How Much Does it Cost to Make an App

May 27, 2020

It’s no wonder that our day starts with a curious peek into an app and ends with a lazy closing tap late at night. Well, that’s how the mobile revolution has impacted our daily life. Just consider the number of apps in the global mobile market and you will know why everyone wants a pie of simplified life at the tap of a finger. To quote a number, let’s just say more than three million fee-based apps are available in the market today. Maybe the cost of making an app doesn’t worry the developers anymore. Competition and adaptation (by consumers) go hand in hand. Billions of dollars are at stake, and the app that gets to go viral gets to win the game. It’s true that the count (of apps) is going up even while we are writing this blog, and billions of ideas are taking root right this moment for the next blockbuster app. But reaching the prototype stage isn’t so easy, given the average app development cost. Let’s just give you a rough estimate of how much it’s going to cost to develop an app.
The good part is that kick-starting with app-making is easy. The crazy part is that costs can inflate if you are unable to engineer the perfect plan for app design and development. Having clarified that, let’s go into the type of apps you may be looking to design and develop, as the price varies for each of the app type that we are about to mention.

Choose your app type
There are a multitude of apps in the market, and it’s difficult to put a cap on the number of lifestyle segments that these apps cater to. But basics remain basics, irrespective of the different names we get to hear every day. Here go a list of the basic apps and their possible design and development prices:

a) Apps with basic table functionality

The simplicity of the table approach lies in neat division of information based on a hierarchy. The main screen will display clickable topics that lead you to a new set of browsable lists. Table-based apps are considered to be the easiest to build and design for businesses that are looking for a simple app providing quick, basic information. Rates can vary depending on the devices you are developing the app for. With provision of all the basic content needed for your table-based app, a modest calculation will land you anywhere between $1000 and $4000, and be ready to bear additional charges if you plan to go in for location technology, social media integration and similar add-ons.

b) Database-driven custom functionality
If you plan to provide the user with a big load of usable content, then you’ve got to customize a mini-data management system for even distribution of the content you want to display. Content load could be a mix of images and text that calls for best display schemes. This kind of an app differs from the table theme as it becomes a bit more complex in terms of arrangement and organization of ideas. Here, one has the option of creating a native app or a dynamic app. The front-end of this kind of an app is going to be data-heavy, which means the back-end framework needs to be meticulously organized in every way. The entire cost, anywhere between $8000 and $50,000, will go into the creation of comfort and ease in usability.

c) Games
We’ve come a long way in gaming, from 2d animation to virtual reality. Things in gaming have become very complex with features like incorporation of game centers and integration with social media, alongside other mind-boggling technical factors. While it is difficult to determine a ballpark figure in this arena, the price can range anywhere between $10,000 and $250,000 (and beyond).

d) Apps enabling capacity enhancement
These are apps that can enhance the potential of a device in delivering best services. For instance, the alarm or camera of a device can be bettered by way of modification. But this also means you have to pay extra sums.

e) Dynamic apps
These apps are dependent on external inputs. This comes as an additional development charge.

f) Custom utility apps
These apps are tailored to suit the content needs of the user. Addition of these apps would mean a little spike in development rates. Once you have successfully addressed the question of who’s going to be interested in your app, you need to look for a good app developer. And this too comes with charges.

How to find a good developer?
Reputation and credibility precede trust and confidence. If your app has a complicated coding component to it, you can automatically strike off developers who just have experience in making simple apps. If you haven’t succumbed to the temptation of going to just another ordinary app developer, you need to be aware about two more scenarios. The second scenario is where you may have reached a dead-end after having begun the initial work on your app with someone incapable of doing the job. The third scenario is where one depends on an unprofessional freelancer who’s doing things at his own sweet pace without realizing the seriousness of the project at hand.
Now, over to the ideal scenario. An app project compulsorily needs a design lead, account manager and a project lead. It’s difficult to make a guess on the charges involved in engaging a good developer agency, as it covers the price of each version being produced. However, there are agencies that are ready to begin work with a budget of $150,000. Irrespective of the money you spend, know that the game can change for better or worse during the four stages of a project – ideation, layout and planning, design and going live. Always remember that rates will go up if you keep adding more functionalities. But therein lies the usability factor too. So plan well and play well!