Price of developing an app

With an increasing trend of every business shifting to the digital world, multiple questions arise about getting started and keeping your presence online. One of the ways to maintain your presence online is by developing an app that represents your business/brand. An app is quite an attractive approach because it makes things easier for your users. Every time they need to use some of your services, they won’t be opening up their laptops. All in all, an app makes your services more accessible.

Now the question arises, how much time and money does it take to develop an app. Well, it’s not that simple of a calculation. The price of an app is influenced by multiple factors. Things are quite different from a grocery store where there’s a rate list for everything. Nothing exceeds the price written on that list. However, for app development, there is no such list. The company you approached will fix a meeting where you would explain all the details to the mobile app developer. Based on your guidelines, the number of hours will be sorted out by the mobile app developers. The rates of app development are then decided per hour.

Factors influencing the price of app development

Design, features, and functionality are at the top of the list of factors that decide how much effort will take to design an app. The visual design customization also holds an important spot in the price factor list. More customization takes more time and as stated earlier, the number of hours spent on the app development decides the price.

The platforms at which this app will be used are also responsible for deciding the working hours. Because it involves a different type of coding for different platforms.

The infrastructure of the app at the backend and its administration are an important factor to be considered. The development team’s location and structure dominate the cost of an app. If they’re a huge enterprise they might charge you a lot. However, smaller companies consisting of a small number of employees will charge very reasonably.

An app after development might start running but the expenses don’t end here. You will have to keep in mind the maintenance costs. They are a necessity because many bugs are identified after the launch of an app. The developer who developed that particular app will have a deeper insight of what he designed and hence will better cope with bugs and other issues.

Let’s discuss in detail, the factors that influence the price of app development.

Features and Functionality

The cost is directly dominated by how complex an app is. The number of features and how complex they decide at the time they will take to be developed. Several screens, buttons, menus, pages, and fields involved all are decisive features. Some of the features can be easily integrated after development, however, it takes a lot of time and effort for the others. The features also influence the decision that whether the already existing API’s would be used or a new code would be compiled.

Let’s have a deeper insight into the features an app can have and their approximate costs.

 

Features and their cost

Most apps require a login feature. A typical log in feature has the option of logging in using a social media, logging in using an email, and forgot your password feature. It can take from 28 to 42 hours in developing this feature at the cost of around $50/hour.

Files are to be uploaded on apps for various purposes. It can be either verification or to display on one’s profile. The files to be uploaded can be various i.e. photo, video, document. This feature takes around 20-30 hours with an approximate cost of $50/hour.

Adding a profile picture, setting a region based on your location, and adding information on the app require around 25-40 hours of development.

Integrating a search bar in the app that gives some suggestions while typing might seem to be a simple feature. However, it can take more than 15 hours to develop this feature.

Adding notifications is a long process as there are multiple types of notifications that are to be integrated into the app. Instant messages, and all the details associated with the messaging feature including the read receipts, online status, sending media files and documents, and typing status. These features can take around 40 hours to be developed at a rate of $50/hour.

The profile editing feature is also compulsory in every app. It includes changing names, emails, passwords, and adding or removing credit cards. It takes around 60 hours to be developed and at the same rate approximately as mentioned before.

Custom push notification integration can be added to approximately $1000.

The above-discussed features are not all the features that can be integrated into an app but these are the common ones that almost every app includes. This would give you a rough idea about what your app would cost and how much time would it take.

This was the design and feature domain of an app development that constitutes around 30-40 % of the total budget.

The integration of payment platforms like PayPal increases the cost of the app. The complex features include location or maps, payment details, streaming, and calls. The features collectively can take more than 500 hours and hence increase the cost of an app to a great extent. The reason lies in the complexity of these features and the longer time they take to be developed.

Visual design /UI

The user interface of an app is like showcasing the portfolio that you built over many years. Hours and hours of hard work can go wasted if the user interface does not meet the standards of customers. It should have interactive design and animations that make it easy for the user to scroll across different screens and features.

The design should be stellar but easy to use. Users should not be struggling to make a payment or to send a message. Convenience always overpowers the flashy animations and colorful details. However, the developer needs to know the balance between both. This part is included in the 30% budget of the app. Designs can be customized according to the needs of the customer.

Backend infrastructure and App administration

An operating system has to designed for the developers or the owner of the app. The purpose behind this OS is establishing a connection between the app and the database at the back end. User activity, app stats, and other analytic tools are integrated into this OS. The time and price of developing a back end infrastructure depend upon the number of analytic tools to be added. Developers give a list of tools that are currently being used in the market. However, the customer can also get a customized tool design. It will affect the cost of the app. This is a part of core app development.

 

Core development

Core development is the coding that is initiated after finalizing all the above-discussed features with the developers. Core development includes a major chunk of the budget along with testing, evaluation, and validation.

After this phase, the app is almost ready and the rest is handled by the marketing team.

Deployment and Marketing

An app cannot be launched into the market without a marketing campaign. A huge investment might go in vain if an effective marketing campaign is not managed. The campaign will make sure that all the targeted users come to know about the app and maximum downloads are ensured. The users will be approached via different methods and the app will set right in the market. This is a crucial phase for any app because the outcome of this somehow decides whether the app is successful or not. 20% of the budget is invested in this part of app development.

Support and maintenance

The support and maintenance team is like the reinforcement or a bulletproof jacket worn by a soldier. They maintain a high-quality user experience which enables you to be a well-known brand. Moreover, all the bugs are timely handled and removed so that the customers can have a smooth experience. The support team keeps answering queries and satisfying the users.

Conclusion

Sunvera is a company where customers are held in high regard. Of all the digital service providers in the market, we are providing one of the best rates and quality work. Our experienced team and dedicated individuals make it sure to provide a great end product to the user. We respect the time and budget of every customer and try to follow the policy of “13 in a dozen” which means always do more than expected for customers.