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How Much Does It Cost to Build an App in 2024 (Full Breakdown)

Max Babych

Max Babych

CEO

24 min

What’s the cost of developing an app for your business or startup in 2024?

Simple apps cost between $10,000 and $60,000, average complexity apps fall between $60,000 and $150,000, and highly advanced apps start at around $300,000.

The final price varies depending on the app’s complexity and the development team’s location. Understanding these cost drivers will help you balance value and price when budgeting for app development.

This guide explores mobile app cost factors, hidden expenses, and tips on selecting an app development company. Let’s dive in!

Visual learners can skip right to the bonus infographic for a quick overview.

How Much Does It Cost to Build an App in 2024?

It’s important to note that the price of app development depends on the complexity of the solution you are building. Your app can be simple, basic, or complex based on the number of features, integrations, programming language, and other factors.  

App Type Estimate Cost Time
Simple App Development $10,000 to $60,000 1-3 months
Basic App Development $60,000 to $150,000 3-6 months
Complex App Development from $300,000 9+ months

The best way to discover how much app development might cost for you is to talk to the developers directly. If you haven’t found a development company yet, you can try an app cost calculator to get an estimate.

Suppose you ask a development studio to estimate the cost of making a custom app without giving them clear documents and details. In that case, the estimated cost will probably be just a rough guess.

On the other hand, to get a precise estimate with a cost calculator, you need to consider many things. These include:  

  • design complexity and the number of screens;
  • development process;
  • quality assurance phase;
  • the number of functions and features;
  • the complexity of features;
  • complexity of the database;
  • number and depth of 3rd party integrations;
  • implementation of security protocols like HIPAA or GDPR;
  • size and level of the development team.

At SpdLoad, we figure out the cost of making an app by carefully estimating it.

To learn more about the process, check out our product discovery services.

We examine app development statistics and global trends to estimate the cost of creating an app.

Factors that affect to hourly rate the cost of mobile app development

App Development Price Statistics

Information from trusted organizations and platforms shows that having a mobile app in 2023 could lead to significant benefits. Here are some stats to back up this idea:

  • App usage has grown by 36% between 2020 and 2022 (Businessofapps)
  • Users spent $21.2 billion on the Apple store in the third quarter of 2022 alone (Statista)
  • The number of app downloads increased from 140 billion in 2016 to 230 billion in 2021 (Statista)
  • Every month, the Play Market sees over 100,000 new apps, while the Apple Store welcomes over 30,000 new mobile apps (Statista)
  • Mobile app revenue is poised to increase from $318 billion in 2020 to over $600 billion in 2025 (Statista)

Now that we’ve made it clear that the market embraces mobile applications, you might wonder if they truly impact enterprises. Here are some statistics that demonstrate their significance:

  • App-based startups have over 800% higher IPOs than non-app-based startups (Appmysite)
  • Business app usage increased by 90% in 2020 alone (Influencermarketinghub)

Thus, it’s evident that demand for mobile applications is growing, and owning one will significantly impact your startup. It’s high time to move to the money matters.

We’ll explore the approximate costs of different types of apps you might be interested in building. 

Pricing by App Type

The average mobile app development cost ranges from $30,000 to over $400,000.

The type of application is an important factor that shapes the final price, and it should be considered. Below is a list of the most popular types of apps and the average development cost involved.

App Type Estimate Cost Time
Mobile App $30,000-$300,000 1,200h
iPhone App $55,000-$300,000 1,200h
Android App $50,000-$300,000 1,200h
Web App $60,000-$300,000 1,200h
Startup App $40,000-$400,000 1,600h
Taxi App (Uber) $50,000-$400,000 1,600h
Game App $60,000-$250,000 1,600h
Retail App $50,000-$150,000 1,200h
Augmented Reality App (AR) $100,000-$250,000 1,600h
eCommerce App $60,000-$250,000 1,600h
Social Media App (Instagram) $50,000-$300,000 1,200h
Business App $50,000-$200,000 1,200h
Learning App (DuoLingo) $60,000-$225,000 900h
Video Streaming App $80,000-$300,000 1,600h
Restaurant App $40,000-$150,000 900h
Community App $18,000-$150,000 900h
Shopify App $30,000-$180,000 900h
Dating App $50,000-$350,000 1,400h
Food Delivery App $40,000-$150,000 900h
Hybrid App $40,000-$200,000 1,200h
Healthcare App $55,000-$300,000 1,200h
Typical App $40,000-$300,000 1,200h

