The mobile application market will be worth $220 billion by 2023. This figure shows the interest that professionals have in creating a mobile application.
More and more companies are planning to develop a mobile application.
As with social networks or the creation of a website, the development of a mobile application is not free. The question of development cost is all the more important as it depends on what a mobile application should be able to do.
Where a website is used to give visibility to an activity, the creation of a mobile application makes it possible to go much further in the functionalities offered to users.
In this blog post, we present the different factors that influence the design and price of a mobile application.
What criteria influence the price of a mobile application?
Let’s get to the heart of the matter and talk about the cost of developing a mobile application.
The cost of creating a mobile application is divided into two parts:
- The pre-production and development of a mobile application.
- The maintenance and updates of a mobile application.
These two parts do not require the same budget depending on your expectations and the features of your mobile application.
Also, before investing in the development of an application, consider the alternatives to mobile applications that exist:
- Do you really need an app?
- Doesn’t a website, web application, eCommerce, social networking site, or other online platform already offer what you’re looking for, at a more affordable cost?
The type of application
This is the most important criterion, along with the features, for determining how much a mobile application costs.
Indeed, depending on the type of application and the functionalities, the cost of creating an application can vary from several thousand euros.
Developing a social network and creating a video game on mobile do not incur the same development costs. We will look at the different types of applications and their prices later in this article.
The type of application also determines the technical level to be used for its creation. Again, from a purely technical development point of view, social networks are much easier to build than a video game.
It is logical that the development cost is not the same depending on the project you want to make.
The technologies used
Depending on the type of application, the development will require more or less advanced technologies. A game, for example, will need a graphics engine. This engine cannot be manipulated by just anyone and requires specific skills.
The same applies to certain applications, which use the cloud to perform remote calculations.
If your application is complex, you will need to choose a service provider and hire developers who can meet your needs. For example, a project on ios or Android will not require the same skills, as your mobile application will not be used on the same operating system.
Conversely, for a simple app with few features, development costs should be lower.
Indeed, as mentioned above, making your app available on Android and/or iOS will have an impact on the final cost as we are not talking about the same operating systems and the same mobile support.
The content to be hosted
What do you want to make available to your users? Videos, photos, text, something else? What medium do you offer?
All this content needs to be stored somewhere, especially if many users will want to access it simultaneously.
Storage is not a big cost driver as long as the users of your application are few.
If you become more popular, you may need to consider larger hosting systems.
Graphic design
Even if many applications adopt similar codes, you can always work on the graphic design of your application to make it fit your visual identity.
Colours, certain animations, fonts and icons are all ways of making your app unique.
If you already have this content, you can have it integrated into your application. If you do not, it will be an additional cost that you will have to pay to a graphic designer or an ergo-designer.
The user experience
How will your users navigate your application? For each feature, how will they be able to use it?
These issues of flow, presentation of information and smooth navigation fall under the category of user experience. This is an extremely important topic.
The two major players in the mobile market, Apple and Google, even have their own best practice guide that all mobile app developers should be aware of.
Naturally, the more complex and innovative your application is, the less it will fit into the mobile ergonomics standards. It will therefore cost money to work on this subject if it proves necessary.
The available features
The last point is functionality. Put more simply, it comes down to asking what your application is for:
- Does it allow you to communicate with other people?
- Is it a game?
- Does it have more than one main function?
The calculation is quite simple: the more features, the higher the cost. For each feature, the complexity also impacts the final cost. This is something to keep in mind when estimating the rates of the developers you choose.
Let’s take the example of a social network.
Connecting with a friend and sending a message containing only text and emoji has a modest cost. Sending photos or videos via this messaging system will cost you more.
Prices according to the type of application
Let’s now look at the prices and budgets according to the type of application you want to develop.
Of course, we give here an estimate according to the type of mobile application you want to create. In the end, the cost of a mobile application will also depend on the service provider you choose.
We can suggest the best mobile application development agencies.
Developing a video game
This is by far the most expensive product to produce. Technically sophisticated, video games call for extremely varied and often costly skills.
The technical, visual and audio aspects of the game must be planned. A standard mobile game costs between €40,000 and €80,000 in total.
Don’t compare your game project to that of a player like Supercell or Epic Games, as the budgets, objectives and spending areas of these companies are very specific to their market.
E-Commerce
How much does a mobile e-commerce application cost to sell your products? You will need to budget between €20,000 and €35,000.
It all depends on the number of items sold and the logistics of managing the products offered and customer orders.
An application of this kind can easily be replaced by a Progressive Web App. You should take a look at this technology that allows you to embed a website easily into a mobile application.
This could help you to reduce the price and cost of your project.
Provision of services (marketplace)
Amazon, Airbnb, Alibaba are very good examples.
You can sell new or second-hand products as an individual or a professional. Marketplaces are legion, especially on mobile phones.
Be careful not to duplicate a service that already exists by doing a market study beforehand. Count on a budget of between €15,000 and €25,000 to complete your project.
Event
Perhaps you need an application for a very short period of time. This app will accompany users to an event or be the centre of attention for a short period.
In any case, your budget will probably be between €3,000 and €10,000 to achieve a satisfactory project and functionality.
Development of a social network
Social networks are also becoming increasingly popular.
Creating your own is not difficult in itself, but you should be careful not to aggregate too many features to keep costs reasonable and control your expenses. Expect to pay between €20,000 and €35,000 depending on the complexity of your social platform.
Internal company development
Do you have a specific need in your company? An application could improve the productivity and quality of work of your teams.
In this case, the scope of the project is different and you will not make any profit on your application.
The impact will be measured differently but the interest remains high if an application can alleviate some of the problems you are facing.
How much does it cost to develop an application in this situation? This type of project usually costs between €15,000 and €30,000.
Conclusion
In this article we wanted to answer the question of how much it costs to create and design an application.
The answer to creating an application is that any project can be realised if you have a sufficient budget and a good understanding of the factors that influence the design costs.
Take the time to study your needs, choose a project manager and simply state your expectations.
Once your project is clearly defined, don’t hesitate to make an appointment to work with a mobile application development agency to complete your project.
you can take contact with us here for a quick evaluation of your project.
