Make a successful business via mobile app right now! Just think about the numbers: on the “Singles Day”, the Alibaba Group raised revenue to $ 9.8 billion through an improved mobile app. The average amount of the number of mobile Internet users increases by 10-12% per year. Creation of mobile application is a nice way to automate business, improve service, and attract a new audience. Now let's ask the main question «how much does outsourcing app development cost?". Let’s find out together.
Table of contents
From Idea to Result Why Do You Need to Outsource the Development of Your App? How Much Does It Cost to Develop an App Worldwide? What Factor Impact on Mobile Application Costs? Functionality and Main Features Visual Design of an App Backend and App Administration Summary
From Idea to Result
Before you start developing a mobile application, you need to study many details and answer many questions. The main goal of any startup is to increase sales and profits, but if you do not have the right approach, there is a risk of losing money.
Lots of mobile projects are closed after the first year of operation because they do not pay off. To prevent this from happening to your project, let's take a look at all the details that need to be considered before creating and launching an application.
Let’s see what you should find out before hiring developer.
At the very beginning, it is important to understand who will use the final product.
Develop a business model. There are few business models in the world where an application is an independent unit that does not depend on anyone. Most often, it is a channel for selling goods or services.
The application itself does not make money, even if thousands of users install it (if it is free). · Therefore, even before the start, it is necessary to consider what model of monetization, payments tools, and a security system you want to include.
It is very important to understand the future business model and the role of the mobile application in it.
Explore available platforms, and find the one that suits you best (Google Play, App Store).
So, it is better to find all resembling applications that are available on the market. Examine their strengths and weaknesses. Explore their design, main features, and functions that could be added to your product. Examine user comments to figure out what they are missing and what they want. After all, analyze obtained information and keep this in mind during the developing process.
In addition, you need to know that different apps based on different programming languages. Depending on the type of language, and overall tech stack of the project, a certain app might have different performance, different set of features, and so on. Usually, it is Objective-C or Swift for iOS platform, while the Android platform based on Kotlin and Java. Think about the database parameters (it’s possible size and structure, accessibility, scalability, speed). And of course, do not forget about data security.
Why Do You Need to Outsource the Development of Your App?
Many companies in the modern world work through outsourcing, as a useful method of remote collaboration. Controlling the development process by yourself can be quite difficult, so the outsourcing app development to a software development studio will help to resolve this issue quickly.
Here are the main benefits of outsourcing application development:
Affordable prices and budgets saving
Low cost of mobile app development outsourcing comes first. After all, it is much more beneficial to turn to an outsourcing resource than to hire full-time employees. You do not have to pay a lot of money for renting a room, paying taxes, vacations and sick leave for the assembled team of professionals.
The expertise of the company
As a rule, outsourcing companies can offer you a much larger volume of services. In most cases, software development companies provide all supporting services, including design, testing, post-release support, and more. In addition, it will be easier for you to choose any tech-stack you would like, because companies have multiple engineers, that can work with different technologies. Therefore, if at some stage, you decided to change one or another element of the application or you will need to implement some new features, it will be much easier for you to hire the appropriate professional to perform temporary work.
You are in full control of cooperation (terms, types, and parts of creation)
You do not need to worry about the timing of the project and other additional aspects. Outsourcing agencies are interested in positive customer feedback, so they will do everything to make you satisfied with the result done.
How Much Does It Cost to Develop an App Worldwide?
The cost of outsourcing app development may depend on various factors. One of them is the geographical location.
Let's consider the value of a developer’s work per hour (from the most expensive to the cheapest) worldwide.
US (~$150-170)
Therefore, if you are looking for the cheaper solution, you should look for developer in different countries. But also, do not forget that the final cost to outsource mobile app development consists of the complexity of the application, time and hourly rate. In addition, be prepared for the fact that working with foreign developers, you might face with a language barrier during communication.
What Factor Impact on Mobile Application Costs?
One of the most important issues when ordering the development of an application is the question of its price. However, calculating the offshore mobile app development cost is not an easy task. In order to count the expense, the developer needs to discuss with you the various details on which the final cost of application development outsourcing will depend.
