23rd February 2021
With the prevailing immensity of smartphone usage, a lot of businesses have their mobile apps now and should have one. And if businesses choose to 'go digital', they need to be clear and analytical about it. In a recent GoodFirms survey, the participating firms were asked questions on two different, but decision-making data sets - Costs and Time - for roughly 80% of their projects.
Under the section of Costs, the firms were asked to provide hourly rates to develop a mobile application based on the type of project (economic project & high-end project), and for platforms (iOS, Android, & Cross-Platform). From the data collected, the type-based average hourly costs were calculated for app platforms and different geographies.
Under the section of Time, the firms were asked to provide the minimum and the maximum number of hours they usually require to complete a specified development stage or a set of app features. From the data collected, the hour ranges with the median minimum and the median maximum were calculated, along with the highest maximums for certain, required cases.
KEY TAKEAWAY: HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO DEVELOP AN APP?
Simple calculating with the time taken and average hourly charges (£45) resulted from the survey, the average app development costs would be: • A simple app costs about £18,000 to £43,000 with minimum viable features.
• A complex app costs from £25,000 to £65,000, with popular consumer features.
• An advanced app costs about £45,000 to £100,000, with cutting-edge features. Of course, these are estimated calculations. And there are many moving parts in the development process. Each of these variables is discussed and accounted for through the following app development cost breakdown.
KEY TAKEAWAY: HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO DEVELOP AN APP?
Each of the stages in the development process takes different amounts of time to complete. It usually takes weeks - a ton of brainstorming, to-and-fro communications, development cycles, tests - to build the finished mobile app. Simple calculations from the survey figures reveal that the average app development time could be:
• Making a simple app takes about 4.5 to 11 weeks, with minimum viable features.
• Making a complex app takes 7 to 16 weeks, with popular consumer features.
• Making an advanced app takes 11.5 to 26 weeks, with cutting-edge features. The raw figures from the survey were in hours and converted into weeks. For this, standard practices are considered - simultaneous work on 2 development stages at a time and working time of 8 hours a day, 5 days a week.
So there you have it, of course, the numbers are estimated and can change but this can help with managing your or your board's expectations. The initial cost can look expensive but you are investing into your customers, the future and if you build the right app then the return on investment can be much greater.
Advice would be to use a third-party company rather than 'build in-house' because you'll save on time and money (other salaries) and it's what they do on a day to day basis and also take your time choosing the right developers, make sure that you can have a lasting relationship with them.
