How Much Does It Cost to Build a Mobile App? [Checklist]

Introduction:

Picture this- your user is on the move. They notice an ad and want to check the product. But, they cannot stop and browse through the website on their laptop.

They need something more convenient and easy. Mobile apps can help them access product information and make crucial decisions faster. The shift towards mobile apps is noticeable in the mobile app market revenue as well.

It is estimated to reach $613 billion by 2025. Here’s a look at the revenue by app category across the years.

This is the ideal time to invest in your mobile application. However, the first step to going beyond the idea is estimating the cost of development. 

Ask yourself- what is the cost of building a mobile application for your business?

You can easily get started with as low as $10000. However, as the features advance, your app development cost may increase. 

This article will explore the cost of developing an application across phases and complexities. You will also learn the factors responsible for estimating the cost. 

App Development Price Statistics

A simple application can cost you somewhere around $10k. However, you might need to invest more as the complexities increase. 

A mid-level complex application can cost somewhere between $50k and $150k. However, highly advanced applications may start at $150k. The price may increase depending on the complexities and features you wish to add. 

The price of an application depends on the app’s complexity and the location of your developer.

How Much Does It Cost to Develop an App Based on Development Stages?

It is crucial to determine the cost of the various phases of development. Let’s look at the work done in each phase and deduce the cost to develop an app.

#1. Requirements Gathering and Strategy Phase 

This is the phase where your team members conduct market analysis and determine the business plan. You will ask several questions during this phase to determine the goals. 

This phase costs you about 10% of the development cost. Your team will take about 20-200 hours to complete this phase alone. During this period, you will be analyzing the competition, conceptualizing the MVP and defining the research roadmap. 

You can also build a defined roadmap for your business app development. It costs your business about $1200 to $11k for this timeline and resource allocation. 

#2. Design Phase

This is the most crucial phase of mobile app development. Your team is responsible for prototyping, wireframe development and UX development. The team will also work on crafting the interface for the application.

This phase is estimated to be about 10-15% of your development cost. You may need more man-hours and a highly proficient dedicated developer team to complete this phase. Depending on the design complexity, you may need to spend $2500 to $10k. 

#3. Development Phase

You spend most on this stage of mobile application development. The app’s complexity will define the total cost of this phase. 

You will be spending on app architecture, data encryption and storage in this phase. You will need to spend on resource allocation and the tech stack during the development stage. The complexities and codebase design will contribute towards the total cost. 

You will spend about $3k to $60k during this phase. 

#4. Testing and Deployment Phase

Testing is crucial for your mobile app development. You must estimate the post-launch bug fixes and quality assurance while defining the cost for this stage. 

You must conduct a comprehensive test to determine crashes and glitches. Moreover, it is crucial to improve user experience while reducing the issues. 

You may need to spend about $5k to complete this phase. It is crucial to spend about a month to complete this phase for a complete test. 

Cost of App Development by Type

At-a-glance view of app development cost by app type of the development team.

How Much Does It Cost of App Development by Location

At-a-glance view of app development cost by location of the development team.

Top 8 Factors that Impact Mobile App Development Cost

Mobile apps can contribute towards visibility, increased conversions and augmented traffic. You can establish a strong digital presence with mobile applications. 

However, the app development cost depends on several factors. We have identified the top 8 factors responsible for developing an application.

#1. Mobile App Complexity

The app’s complexity is pivotal in answering the question of how much does it cost to develop a mobile app. The complexity is defined by the architecture, data processing abilities and user interaction.

 Your app complexity is defined by the features and the time taken. Moreover, you must estimate the resource cost as well when calculating the development budget according to complexity. 

 A complex app involves intricate functionality and advanced features along with sophisticated integrations. This is why complex applications cost more. 

#2. App Features and Functionality

When you define the features, you can estimate the app development cost better. Your features decide the overall cost. For instance, simple apps will have basic features that can be developed by fewer resources and basic infrastructure.

However, when you want to develop a complex app with diverse features, you need skilled developers. It can cost you in terms of resources, and time. Ask yourself how much does it cost to build an app with the right features and functionality. 

#3. App Category

The diverse app categories showcase specific development needs. For instance, a gaming app calls for high-end graphics. An eCommerce application needs a simple checkout system.

The app requirements can also dictate the development cost. High-end graphics cost you more as compared to a simple app needs. 

#4. App Design and Animation

You must consider the design and animation quality and complexity while estimating the budget. If you are planning aesthetic and customized graphics or animations, you must add extra development hours.

Your estimate must include the aesthetics and functionality of the design. This will help to stay within the estimates. 

#5. App Platform

You can choose your app development approach while estimating the app development cost. If you go with the native approach, you can expect a higher development cost. However, if you go with a cross-platform approach, you can choose to stay cost-effective. 

You must consider evaluating the target audience and your goals before selecting the development platform.

#6. App Maintenance

Maintenance is also pivotal in choosing the right development approach for your business app. If you need continuous updates, fix the bugs and ensure adaptability to changing environments, you must include post-launch expenses. 

Moreover, you must introduce maintenance costs when you want to add new functionality or enhance the user’s experience. 

#7. Code Reusability

The development costs depend on the code’s reusability ability. You can harness the potential of the frameworks and libraries to enhance the development process. It can also reduce the costs and improve the process efficiency. 

You can implement cost reusability to ensure stable and high-performing applications. 

#8. Location/Size of Development Team

The cost of app development also depends on the geographical location and team size. You might experience additional costs when working with a team in regions with higher living costs. 

If you are working with a small team that lives in a reasonably low-living-cost region, you will experience low development costs.

Hidden App Development Costs

By anticipating these hidden costs and addressing them, you can ensure an accurate budget estimate. Here are a few hidden costs you must ensure are included during app development.

