How Much Does It Cost to Create/Develop an App In 2020? - Research By Hyperlink InfoSystem

 

These top app development companies realized that there is a real opportunity for them to capture a sizeable share of a market and industry that is growing rapidly. According to Statista, revenues from mobile app downloads are expected to earn mobile app developers an overall revenue that exceeds $188 billion. Following is an illustration of this:

 

(Above is a graph showing worldwide mobile app revenues during the forecast period 2014-2023 [Image Source])

From the above graph, we find that the overall revenue from mobile applications is increasing each year, and it is expected to grow over $900 billion by 2023. App development companies that don’t capitalize on this will miss out on an opportunity of a lifetime.

 

It isn’t just mobile app downloads that app developers or businesses with a mobile application can make money from; they can also generate revenue from in-app consumer spending. According to App Annie, consumer spending in app stores will reach $156.5 billion worldwide by 2022. Following is an infographic showing this:

 

From the above infographic, we find that the worldwide consumer spend in app stores will increase by 92 percent between 2017 and 2022. Another reason to invest in mobile app development is that the average mobile user checks their phone more than 60 times a day. Additionally, mobile applications make up more than half of all digital media usage. So, it’s clear that mobile application development is a worthwhile investment, whether you’re running a business or a mobile app development company. However, business owners or those in charge of app development at the company would want to know how much it will cost to create or develop a mobile application in 2020; they would want to know the cost of app development in 2020 because the new year is less than two months away. So, how much does it cost to develop or create a mobile app in 2020? We’ll discuss that here.

Before you start calculating the cost of mobile application development for your business, you should choose a platform and monetization strategy for the app. There are four options available to businesses that are looking for a mobile application platform for their app: Google Play, Apple’s App Store, Windows Store, and Amazon store.

 

However, the two most popular and widely used application platforms are Google Play and Apple’s App Store. Therefore, we would like to assume that you would want to host your app on either Google Play or Apple’s App Store. When comparing the two app platforms, the first thing that you need to know is the number of apps available in leading app stores. This is important because it shows which platforms most businesses are choosing for their applications. Following is a graph showing the number of apps available on leading platforms in Q3 of 2019:

 

(Above is a graph showing the number of apps available on leading platforms in Q3 of 2019 [Image Source])

From the above graph, we find that Google Play had the greatest number of apps in the third quarter of 2019, with 2.47 million apps. Apple’s App Store came in second but was behind Google Play with only 1.8 million apps. This indicates that Google Play has some sort of advantage—either cost advantage or some other—that is encouraging businesses to host their app on the platform instead of choosing Apple’s App Store for this purpose.

 

Google Play is also winning the battle in terms of app downloads. Following is an infographic showing worldwide app downloads on Google Play in the first half of 2018 and on App Store in the first half of 2019:

 

(Above is an infographic showing worldwide app downloads on Google Play in the first half of 2018 and App Store in the first half of 2019 [Image Source])

From the above infographic, we find that Google Play Store is growing at a higher rate than Apple’s App Store in terms of downloads. However, the revenue generated by the App Store from downloads was 1.8 times more than the revenue generated by Google Play.

 

With all things considered, we think that Google Play would be a better platform for most businesses to host their mobile applications. However, Apple’s App Store may be a better option for other businesses. With the two major platforms available for hosting your mobile application, it’s time to look at the choice of app monetization strategy available to you.

One of the first things to determine when developing a mobile app is your monetization strategy. For many businesses and even some app developers, the sole purpose of building a mobile app is to make money; they know that they can charge for app downloads and generate revenue from it.

 

However, the real question that businesses and app development companies should be asking themselves is if people will download their app if they charge a fee for it? Research by Statista provides some answers. Below are graphs showing the distribution of free and paid android apps in the Google Play Store in June, August, and October 2019:

 

From the above graph, we find that 96% of all applications in October 2019 were available for free in the Google Play Store.  Although the number of paid-for downloads has increased steadily over the years, they are still far away from matching the number of free downloads.