Pricing by OS Platforms

The development price might differ depending on the OS you prefer. Let’s see how much will it cost to build an iOS and Android application. 

OS Cost 
iOS app $75,000-$500,000
Android app $50,000-$500,000
Hybrid app $90,000-$700,000

Are you confused about what each application type means? Let’s unwrap them. 

iOS App

An iOS application is a mobile app built primarily to work on the iPhone operating system and intended to interact natively with the device’s core component.

These apps are created using Swift, Objective-C, XCode, etc. 

iOS app development price ranges from $75,000 to $500,000 based on the intricacy and complexity of each idea. 

Android App

As its name implies, these are mobile applications built to work natively on Google’s Android operating system.

They interact with the OS’s components to guarantee users an optimum experience.

These apps are created using Kotlin and Java. 

Creating an Android mobile application ranges between $70,000 and $500,000, depending on the app’s complexity, compliance laws, and other factors. 

Hybrid App

A Hybrid mobile application is created with a single codebase to work efficiently on Android and iOS devices.

These apps are created using React Native, Ionic, Flutter, NativeScript, etc. 

Creating a cross-platform mobile app ranges between $90,000 and $700,000.

In addition to the OS type, the app development cost depends on the development team’s country and location. Now, let’s examine how it works.

Regional Pricing Differences

A high price does not always indicate a high-quality product. It only shows the salary variations of programmers in different countries.

Here’s a brief comparison of the programmers’ rates in different regions:

Region Hourly rate, $
United States (USA) 120-150
United Kingdom (UK) 100-120
Australia 100-120
Western Europe 80-100
Eastern Europe 30-50
India 20-30

As we can see, the price variation is substantial.

At an hourly rate of $120-150, it costs more to develop in the US than in any other country.

Hiring a developer with a similar skill set in India often costs $20-30.

However, India is a country famous for low-quality codes.

For top-notch cost-effectiveness, it’s best to opt for Ukrainian developers. They mainly adopt a mathematical approach to their coding process, making the mobile app more scalable, resilient, and secure.

However, it is crucial to understand that the hourly rate will differ depending on the:

  • programming language (Swift, Java, Kotlin, PHP, JavaScript, Golang),
  • project complexity and specialists involved (programmers, testers, scrum master, business analyst, project manager),
  • their seniority level (senior, middle, or junior), and qualifications (e.g., Master’s degree and certifications).

The more information you have, the better prepared you will be to evaluate the proposal.

These main cost factors will help you create a basic design for an application that meets your requirements.

Factors that affect to hourly rate the cost of mobile app development

Moving on to the next part of how much money it takes to create an app. Let’s explore a few successful application examples.

Real-World App Cost Breakdowns

Below are examples of mobile applications, along with the cost and development time.

It gives you a mobile app development price estimate, not a precise figure.

Example #1: Tinder

Tinder is a geosocial networking and dating application with over 67 million annual downloads.

The app is user-friendly and easy to use. You can swipe pictures either to the right or left to find people you might like to date.

Tinder began in 2012 with $485,000 in initial funding and has become very successful since then.

The company’s revenue was over $1.6 billion in 2021 and is poised to surpass that number in 2023. 

The cost of creating a dating app like Tinder is about $100,000, with such features as:

  • Login pages, 
  • User authentication, authorization, 
  • User profile, 
  • In-app messaging, 
  • GPS location, 
  • Push notification, 
  • In-app payment gateway. 
Learn more about how much does it cost to make an app like Tinder

Example #2: Ikea

Ikea is a brand-based application developed with the help of Augmented Reality.

