Introduction

Develop An App – Oftentimes, startuppers and companies seeking to launch their product ideas get carried away by the euphoria of their ideas and fail to pay proper attention to the core aspect of app development—the cost of development. This usually leads to poor preparation, a delay in product launch, or disappointment upon discovering the 63.app development cost. This scenario, however, does not have to play out with you.

This article will focus on the factors that determine app development costs.

Features that Determine the Cost of App Development

Develop An App – According to a Clutch survey, the average minimum app development cost is around $5,000–$10,000. However, the survey explained that this figure only covers the discovery phase. But the median total would cost anywhere around $171,450. While this is apt, it is best to look at the elements that birth such an amount. Ths will help you make an informed decision that will determine the future of your product.

Below are the elements that determine app development costs.

1. Cooperation model

The harsh reality of the software development market is that not all app products will survive the market. According to reports, only about 29% of all IT projects eventually survive, and the reason for the massive failure is not far from the following reasons:

  • Exceeding budget
  • Missing deadlines
  • Inability to smash business.

With such a low survival rate, you must go the extra mile to ensure your app survives the market weather. One sure way to eliminate the top reason stated above is to adopt the best software development cooperation model. The cooperation model helps you define the responsibilities of the client and the team concerning the app’s development.

We offer three distinct collaboration models to our clients at the App Solution, and we’d love to share them with you.

●      Extended team

In this model, we provide professionals to augment your team size while you manage the entire development process. This model usually comes in handy when you only need to augment your team size without altering your management structure or app development process.

The extended team will stick to the existing structure and report directly to you or your designated manager.

●      Dedicated team

A dedicated team cooperation model is a long-term collaboration involving the client and the development team, sharing responsibilities. It is most effective for outsourcing business functions like development and quality assurance. The dedicated team model includes a project manager who is in charge of the methodology and process. The project manager also synchronizes the dedicated team with your in-house development teams.

●      Managed service

In this cooperation model, the App Solution team takes care of all product development processes, giving you ample time to focus on growing your business. We also onboard additional specialists for complex projects and offer technical support post-product launch.

But how does the cooperation model impact costs? Let’s find out.

The wider the scope of your project, the higher the responsibilities your developers will have to shoulder. And with more responsibilities comes an increase in the number of developers. This results in a higher cost for developing your app.

2. Operating platform

This is another major factor determining the app development cost. According to statistics, the Android OS and IOS are the two largest operating systems worldwide. While the Android operating system has clinched nearly 71% of the market, IOS boasts around 28%.

In arriving at an average cost for your app development, you will need to determine whether to opt for a cross-platform/hybrid app or a native app. The cross-platform app allows you to develop an app that runs on Android and iOS simultaneously. Thus allowing you to develop once and get your targeted audience to access your app from both major operating systems.

On the other hand, you could opt for a native app. This is handy if your business goals prioritize excellent user experience and performance. However, you will have to deal with the increased cost of developing separate apps for Android and iOS devices. Therefore, you must hire separate development teams to work on your project.

3. Location of developers

The location of developers also play a major role in determining the cost of developing an app. If you choose to work with developers from North America, you may be spending more for services that you could get for lesser in other regions like East Europe, Africa, and Asia. Check below for development rates by region.

Developers rate by country

Region Rate Countries
North America $100-$200 USA, Canada
Latin America $25-$50 Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Peru, Chile, Argentina
Central Europe $70-150 Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Switzerland.
Eastern Europe $30-$60 Ukraine, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Belarus
Asia $18-$50 India, China, Philippines, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia
Africa $20-$40  Nigeria, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, South Africa

4. The number of features and tech stack

The primary focus of every mobile app is to offer top-notch services to users. And to achieve this, you must implement the right set of features. However, features also contribute to the cost of app development. The higher the number of features, the higher the app’s development cost.

Let’s check out some of the core features of an app and the development time required.

Features Tech Stach Hours needed
User Login ●       Facebook SDK

●       Sign In with Twitter

●       Instagram Basic Display API

 

●       4+ hours for UX/UI design

●       8+ hours to design the app back-end using NodeJS

●       8+ hours for feature integration per each platform (iOS, Android)

 

Push notification ●       Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM) for Android mobile applications

●       Apple Push Notification Service (APNS) for iOS

 

●       24+ hours for iOS

●       24+ hours for Android

 

Navigation bar Human Interface Guidelines

 

●       24+ hours for the app back-end

●       16+ hours for Android or iOS development

 

 

Media content sharing ●       Android NDK Native APIs for Android applications

●       Core Audio Kit for audio exchange, PhotoKit for photo editing, and AVKit for media playback on iOS devices

 

●       8+ hours for the design

●       16+ hours for the front-end

●       40+ hours for the back-end

●       40+ to develop this function on each mobile platform

 

Geolocation Google Maps API

 

●       8+ hours for the design

●       8+ hours for back-end

●       8+ hours for Android

●       8+ hours iOS

In-app messaging Facebook API

Telegram API

 

●       40+ hours to develop the messaging platform back-end

●       20+ hours for Android application

●       20+ hours for iOS application

 

 

 

5.    App Complexities,

The cost of app development greatly differs on the lines of the complexity of designs and functionalities. Below let’s look at the hours of commitment needed to build different levels of mobile applications.

Type Simple Apps Mid-level Apps High-end Apps
Description ●       No API integration

●       No back-end

●       Basic UI components

●       Simple features (email subscription, social sign in, calendar, etc.)

●       Custom UI/UX features

●       Build-in payment gateway

●       API integration

●       Back-end server

 

●       Multi-language support

●       3rd-party integrations

●       Custom animations

●       Complicated back-end

●       Custom UI/UX design

●       Real-time features via database integration

 

Hours of commits 400+ hours 500-800+ hours 800-1500+ hours

 

Conclusion

Develop An App – A lot of work and planning goes into the process of developing an app that can stand the test of time. Aside from the above-discussed elements, other factors like QA testing, branding building, post-launch support, etc. However, you don’t have to bug your head with all these details. Our managed service cooperation model will take care of all of these.