 

In fact, we cannot even compare the two-app monetization strategy at this time. 98% of the app revenue in 2017 came from free mobile apps; this trend has continued into 2018 and 2019, and more of the same is expected in 2020 and beyond. Considering all this, creating or developing a free mobile app for your business would be a better option than going for a paid-for download model.

 

After covering the app platforms and app monetization strategies available to you, it’s time we look at the main topic at hand, which is the cost of mobile app development. In the next section, we take a detailed look at how much it can cost to build a mobile app in 2020.

Many businesses today want to know how much it will cost them to develop a mobile application. The truth is that no one really knows. The cost of mobile application development will depend on several factors and what you are looking to get out of the app for your business.

 

In other words, there is no fixed price for mobile app development. Think of mobile app development like buying a car or a smartphone? The cost will depend on what you want and are trying to accomplish through the purchase. If you want an amazing app, then you’d have to pay a decent amount of money for it. While you won’t get a great app for a few dollars, spending loads on mobile app development doesn’t necessarily guarantee your app’s success.

 

Ask yourself: Would spending lots of money on the latest athletic equipment and gear make you a top athlete? No, it wouldn’t! Similarly, spending a lot of money on mobile application development does not make your mobile application a guaranteed success.

 

Therefore, don’t start pumping money blindly into mobile app development. Instead, consider a few important factors before hiring a mobile app development company. These factors affecting the cost of app development are listed below:

* What you’re trying to accomplish through your app

* The app development process

* Who is building your app?

* The type of app you’re trying to build

 

Determining the above is important because this will give you an idea of how much you will need to spend to build your app. Let’s take a more detailed look at these important considerations for app development that affect its cost.

 

1. Your Goals for Mobile Application Development

You first need to determine the goals that you want to achieve with your app before estimating development costs. Taking this step will make determining the costs of developing your app easier. To do this, you need to find out the answers to the following questions:

* What is the purpose of developing the app?

* What problem is your app going to solve?

* How will your app make life easier for people?

* How will you make your app appealing to users?

 

By answering these questions, you will be able to establish your goals for mobile application development. Once you know this, you can take the first step towards finding out exactly how much it will cost you to build an app in 2020.

 

2. The App Development Process

 

3. Who Is Building Your App?

Your cost of mobile app development will vary depending on who is building your app. When it comes to app developers, you have three options available to you. These include:

* A big app development company

* A small development agency

* An independent contractor

 

Your cost of mobile app development will differ based on which option you choose. For example, if you go for an independent contractor, then you can develop your app for under $10,000. This is because there are many independent or freelance app developers willing to take on an app development job and will offer competitive pricing to stand out from the crowd.

 

While independent contractors are cheap, they are associated with a certain element of risk. For instance, independent contractors you hire won’t be fully focused on your project as they usually handle multiple clients at the same time. Additionally, they would want to get done with the app development project as quickly as possible so they can make time for new times. This is likely to compromise the quality of your mobile app.

 

The step-up from an independent contractor is a small development agency. These app development companies charge a lot less for mobile app development than the more established names in the industry.

 

According to Clutch, it can cost you anywhere between $5,000 and $30,000 to get your app developed by an app development company. Following is an infographic illustrating this:

 

(Above is an infographic showing the average minimum app development project size based on cost [Image Source])

 

4. The Type of App You’re Trying to Build

Another factor that will determine the cost of your app is what type of app you’re trying to build. In order words, the cost of app development varies according to the type of app being developed. The different types of apps include data-driven apps, game apps, custom utility apps, functionality apps, and device apps.

 

In addition to the above, if you need to build a basic business app, then you can get it built for a few thousand dollars. On the other hand, you may need to pay more if you want additional features for your app, such as payment processing, GPS capability, and automatic syncing with the internet, etc.

 

For first-timers, the best option would be to start with a basic app and then add more features over time. A basic app would not cost you much, and you’d still be able to catch the attention of users or the target audience for your app.