The photos of the furniture in their catalogs are mostly 3d models.

Due to the various new features, integrations, and security aspects, these apps increase the bill but add many functionalities.

The cost of such an application can start from $45,000, and the product can be built in about 1,000 hours.

The features of the mobile app design include:

  • 3D visualization of the products,
  • compliance with social media sharing,
  • 360-degree view of the products,
  • real-time dashboard and analytics,
  • CRM integration.
Discover how much does it cost to build an app like Ikea

Example #3: Uber

Uber is a ridesharing app that allows to request a ride from a nearby driver. 

Uber’s first funding was a $510,000 investment, but it has raised above $25 billion since then. The app currently has over 118 million users

Are you interested in creating a similar product? The average cost of making an app like Uber is $80,000. The development process will take approximately 1,200 hours.

The company, which started in 2009, is currently one of the world’s most valuable organizations, with a valuation of over $91 billion. 

Core features of the Uber app include: 

  • Location tracker,
  • In-app payment and withdrawal portal, 
  • Routing and advanced route optimization, 
  • Push notifications, 
  • Authentication and authorization feature, 
  • Profile page. 
Learn more about how much does it cost to have an app like Uber.

Example #4: TikTok

TikTok is a popular social media application for video-sharing.

The cost of developing an app like TikTok can depend on the app features and functionalities it offers.

The price of such an application will start from $70,000 and can take about 1,200 hours to build.

The app features include:

  • online messaging,
  • video calls,
  • multi-language support,
  • sharing images, videos,
  • user connecting, and much more.
Find out more of how much it cost to build an app like TikTok.

Example #5: Airbnb

Airbnb is an app that links people who need a place to stay with those who have rooms or homes to rent in a particular area for a specific time.

Airbnb grew from raising a seed fund of $20,000 to having a valuation of over $30 billion.

The company makes revenue from charging platform tax–guests pay 5%-15% booking fee, while the hosts pay 3%. 

This business model generated an income of $6 billion in 2021, a 78% year-on-year increase. 

Feeling inspired to create a similar app? Building a mobile application for Airbnb will cost about $100,000 and can require a 1000-hour timeline.

Core features in the Airbnb app include: 

  • Search field, 
  • Filters for targeted search, 
  • In-app chat, 
  • Calendar, 
  • Reminder, 
  • Review and ratings, 
  • Listings.
Find out more of how much does it take to make an app like Airbnb.

Example #6: Twitter (X)

Twitter (now X) is a microblogging and social network created by Jack Dorsey in 2006. 

The app got $5 million in its first funding round when it was valued at $20 million. In the Q2 of 22,  it was worth $44 billion, making $1.2 billion in revenue.

The estimated cost of owning an app like Twitter is $500,000. The core features needed for the app to function include: 

  • Polls, 
  • Timeline, 
  • Pop-up notifications, 
  • Related headline features, 
  • Post publishing, 
  • Add, remove, and block connections, 
  • Audio streaming (Spaces), 
  • Headers. 

Now that we have explored the time and effort required to develop an app like one of the popular startups, we’ll examine the factors influencing app costs.

Factors Impacting App Difficulty

Before developing the mobile application, you must analyze the target audience and business objectives, understand how to create an app, and choose a platform to code.

The buttons, screens, and other elements make the application unique, engaging, and convenient, but each additional piece affects the overall project budget.

Therefore, it is essential to pre-develop a prototype and think over the functionality to the smallest detail.

This functionality influences the following factors that affect the price.

The cost of developing a mobile application depends on three factors:

  • The application’s complexity levels
  • Design and Structure
  • The platform on which the application will run

We will discuss these three aspects in detail, starting with the complexity.

Factor 1. Feature Scope

The smaller and simpler the application, the less time it will need to be developed. When it comes to the development timing, you need to decide on the scale of the upcoming work.

