus opening the way to maximizing profits.
Minimum Viable Product (MVP): How to effectively go from idea to finished application?
Prioritize the features of the application. You don't have to start by building an overall vision. We recommend that you start working on your digital product with an MVP (Minimum Viable Product). This is a basic version of the app that contains only the most important functionality from a business perspective. This means that it is relatively inexpensive and quick to implement. Most technology projects (e.g. Spotify, Instagram) choose to go for an MVP, as it is a reasonable path for developing a digital product.
You don't have to give up on your idea just because you can't develop complex software at the moment. Once you have implemented an MVP, you can collect feedback from users and develop your mobile application based on that, receiving feedback on the components of the application.
How much does it cost to develop a mobile app? Summary
We hope that this article has given you a better understanding of the topic related to the cost of creating a mobile app and its development. Developing a mobile app is a complex process, involving many aspects that can affect the cost.
Factors such as the complexity of the app's features, user engagement, support for in-app purchases, the use of native features of the mobile device, the number of platforms on which the mobile app is to run, and the choice of contractor are all important to the total cost.
Remember that every application generates profits, but it also generates costs - not only the initial creation costs, but also the maintenance costs. It is important to consider both the direct costs associated with the application development process and indirect costs, such as those associated with maintaining and expanding the application. However, it is possible to reduce the costs of application development, for example, by focusing on key functions, using off-the-shelf solutions, outsourcing or regular updates and maintenance.
Proper planning and budgeting for mobile apps is key to the success of your project. Understanding all the factors that affect the cost of developing a mobile app is the first step to creating an effective and cost-efficient app that will benefit your business.