 

Once people start using your app, they will get more accustomed to your products/services and will be more willing to use advanced features that make it easier to purchase them. This will offset the cost that you have to bear to develop a sophisticated mobile application. Remember, the more complicated or advanced your app is, the higher the cost to build it. In simple words, the cost of mobile app development increases with its complexity.

 

Coding is just one reason that makes developing an advanced mobile app expensive. Other factors that have an impact on the overall cost of your mobile application development include:

* The cost of design

* The cost of architecture, testing, and security

* The cost of back-end development

 

In addition to the above, you also need to consider the category of the app being developed. Your app may fall into one of the following categories:

- Social Media

- Music

- Sports

- Navigation

- Travel

- News

- Health and Fitness

- Books

- Kids

- Education

- Lifestyle

- Photo & Video

 

Following is an illustration of the most popular app categories today in terms of availability:

 

(Above is a infographic showing the most popular Apple’s App Store categories in May 2019 terms of availability [Image Source])

Once you know the category of the app you’re building, you need to stick to it. If you don’t do that, then your app development costs could rise rapidly. This is because the cost of app development changes with the category of the app being developed.

 

For example, it can cost between $25000 and $4000 to develop a music app such as Shazam while developing a travel app like TripAdvisor would cost you over $70000. If you’re not careful and start to add features that change the category of an app, then your app development costs could quickly rise to $10,000 to $100,000. Although many app developers are doing this, offering social media app with games is a bad strategy. Not only are you increasing your costs by doing this, but you’re also confusing your user about what your business does and offers.

 

By understanding the four factors impacting app development costs mentioned above, you can make the process of determining the app development cost easier for yourself.

What is the average cost of developing a mobile application?  Statista may have some answers. According to the online portal for statistics, the average cost of iPhone app development is £22,000, while Android app development costs £18,000 on average. Following is an infographic taken from Statista that shows the average cost of developing an app on various platforms in different regions:

 

(Above is an infographic showing the average cost of developing an app on various OS platforms [Image Source])

 

From the above infographic, we find that the cheapest destination for mobile app development is Indonesia, followed by India and South America. Eastern Europe is the fourth cheapest region for app development, while the average cost for app development is the highest in North America and Australia.

 

Hyperlink InfoSystem also acknowledges the finding made by Statista, as it lists India as the cheapest country for mobile app development. After all, the average cost of mobile app development in the country is just $15 per hour. Following is an infographic by Hyperlink info system showing the timeframe and cost to build an app.

 

(Above is an infographic showing the findings of Hyperlink InfoSystem on the timeframe and cost involved in app development. [Image Source])

The research mentioned above is based on over 1000 Android, iOS, and Windows projects completed by the app development company. Through it, we find that it takes, on average, three weeks to develop the back-end of a mobile app and five weeks to develop its front-end. Overall, it takes eight weeks, on average, to develop a mobile application.

 

These eight weeks convert into 320 hours. The average cost per hour for developing an app in the U.S is $150. If you multiply this by 320, i.e., the total number of hours it takes to develop an app, then you will get the total average cost of mobile app development in the U.S. The amount we got from this calculation is $48,000.

 

The average cost of app development is €41,600. It is AUD 48,000 in Australia, NZD 54,400 in New Zealand, and only $4,800 in India. This is ten times less than the average cost of developing an app in the United States.

 

In addition to the above, Hyperlink InfoSystem also provides information on the average app development cost for the different types of apps. Below is an illustration of this:

 

(Above is an infographic showing average app development cost for the different types of apps [Image Source])

From the above, we find that the average cost of developing a small-sized dating app is between $4,000 and $8,000 per platform. The cost of a mid-sized dating app ranges from $8,000 to $16,000 per platform, while the average cost of a large-sized dating app is over $16,000.

 

The average cost of a small-sized game app is $5,000 to $10,000 per platform. Mid-sized gaming app costs between $10,000 and $14,000 per platform, while the average cost of a large-sized gaming app is over $16,000 per platform.