How Long Does It Take To Make an App?

How many features will be implemented in the product? How many screens, buttons, and functions will it have? How complex will the application’s business logic be?

The complexity level of the app depends on the features and integrations you choose.

Type of complexity  Characteristics
Simple apps
  • they are created without any added benefits,
  • you will have the essential features,
  • low-tech screens,
  •  and the necessary UI solutions.
Mid-level apps
  • have more complicated things to offer,
  • you can get integrations with API,
  • more screens,
  • custom UI,
  • and features like real-time messaging.
Complex apps
  • they are apps with multifunctions,
  • you can get advanced and complicated features such as real-time synchronization,
  • chatbots,
  • media processing,
  • UI animation, and many more
Types of app development complexity

If we choose an entire expert development team for our project:

  • a project manager,
  • a UI/UX designer,
  • iOS or/and Android developer,
  • a  backend developer,
  • and a   QA engineer,

The terms of app development in each category will be the following:

  • Simple Apps – 2 to 4 months
  • Mid-Level Apps – 6 to 10 months
  • Complex Apps – 8 months to a year or more

The cost of developing mobile applications depends heavily on the complexity level and the project size.

Type 1. Simple Complexity

It comprises basic features, three to four screens, simple functions, and no data storage.

Such an application will have the main features including:

  • Login
  • Signup
  • Profile making and editing
  • Search
  • Notifications
  • Messages
  • Admin panel or dashboard

The cost will be determined based on a collection of features offered through the app.

Examples: A calculator app, time tracking app, notes app, and social networks.

An example of the complexity of developing a simple application feature

Type 2. Basic complexity: database and API-based applications

Why does an airplane cost more than a car? Because it is bigger, far more complex, consists of unique materials, has higher safety regulations, and has specialized features.

Similarly, developing an app by adding more features and databases will increase the cost.

In these applications, you are looking to add some extra features (other than the ones you find above):

  • Social Media Integration
  • In-App Purchases
  • Payment Portals
  • Geolocation
  • Location Tracking
  • Better Security

Apart from these, there is better accessibility and usage of robust infrastructure.

These are the applications that require data storage, retrieval from more than one database, and synchronization.

To build such an app, you should also understand the size of the customer base; this helps define the cost and price range.

So, the higher complexity and number of features the app offers will increase the final development cost.

Examples: Photo-sharing applications, taxi or food delivery applications.

An example of the average complexity of application development

Type 3. High Complexity: Feature-Rich and Large-Scale Applications

The complex apps are designed for big businesses.

Basically, app development companies create a custom product without integrations, or they use custom integrations with existing systems.

Complex apps are legal or custom applications, usually leading to higher development costs.

The total cost to develop the app can go way beyond how much you might expect.

Here’s how the development cost of this kind of app is different:

  • Data Synchronization with more than two devices
  • Native features
  • Online streaming
  • In-App Calls
  • Messaging
  • Video Chats

Developing complex mobile applications is hard. Estimating their costs involves a lot of research and planning.

There are many factors to consider, like creating dashboards, handling complex platforms, and managing servers and databases. Also, ensuring high availability and security adds to the complexity.

Customizations are often necessary, meaning developers must write a lot of code for various functions.

It’s hard to know exactly how much an app will cost upfront. This is because each project’s scope can vary, and it takes time to figure out all the details, usually through lengthy discussions.

Examples: enterprise applications, CRM applications, gaming apps, and trading platforms.

An example of developing features for a complex application

Factor 2. UI/UX Design

Moving on with how much it costs to develop an app, we have entered the app design stage.

The app design process is a crucial part of the development stage.

You cannot separate the two to decide on the cost of developing the app.

Designing is similar to development. Adding more features increases cost proportionally. (Read more about the app design cost.)

If you choose ready-made templates for designing, the cost estimate will be limited, but if you want more customizations in the design, it will cost more and take longer.

We need to look at a few things here as well.

