That’s a lot of opportunity—and also plenty of competition.
If you want to enter and get a piece of this market, you must create the best custom mobile app.
This article will be your ultimate primer for custom mobile app development—what type you should go for, how much it’ll cost, and the process involved.
Table of Contents
Types of custom mobile apps
Custom apps can be one of two types—native or cross-platform. Let’s discuss the pros and cons of each type.
The best advantage of native apps is that they can take full advantage of all the platform’s built-in features and capabilities.
That means they can also run faster, manage memory better, and consume less space.
It’s also easier to tailor the user interface (UI) to fit the user’s expectations. This, in turn, helps you deliver a better user experience.
However, the trade-off is that native apps are costlier to develop overall. This is especially true if you want to develop apps for multiple operating systems.
This extends into maintenance as well. Clutch estimates it takes around $10,000 to maintain an app with a development budget of just $50,000.
Cross-platform mobile apps
Cross-platform apps are developed from a single codebase written in one language. This codebase can then be compiled, optimized, and deployed for multiple platforms.
The biggest benefit is that you don’t need to write native apps individually. This saves you tons of time, money, and effort.
Plus, it’s easier to maintain a consistent look and feel across multiple apps.
Updating apps is also easier and safer. You just need to edit the main codebase, and all changes will be propagated to all app versions.
The trade-off, however, is performance. All things equal, a native app will always outperform its cross-platform counterpart. However, some approaches come close, as you can see below.
Another example is LeakCanary, a tool that detects memory issues in your Android code and finds its source.
Note that many third-party development tools and frameworks are available on Android and iOS. Examples include the mobile database Realm and the automated testing suite Appium.
iOS
The primary programming language for iOS is Swift, well-loved for its English-like syntax and relatively fast performance.
Where iOS development shines, though, are the numerous frameworks and third-party tools it has.
One example is Alamofire, a networking library that makes it easy to make HTTP network calls using a few lines of code.
You can also create powerful back-ends easily with tools like Parse or Core Data. And if you’re having trouble with asynchronous programming (which is tricky), you can use RxSwift.
Cost of developing a custom mobile app
Nailing down the budget of a custom app project is perhaps one of the most challenging aspects of creating one.
The reason for this difficulty is that so many factors go into app development costs.
Let’s start with the most obvious—app complexity. It makes sense that the more features your app has, the more expensive it’ll be to create.
The problem is that it’s difficult to quantify complexity, especially if you have an innovative feature that no one’s done before.
It’s easy to underestimate the time and money required to make it a reality.
Another factor to consider is the cost of hiring your developers.
Developer rates aren’t the same everywhere. For instance, Indian developers could charge as much as half of what an American would ask, given the same skill level.
That’s why outsourcing is a popular way to keep app costs down.
Want to develop an app for multiple platforms? That could affect your cost as well.
However, the good news is that being willing to use cross-platform frameworks instead of a native app could lower your budget.
Now, let’s look at the rough steps that need to be taken when developing a custom mobile app.
Do market research
Market research is the first and arguably most critical step in app development.
The goal here is to validate if you have a winning app idea on your hands. If it isn’t viable, you’ve just saved yourself the time and cost of creating an app that will ultimately fail.
Market research aims to evaluate your idea’s potential in two key areas (the third aspect is best left for later, before launching your app):
You can gather the data you’ll need for these aspects through competitor analysis, interviews, questionnaires, and focus group discussions.
At this point, it’s worthwhile to get the services of an agency (such as DECODE) to do this step for you. It’s that important.
Create a software requirements specification
A software requirement specification (SRS) is a document that outlines all the features, objectives, functions, and requirements of your app.
In other words, it’s your app’s blueprint that helps guide all stakeholders into achieving a single vision.
Here’s what an SRS document should contain:
Notably, it should cover both functional (what the app does) and non-functional (how the app will do it) requirements. This ensures a much clearer picture of what the app must look and feel like.
Creating an SRS requires the collaboration of everyone, including clients and developers, so that all points and problem areas are covered sufficiently.
Determine which technologies to use
It’s critical to create a technology stack that fits in with your app project’s requirements.
See, not every third-party tool, programming language, or plugin will be suitable for your project.
Each has pros, cons, and use cases that you need to consider before implementing it in your project.
You must look at your SRS to find the specific technologies you need.
For instance, if a fintech app project requires top-notch security, it’s best to use an enterprise-grade programming language like Java.
You should consider other plugins like Plaid for easily connecting with other financial services.
Decide on a development methodology
The development methodology is the how of your project. It’s the framework you use to structure and plan the development process.
Like your technology stack, there are different methodologies that you can use. And each is suited for particular situations.
For example, the Scrum methodology is an approach that divides a project into iterations called sprints. Each sprint is like a mini-development process lasting anywhere from 2—4 weeks.
Scrum’s approach is great for complex projects because it ensures iterative improvement. It’s also effective at catching bugs often and early, which could lower cost and dev time.
Its opposite is the Waterfall method, where development steps are done sequentially. The main draw of this approach is simplicity, making it ideal for smaller projects.
Regardless of what you pick, ensure it’s the right fit, and that the whole team is comfortable with it.
Design the app’s user interface
An app’s design is one of the critical components for achieving fantastic UX. Hence, you should pay extra attention to it.
The best way to do this is to start with app wireframes as early as possible. These rough sketches let you iterate the UI design quickly, helping you arrive at a great design much sooner.
It would be best if you also used mockups and prototypes, then let end users evaluate them.
The front-end or client-side is the one that users see. This is often the app itself, including the UI and some support functions.
The back-end or server side is where most of the processing happens. For example, when you submit a form in the app, that data is sent to a server to be processed.
This is also where data can be edited or retrieved through a database.
This app development phase is crucial because it’s where you turn your plans into reality. Thus, you must have a capable dev team or hire an experienced agency like DECODE.
Perform quality assurance
Apps rarely launch without extensive testing. This process is needed to ensure that the app functions as required with as few bugs as possible.
When testing, you should implement as many methods as possible. This helps you cover every aspect of your app, from usability to performance.
Marko started DECODE with co-founders Peter and Mario, and a decade later, leads the company as CEO. His role is now almost entirely centred around business strategy, though his extensive background in software engineering makes sure he sees the future of the company from every angle.
A graduate of the University of Zagreb’s Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing, he’s fascinated by the architecture of mobile apps and reactive programming, and a strong believer in life-long learning. Always ready for action. Or an impromptu skiing trip.