 

The average cost of small-sized taxi app is $5,000 to $10,000 per platform. A medium-sized taxi app costs $10,000 to $25,000 per platform while large-sized taxi app costs over $25,000 per platform. A small-scale project management app can cost between $4,000 and $10,000 per platform on average. The average cost of a medium-sized project management app is $10,000 to $20,000 per platform while a large-sized project management app costs over $20,000 per platform.

 

If we talk about the cost of fitness apps, then the average cost of a small-sized fitness app is $4,000 to $8,000 per platform. A mid-sized fitness app will cost between $8,000 and $15,000 per platform, while the average cost of a large-sized fitness platform will be over $15,000.

 

The average cost of a small-sized classified app is between $4,000 and $10,000 per platform. A medium-sized app costs $10,000 to $14,000 per platform while a large-sized classified app costs over $14,000 on average.

 

Finally, the average cost of a small-sized restro finder app ranges from $4,000 to $10,000 per platform. Medium-sized restro finder app costs between $10,000 and $17,000 per platform on average, while the cost of a large-sized restro finder app is over $17,000.

 

You can use the figures given above as a reference to work out the development cost for your app. However, you should remember that the costs mentioned above are the bare minimum that you’ll have to pay for app development; the costs can be a lot more if you want to add more features than usual.

If you’re thinking about launching an app to rival the likes of Uber and WhatsApp, then you’d want to find out the development costs involved. Starting the app development project without working out its costs first can be likened to jumping into a ring of fire without thinking about its repercussions.

 

Uber and Instagram are feature-rich apps. So, if you’re looking to build a similar app, then it will cost you between $7,000 and $10,000 to build the app. The average cost of building a competitor app of WhatsApp can cost you between $61,000 and $69,000. The cost of a Tinder-like app is between $40,000 and $60,000, while an app similar to Spotify can cost between $60,000 and $120,000.

 

The somewhat high cost of app development hasn’t stopped the influx of apps on app stores, and more apps get launched every week nowadays. In fact, almost 6,140 apps were added to Google Play Store on average each day between the 3rd quarter of 2016 and the 1st quarter of 2018. Following is an illustration of this:

 

(Above is an infographic showing the average number of new apps per day on Google Play Store [Image Source])

So, why are so many apps being developed and released despite the rising cost of mobile development? Because the total number of app downloads per day is also increasing. According to Sensor Tower, the number of downloads per day during the period 2019-2020 will be 250 million.

 

This is good news for both businesses and app developers as the average annual consumer spend on apps is expected to reach $26 per device by 2022. App Annie has made this prediction, as well as the one in which annual mobile app downloads will reach 258 billion by 2022. Below is a figure featuring the findings of App Annie’s research on mobile apps:

 

(Above is an infographic showing the findings of App Annie’s research on mobile apps [Image Source])

We have gone over the average costs of developing the different types of apps, as well as the factor that can affect the cost of your app development. Now, we will look at the six steps that you can follow to accurately calculate how much it will cost you to develop your app.

 

1. Consider the Operating System and Devices

The very first thing that you will need to decide is whether you want iPhone app development or Android app development. In other words, you must choose a platform or mobile operating system for your app before you initiate your app development project.

 

iPhone app development can be more expensive than Android app development. However, the investment may be worth it in the long term since iOS users are more willing to make in-app purchases and even pay for downloading apps.

 

On the other hand, developing an Android app is a good option if you want to keep your app development costs low and reach out to a larger segment of smartphone users. The only con is that you will get far less in-app purchases compared to an iOS app.

 

2. Consider the Labor Costs

Another major expense in app development is the cost of labor. The labor involved in mobile app development typically includes the following:

- Project manager

- QA engineer

- UI/UX designer

- Developer

 

On average, you will have to pay $20 per hour to the project manager, $30 per hour to the developer, $20 per hour to the QA engineer/tester, and $15 per hour to the designer. Some app development teams may also include a back-end developer in addition to the app developer. The average cost of a back-end developer is $25 per hour. If you add these amounts, the figure you get is $110. This is the average labor cost of app development per hour.