Point 1. User Experience

UX is about how the application works. It involves creating the screens on paper or a designing platform.

Ultimately, it also helps decide how much it costs to develop a mobile app.

The goal is to make the application easy for the end-user to use.

Understanding the market, the user, your goals, and your objectives is essential when creating that kind of experience.

The cost of launching a mobile app will fluctuate depending on the engagement levels and intricate design.

Examples:

  • Button Placement
  • Color Psychology
  • Following the user’s eye pattern
UX is one of the factors that determine how much an app costs to develop

Point 2. User Interface and Visuals

Application design involves many details. However, it begins with the UI, or how the application will look to the viewer.

You can estimate the cost depending on the use of different visual elements. In fact, it influences the cost of MVP design as well.

Designing an application follows creating mockups that allow getting a visual hint of the solution.

Here, too, the design will depend on your goals.

What do you require from your enterprise app?

  • Engagement
  • Sales
  • Information

Furthermore, the kind of application you are developing will also play a role in app development costs.

  • Basic app
  • Authentication
  • Social networking
  • On-demand
  • E-commerce
  • Marketplace
  • IoTВ

Different types of applications require different design solutions.

At SpdLoad, we emphasize design and development equally to determine the optimal cost of developing an app.

Examples:

  • Layout,
  • Screen,
  • Colors,
  • Typography,
  • Shapes,
  • Elements,
  • Items.

UI is another of the factors that affects the cost of mobile app development

Point 3. Branding

What does come into your mind when you think of:

  • Apple,
  • Nike,
  • Reebok,
  • Volkswagen,
  • McDonald,
  • Dominos?

All organizations have a brand value.

Their icons and names stand out from thousands of similar brands.

Why? Because they have invested in branding.

When you’re creating a mobile app, you might decide not to promote your brand because of the high cost of marketing efforts.

However, branding is a part of your business model.

So, there is no doubt whether or not to include branding in the application development process.

The final cost you need to build an app will depend on branding. That is why you must keep it nominal in the beginning.

After capturing the market to some extent, you can think about scaling branding efforts.

Examples:

  • Creating an Icon
  • Marketing Efforts
Branding is another part of UI design that impacts the cost of mobile app development

Point 4. UX Writing

When you develop an app for a user, add copywriting to the total cost.

A creative copy must compel users to engage and interact more with your solution.

Fusing good copy and impactful design is vital for an app’s success.

However, regarding the cost, you cannot ignore that a good copy needs good money.

To know how much it costs to set up an app, ask your developer to choose a copywriter first.

Or, if you want to hire one by yourself, include the price in the final tally.

You can also select from a huge pool of writers available worldwide.

Choose a writer that shows nativity and cost-effectiveness.

Hiring a writer from a native English-speaking country will cost more.

Examples are texts for:

  • Landing Page
  • Emails
  • Newsletters
UX Writing is another of the factors that determine app development price

Factor 3. Platform Considerations

After discovering the price of mobile app development based on complexity and design, we move on to the platform.

You need to decide between two variants:

Option 1. Develop a Hybrid or Cross-Platform App

Hybrid here implies that the application will run on both Android and iOS devices.

This question is primary in the discovery phase, which we adhere to at Spdload to decide how much an app costs.

Before boiling down to one platform, consider three things:

  • Market Share,
  • Device Fragmentation
  • Prevalence

All these depend on the market you are going to target initially.

Knowing the market is helpful for determining the cost of iOS app development. You need to know where iOS is more prevalent than Android. The same theory applies to Android devices.

The development process for both platforms is different, but not the final price. 

Cross-platform applications are advantageous because they can easily fit on different devices and work smoothly. Plus, they can utilize features specific to each platform.

This helps create a better experience and lowers an app’s “how much cost” answer.

The cost to develop a native app is more than that of a hybrid one. And this is for obvious reasons. You require double the human resources and effort to build two apps at the same time.

Option 2. Develop a Native App

Unlike a hybrid app, a native application runs only on a single platform: Android or iOS.