Here are some issues that affect the mobile development outsourcing cost:
Features and functionality. The more features you want to embed in the application - the higher the price will be.
Customization of visual design. An intuitive user interface and a nice design are not cheap, but they will surely pay for themselves with the positive impressions of customers and their loyalty to your application.
Platforms. Having determined which devices your target audience prefers, you need to choose a suitable platform. If you are sure that your target audience mainly uses only iOS, for example, it is advisable to choose only mobile development for Apple devices. However, if you have any doubts about this, it might be better to consider the option of creating apps for both platforms, or to make a thorough market research, to make sure which platform is more popular amongst your target audience.
Backend infrastructure and app administration for content management and statistics collection.
Integration with third-party services, etc.
Functionality and Main Features
The final price, depending on the time of the project, is influenced by many factors - from the list of devices on which your product should be launched to a specific set of functions. The main criterion is the complexity of the application structure. Particularly time-consuming tasks include the presence of a third-party API, the need to use the server, non-standard controls, the use of animation in the interface, data storage issues and the ability to work offline.
Feature
Time in hours
Price
User login
20+
$700+
Push notifications
20+
$700+
GPS Navigation
50+
$1,750+
Build-in chat
80+
$2,800+
Payment services
60+
$2,100+
Search
15+
$525+
Data encryption
30+
$1,050+
Visual Design of an App
Along with the functionality, much attention is paid to the design of mobile applications, because this is the first thing that the user sees when installing the application on a smartphone or tablet.
Design is not only buttons, animations, pop-up menus, shadows, unique fonts and other beautiful elements. Design is a solution to user requests that need to be repelled in order to get the expected business effect.
At this stage, there can be involved both three specialists (a graphic designer, a UI designer, and a UX designer), or one universal specialist. In the first case, the price and quality will be high. However, as practice shows, usually, one person can manage it well too.
The design includes:
Type
Price
Mobile application design, landing page design
$2,000+
UX Design
$1,500+
Branding
$3,000+
Copywriting
$1,000+
If you want to make a high-quality design, and at the same time reduce mobile app design cost, then you need to turn to outsource professionals who offer lower prices.
The type of platform and the complexity of each of them influence the outsource app development cost. Let's look at the approximate prices for each of them.
If you need to develop an application for two platforms, having a second platform usually almost doubles the final price. Given the fragmentation in the Android market, the charge of an application for this platform can exceed the cost of an iOS application by an average of 20%. However, often the estimate for the two systems is the same - it all depends on the project.
Type of App
Functions
Price
Time
Simple app with no back end
Basic functionalities with 5-6 screens.
One platform: $3000 - $5000
3-5 Weeks
Application with simple social features and back-end API server
Dating app with registration, matching users, and text messaging.
One platform: $9,000+
3 Months
Uber-like application
Registration, payments, navigation, text messaging, and more.
One platform: $14,000+
4-6 Months
High-Graphic Games (with 2D, 3D, etc.)
Increased number of Features, Unique Graphics of the games, Stages, Utilizing social media or game center.
$20,000 and above
Varies
Adaptation of the application for tablets can add up to 50% of the price, and support for older versions of iOS and Android can increase the value of the project by one and a half times - older versions have feature limitations that are not updated or developed. To avoid costs that may be superfluous, we recommend starting development with the latest supported versions of platforms and the most popular devices, and then add more supported devices if needed.
If you want to know offshore ios app development cost, the mova.io team will be glad to consult you in this question. Just describe us your idea, and we will provide you with estimations, recommended tech stack, and will provide all the related services needed.
Summary
If you are starting or expanding a business, you probably need to make a website or create a mobile application, set up landing pages or implement a CRM system. You have two ways: either to form a development department in the office or to outsource all these tasks. The last option, in most cases can work out best.
Having considered all the pros and cons of and familiarizing yourself with all the nuances of the outsource web application development process, you will be able to convey your requirement to the developers, and at the same time, you will save your money.
If you are interested in this topic, and you want to calculate the cost to outsource app development in our company, contact us via email. We are real experts of mobile app development services, and we are ready to share our knowledge and our experience with you.
Have a question? Just write to us at:
📮 mail@mova.io