 

However, this cost can be lower or higher depending on the complexity of your app and where the app development team is based. The labor could be a lot cheaper in Indonesia and India and a lot more expensive in the United States.

 

3. Choose Between Native and Hybrid

The third step in working out your app development cost is choosing whether to develop a native app or a hybrid one. Your cost of app development will differ based on the type of app you choose. Whether you’re building it for the Android or IOS platform, a native app can cost you anywhere between $10,000 and $100,000 to build. However, the advantage of developing this type of app is that it can easily access certain hardware within the device of the user, such as contacts list, camera, and GPS.

 

On the other hand, hybrid apps can be a lot cheaper to develop, and you can launch them simultaneously on both iOS and Android. Additionally, the time needed to develop a hybrid app is a lot less than the time required for developing a native app. Overall, we would recommend opting for hybrid app development if you want to keep your development costs low.

 

4. Consider the Complexity of Your App

As mentioned earlier, the cost of app development increased with the complexity of the app. In terms of complexity, apps can be categorized as simple apps, medium-complexity apps, and high-complexity apps.

 

Simple apps are basic apps without any complex features. An example of a complex app feature would be third-party integration. These apps are typically limited to standard UI components, a user login feature, a personal profile, and push notifications.

 

Medium-complexity apps may require third-party integration to work. For example, the integration may be necessary to enable real-time chat or payment features. These apps typically have a backend server and customized UI components.

 

Finally, high-complexity apps have a well-designed user interface and several advanced functionalities. Hence, they are a lot more expensive to build than simple and medium-complexity apps.

 

5. Consider the Mobile App Features You Want

The complexity of your app will depend on the features you want to add to it. Following are some common features with average costs that you can choose to add to your app:

* User login — $500-$1,000

* Push notifications — $1,000-$10,000

* Navigation — $250-$500

* Portrait/landscape view — $500-$,1000

* Media content — starting from $500

* Geolocation — $1250-$2500

* Google Maps integration — starting from $1000

* Chat/messaging — $2000 to $4000

* Ads — $1000-$2500

* In-app purchase purchases — $750-$1500

* Payments integration — $2500-$5000

* Streaming — minimum $1500

* Multi-Language support — $350-$750

* Offline mode — $1000-$2000

* Database — $750-$1500

* Phone sensors usage — $250-$500

* Standby mode — $1250-$2500

* Customization — starting from $1500

* Search — $250-$500

* Data encryption — $500-$1000

 

Your app development cost will vary based on the number of features you want. It will also vary based on which features you want since some features are more expensive than others.

 

6. Consider App Maintenance Costs

While you won’t be paying for app maintenance costs upfront, you must add them to your app development cost calculation since you will be paying for app maintenance at some point. Typically, it would cost you twice the amount of your app development costs to maintain and update your mobile app. This is another reason for you to keep your app development costs as low as possible. Low app development cost leads to lower app maintenance costs. This can potentially save you thousands of dollars over time.

From the information above, we find that the average cost of app development can vary based on where the app builders are based. It can also vary due to the mobile operating system it runs on, the size and experience of your app development team, whether you go for a native or hybrid app, the complexity of your app, the mobile app features you want, and the maintenance and upgrade costs involved.

 

In short, the cost of mobile app development can vary greatly based on the choice you make during the development period. The cost of developing your app can range from a few thousand dollars to over $100,000, depending on the features you want and are willing to pay for. There is no set number to quote. However, you can work out your app development costs by using the information given above.

Our Research Team of Hyperlink InfoSystem and TopAppDevelopmentCompanies.com spent more than 30 hours researching the average costs of app development in various industries and niches. To come up with the information and figures presented above, they read through the research of top sites. This research process makes the provided information trustworthy.