Thus, if you want to build an app for both Android and iOS using native frameworks, you’ll need to hire 2 different development teams.

One will create an Android version, and the other will create an iOS version.

Since you will need to employ different people for different platforms, the cost will certainly double.

The question that you might ask is how much an iPhone or an Android app costs.

The answer is that the cost is the same as building an app on iOS and Android.

Although the technologies, SDK, databases, frameworks, and quality assessment systems are different for both, the price is the same.

Another integral part of the guide on how much an app will cost is a hidden cost. Let’s move on to this topic. 

Impact on the cost of developing a hybrid or cross-platform application

Hidden App Development Costs

To calculate how much an effective app costs, we must take into account a few additional expenses:

  • Functional costs are fees for third-party integrations. For example, SMS or push notifications, geolocation, or payment gateways.
  • Admin or management costs. For example, content manager salary.
  • Infrastructural costs. The payment for server, CDN, and integrations like Redis.
  • Support charges. Additional costs to update an application, fix bugs, or make future improvements.

Let’s look at the details. For example, it costs $75,000 to develop the app.

  • Depending on the number and load of integrations, they may cost anywhere from $5,000 to $20,000 annually.
  • Maintaining the application may cost 20% per year of the original development cost, i.e., $15,000
  • App marketing may cost 50%-100% per year of the original development cost, i.e., $75,000-$150,000.

Major Hidden Costs to be Aware of

In estimating the cost of a mobile application, some easily overlooked costs can impact the success of your business. The most important among them are marketing and ongoing support expenses. 

Let’s discuss what each entails.

1. Marketing Cost

The marketing cost is the money you spend to make your mobile app well-known to the people you want to use it.

Your ideal marketing cost for app development should be X2-X3 of your initial development price. 

If the cost of developing your mobile app is $100,000, you should budget from $200,000 to $300,000 for your yearly marketing expenses. 

This money will be spent on the following:

  • Social media ads,
  • Search engine ads, 
  • Sales funnels, 
  • Landing pages, 
  • Copywriting, 
  • PRs, 
  • Customer relationship management tools, 
  • Email marketing tools.

2. Ongoing Support Needs

App maintenance costs are the funds you spend to make sure your app stays available, is easy to use, and works better over time. Maintenance may be routine, on-demand, or both. 

The ideal app development budget maintenance is x2 of your initial development cost. The bulk of maintenance costs will be spent on the following: 

  • App store registration and subscript,
  • Cloud hosting services, 
  • Server subscription fees, 
  • Infrastructure costs, 
  • 3rd party integrations, 
  • SSL,
  • Tech support team.

Now that we have explored the hidden costs of mobile app development, it is time to choose a reliable vendor to create an app for you. 

How to Choose an App Development Company?

The final point to consider in terms of how much it costs to make your app is the team you choose.

The assumption that the kind of development one chooses does not matter is not valid.

On the contrary, choosing the right development partner has countless benefits. The main ones are lower costs and higher quality.

As a startup, your budget is low, but the need for a unique product is imperative.

So, choose the team wisely if you want to get the best bang for your buck.

Here’s some expert guidance that will help you decide how much an app costs.

The choice of a team will significantly influence how much it costs to make an app.

Pro Tip: Always keep three things in mind when you are hiring developers for your solution:

  • Focus on the Product
  • Don’t mess with the design
  • Constant Marketing

Here is the description of each option in more detail.

Option #1: Hire a Local Agency

You can always choose a trusted medium-sized local company that provides a list of services, including SEO optimization.

Criteria Description
Cost To develop an app, the development cost by the local companies will be higher.

There is no doubt about that.

Depending on the country you are starting your startup in, the per-hour rates of a development team and a design team can range between $150 to $250 per hour per specialist.

So, if the total work is for 400 hours and takes an average rate of $100, you are looking to spend $80,000.

That is the app development cost breakdown.