Backend Infrastructure

You must consider including the backend infrastructure while calculating the costs. This would include data storage and server maintenance

When you are planning a strong backend for the application, you need extra resources and time. You must add these expenses while estimating the budget for an accurate picture. 

Integration with Third-party Services

To extend seamless user interaction, you must integrate the app with third-party services. these include payments and cloud solutions. 

You should consider the licensing fee and customizations needed to calculate the total cost. By considering these expenses, you can avoid budget overruns. 

Security Features

It is crucial to implement robust security protocols to protect the software from vulnerabilities. However, this may add to your budget. You must plan for features like encryption, data storage and protection from cyber threats. 

Each feature requires a specific skill set and timeline. By adding this in your budget, you can ensure a comprehensive security solution. 

Testing and Debugging

You must plan for thorough testing and debugging to ensure a reliable application. This can add hidden costs to your application development. You must allocate the resources for comprehensive tests across devices, platforms and environments. 

It can help identify the issues early and reduce risks by addressing them in the early stage. 

App Store Fees

You must consider adding the app store fees to your budget. This would help you plan the precise cost. This would include annual developer fees and in-app purchase commissions. You will be able to allocate the finances for app distribution. 

Maintenance and Updates

Continuous updates and regular maintenance can also impact your app development budget. You must ensure a proper maintenance and proper support plan. Regular updates can ensure a proper budget plan. 

Marketing and Promotion

Marketing and promotion can ensure app success. It can help improve your app’s visibility and enhance acquisitions. You must also plan for advertising and app store optimization to ensure discoverability. 

How Can You Reduce Your Mobile App Development Cost?

Here are all the ways you can optimize and reduce the mobile app development cost.

Start with a well-defined scope

Ensure a clear outline for your app. Include the features and functionality in detail to reduce the scope creep. You can also reduce additional costs.

Outsource development

You must outsource your app development to regions where development costs are low. This will help maintain the quality and leverage the highly skilled professionals. 

Choose the right development team

You must look for a team that extends the appropriate skillset. This will help enhance the internal efficiency. You don’t need to train your resources or hire them in-house. 

Use open-source technologies 

You can use open-source tools or frameworks that can reduce the development costs. As you don’t need to invest in licensing with open-source. This can ensure robust and scalable app development.

Prioritize features

You must choose the features you want to implement during the first launch. Ensure you have prioritized them perfectly to ensure cost-effective development. 

Test early and often

A test-driven development approach can help identify and address the issues in the development phase. This can help release a high-performing and functional application. Moreover, you can reduce development costs with the right intervention. 

Leverage app development tools

You can leverage the development tools and platforms to streamline development. You can save time and resources that impact your cost. 

Focus on user experience

You must focus on user experience when planning the application. If you can plan the experience, it will help reduce app design, development and maintenance costs. 

Utilize Agile development methodologies

You must adopt agile development methodologies for increased flexibility. This can also ensure the app development cost is not affected by the scope changes.

How to Estimate App Development Cost?

Here are a few pointers to help estimate the mobile app development cost for your business. 

• You must outline the features, functionality and scope of the application to determine the project requirements
• Determine the tech stack that includes the technologies and development approach to define the budget
• You must list the features and identify the app complexity level to define the resources and time
• Your choice of development team and its location can define the outsourcing costs.
• Define the customizations, UX design and animations for the application to reduce the costs
• You must assess the backend for the application to determine the server and database needs. Define the scalability needs to define the project cost
• Implement testing and quality assurance in your budget plan. This will help release a bug-free application. 
• You must factor in maintenance and hidden costs for the most accurate budget plan
• Make sure to review and reiterate the budget for the perfect solution.

The Most Popular Global Apps and Their Development Cost

How Can ManekTech Help You With Mobile App Development Cost Estimation?

As a leading mobile app development company, ManekTech leverages its expertise and experience to optimize costs. It can help with delivering an accurate cost estimation for your business. 

• We have an experienced team of developers, designers, project managers and testing teams across industries and projects. We have delivered successful solutions for diverse requirements
• We offer detailed consultations to meet your app requirements and feature requirements. it can help tailor the cost estimates to your specific needs
• By delivering customized solutions to meet your app’s complexity and design requirements. We have delivered cost estimates aligned with your goals. 
• Our detailed and transparent communication channels are our biggest assets. We offer clear and open communication that facilitates streamlined processes and ensures cost efficiency. 
• We define the scope and ensure proper tech stack selection to enhance development efficiency. 

Conclusion

The intense competition in the mobile app landscape and shifting customer mindsets indicate this is the perfect opportunity to build your solution. You must define your mobile app ideas and convert it into a reliable solution with the right approach, process and methodology. 

The most crucial and challenging aspect of planning a mobile application is the budget definition. You must include all parameters, including complexity, geography and timelines to prepare the perfect estimate.

ManekTech can partner with you to offer a reliable and defined solution for your business idea. We work through validation, estimation to execution for the perfect outcome. If you want to build an end-to-end app solution, connect with our team today. 

FAQs on Mobile App Development Costs

Q1. How much does it cost to make an app?

Ans: The app development cost depends on various factors including development team, complexity and app type. A simple app costs $10k while a complex application can cost as low as $150k.

Q2. How much does it cost to maintain an app?

Ans: The app maintenance cost depends on the app's complexity, frequency of platform updates, bug fixes and enhancements and server/infrastructure maintenance. It will also depend on the frequency of third-party service and security updates for the application. 

Q3. How long does it take to build an app?

Ans: It can take anywhere between one month to nine months to build an application. The timeline depends on the app’s complexity, team size and the tech stack. 

Q4. What is The Hourly Rate For App Developers?

Ans: The hourly rate is as low as $20 and as high as $150. It depends on the region’s living cost and other factors.