Pros and Cons No doubt, if you hire a local agency, you can maintain constant communication.

Plus, you will get expert quality and the possibility to make changes easily.

Lastly, a local team will be responsible and accountable for their work.

However, the cost factor of these teams is over the charts.

If you can and are ready to spend $40,000 on the product in one go, be our guest.

But this cost doesn’t include maintenance, edits, copywriting, discovery, and market analysis.

Should you go for it? Once you run a cost-benefit analysis, you will understand that it is not worth it.

For more complicated projects, there is another option.

Option #2: In-house Team

An in-house team is a group of app developers who work directly for your company. They get paid a salary by your company and follow instructions from your management team on a daily basis.

These developers are the most preferred option for solutions that collect sensitive information.

Criteria Description
Cost The cost of hiring an in-house team varies with the location of your startup and the developer’s expertise. 

For startups based in the United States, the cost is 

  • Full-stack developer = $180,000  per year, 
  • Designer = $160,000 per year, 
  • Native mobile app developer (iOS or Android) = 170,000.

Here, the cost is even higher than contracting the work to a local agency. (You can compare the salaries using our calculator.)

However, you can reduce your expenses by offering the developer some equity. 

Additionally, the high development cost here also leads to twice as high maintenance costs.

Pros and Cons Opting for an internal workforce has noteworthy pros and cons. 

Its benefits are:

  • A constant flow of ideas – provided that your work environment is conducive. 
  • Communication will be smooth, as all team members will have close contact. 

Its disadvantages are:

  • You’re responsible for managing all technical and business processes, 
  • Numerous hidden costs, e.g., office, equipment, etc.
Should you go for it? Hiring an internal team includes renting office space to accommodate your workforce.

You’re also liable for a lawsuit if things go wrong due to the negligence of your management staff.

Also, you’ll have to worry about both technical and business needs. 

Although this is the most popular hiring model, it’s not cost-effective.

If you have decided to create an app but you have a limited budget, then you can hire freelancers.

Option #3: Freelancers

If you need to quickly test a hypothesis or do a small project, you can work with freelancers.

If you choose this option, keep in mind that you will need to spend a lot of time communicating with contractors and managing the project.

Criteria Description
Cost There are two ways you can go ahead with a freelancer.

  • Hire them on a contract basis
  • Hire them on an hourly basis

Plus, there are plenty of platforms to find freelancers.

Websites like Upwork, Fiverr, PeoplePerHour, Toptal, and so on.

The average hourly price of a freelancer again depends on the country you are hiring from.

  • US: $50 per hour
  • Asia: $15 to $25/hour
  • Ukraine: $25/hour
  • Latin America: $20/hour

These are the starting rates, and they can climb as per the experience.

So, to figure out the cost of building a useful and excellent app, consider the hours.

Pros and Cons Let’s face it: freelancing is one of the cheapest methods of creating a solution.

With freelancing, you have the power to dictate the prices and still get a quality product.

The downside of working with freelancers is that you can lose track of accountability.

They can quickly quit the job and leave you hanging.

Hence, here, the question is not how much it costs for a freelancer to make an app but whether the specialist will see it through.

Should you go for it? Hiring a freelancer is not a problem.

However, ensuring that the freelancer helps you till the end of the product development and adheres to your requirements can become an issue.

So, we would not recommend going the freelancing way until and unless you have the time and energy to monitor them continually.

If your project requires more staff and specialists working on the project, the availability of high-quality software, and experience in promoting apps, then you may want to outsource mobile app development.

Option #4: Outsourcing

By outsourcing application development, you’re contracting a foreign company to help you create your app from scratch and manage the overall architecture.

It allows you to focus on your business needs, and a team of experts manages your technical requirements.

Criteria Description
Cost Cost of development differs from country to country. For example, developers’ prices in the USA are 2x-3x higher than the cost of hiring developers in Ukraine. 

Eastern European countries provide the perfect blend of cost and quality. 

They adopt a mathematical approach to development and ensure solutions are resilient, robust, scalable, and secure.

Ukraine offers you access to developers at $40 while hiring the same talent in the US costs $100-$120/hour.

The cost of outsourcing mobile app development to an offshore agency varies from $30,000 to $500,000.

The exact amount depends on the product’s complexity.

Pros and Cons Outsourcing your app creation is a good option, particularly for MVP development

Securing a partnership with an excellent offshore app development agency provides you with several benefits. These include

  • Cost-effectiveness, 
  • High-quality products, 
  • Adherence to compliance laws, 
  • Transparent development processes, 
  • Quick delivery.
Should you go for it? Absolutely!

Outsourcing app development to an agency will certainly reduce the app’s development cost.

However, before you choose an agency, leave no stone unturned.

Check everything and talk to the team.

  • Explore the case studies
  • References
  • Past Experiences

In general, the cost of outsourcing mobile application development varies greatly from $30,000 to $50,000.

As mentioned above, it greatly depends on the operating system, minimum viable product, features, type of app, UX/UI design, tools, software, and other factors.

When it comes to the mobile app development process, you have to go through a lot of things, including

  • project management,
  • business analysis,
  • development process, front-end, and back-end,
  • UI / UX design,
  • app testing, optimization,
  • deployment,
  • and often app maintenance.

So, it’s better to be sure about the company you choose.

Development team options that will affect the cost of mobile app

5 Key Criteria for Evaluating App Development Agencies

There are many IT outsourcing companies offering different services. But how to find a reliable partner capable of delivering high-quality products?

First, it’s better to conduct in-depth research and ensure they meet your product’s requirements.

Here are some tips that can help you in choosing an IT company that can fulfill your project needs and create the app you want:

1. Align on Required Features

You need to decide on the requirements for your application, the number of funds allocated for its development, the desired development timeline, as well as the platforms to run it.

It is also a plus if you get to know about the main popular technologies for mobile application development. This will help you better understand what sort of application you need to develop.

It will greatly help when choosing a mobile app development company, as you can look for an expert in your type of application.

2. Evaluate End-to-End Services

If you pick a well-known software app development company with a good track record, you can be confident that you’ll have skilled experts working on your project. 

This company will offer all the resources you need for designing, developing, and testing your app, so you won’t have to search for extra help elsewhere.

3. Interview Developers Personally

Once you’ve found an app development agency that fits your needs, dedicate some time to meeting the development team.

Ask them for their experience in app development, tell them briefly about your app ideas, and discover what they think about your app concept.

Such a conversation will help you understand how the app developers of this company find your idea and are ready to implement it.

4. Verify Their Portfolio

Ask the company representatives to name some of the best apps they have created and thoroughly explore them.

Think about whether you like the design of these apps and whether you find them functional and user-friendly.

It is also important to remember that its uniqueness is one of the main factors for app success. Do you see anything special about this company’s apps, or do they seem ordinary?

5. Assess Security & Compliance

It is crucial to discuss the security and privacy of your mobile application and your business data privacy. 

Developers should be prepared to sign a confidentiality and non-disclosure agreement to protect your sensitive information.

In addition, it’s better to discuss intellectual property rights in advance. These and other aspects of ensuring personal data protection must be discussed and dealt with before starting the collaboration.

Next Steps

Building a mobile app involves evaluating features, design, and platform, which affect complexity and cost. 

Select the best company to make your idea into a product for the market. Consider hidden fees, where they get their materials, and what support they offer afterward.

At SpdLoad, we specialize in developing market-ready mobile apps at competitive prices. Our detailed yet efficient cost analysis helps ensure your product’s success and scalability.

As an industry leader, we have the experience to turn your vision into a high-quality, cost-effective app. Contact us today to learn more about our mobile app development, design, and consulting services.

Infographic: App Price Breakdown

Here, you’ll find a summary of our in-depth guide. Learn the highlights of what to look for when estimating the cost of developing the app.

Factors that determine how much it cost to application development

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