Mobile App Development Cost in 2024: Your Comprehensive Budget Guide

The number of mobile app downloads around the world is growing every year, as statistics eloquently show: for example, in 2023, people from all continents downloaded mobile software 257 billion times, while in 2022 this figure was 2 billion lower. Given the positive dynamics observed since 2016, we can say that the number of downloads will grow in the coming years. Perhaps this will be the impetus to start implementing your business idea in a mobile format? If you have already thought about this, you definitely also need to know what budget you will need.

Table of Contents 

8 Essential Factors Influencing Mobile App Development Costs

• 1. App Complexity and Features 
• 2. Design and User Experience 
• 3. Platform Selection 
• 4. Location of the Development Team 
• 5. Backend Infrastructure 
• 6. App Maintenance and Updates 
• 7. Security Features 
• 8. Testing and Quality Assurance 

App Development Cost: Categories and Price Ranges

1. Mobile App Complexity some text

• Simple Apps 
• Medium-Complexity Apps 
• Advanced Apps 

Detailed Breakdown of App Development Costs

1. Pre-development Costs some text

• A. Idea Validation and Market Research 
• B. UI/UX Design and Wireframing 

2. Development Costs some text

• A. Front-end Development 
• B. Back-end Development 
• C. Third-Party Integrations 
• D. Quality Assurance and Testing 

3. Post-development Costs some text

• A. Quality Assurance (QA) Testing 
• B. Deployment 
• C. Maintenance and Updates 

Some Hidden Factors Impacting App Development Costs 

Mobile App Development Costs by Platform

• 1. Android App 
• 2. Cross-platform App 
• 3. iOS App 
• 4. Web App 

The Cost of Developing Apps for Popular Startups 

Conclusion

FAQ

8 Essential Factors Influencing Mobile App Development Costs 

Let's analyze eight key factors that are responsible for forming the mobile app development cost.

1. App Complexity and Features 

Perhaps this is the most obvious aspect that determines the cost of a project – the higher the complexity of its implementation and the more extensive the functionality, the larger its budget will be.

2. Design and User Experience 

Non-trivial design solutions, as well as the need to recreate the brand identity, add cost to the project, too. Note that the complexity of the functionality is also reflected in the design, which is why its implementation can be more expensive than in the case of simple applications.

3. Platform Selection 

Development for the Android OS initially requires ensuring compatibility with a wide range of user devices, which can provoke an increase in the project budget. Also, if you need to create an application with support for several operating systems at once, you will have to choose between cross-platform development and building two native applications, which will affect the project budget as well.

4. Location of the Development Team 

Depending on where your development team is located, the app developer cost may vary. In particular, in countries with a stable economic situation, the average market rates for mobile developers are quite high. That is why by outsourcing to countries with a less stable economy, you can gain an advantage due to the gap in average market rates.

5. Backend Infrastructure 

Opting for a scalable architecture can also increase your budget. However, this expense pays off in the long run as you build new features within your app and adapt it to new user loads – in this case, you won’t have to re-develop it from scratch.

6. App Maintenance and Updates 

This expense item includes hosting fees, API subscription renewals and services that have been integrated into the project, as well as the development of updates and optimization.

7. Security Features 

Some mobile apps require enhanced security. For example, if your software collects and processes users' personal data, your team will likely need to ensure that it complies with GDPR, HIPAA, and other policies.

8. Testing and Quality Assurance 

Since any software development project has certain time and budget constraints, it is impossible to fix all the bugs in it. That is why the starting point for project launch is its compliance with specifications, rather than the complete absence of errors in its operation. However, since some bugs will be found sooner or later, you will need to fix them, which will cause additional costs to the project.  

App Development Cost: Categories and Price Ranges 

So, how much does it cost to create an app? Let’s try to answer this question regarding the app’s complexity.

Mobile App Complexity 

Given the variety of factors forming the project budget, it is impossible to say right away how much it might cost. However, its complexity remains the determining factor – that is why we decided to present price ranges based on this parameter.

Simple Apps 

These apps have a limited set of features and perform one specific task. They are also characterized by the lack of third-party integrations and minimal interactivity. Examples of such apps include calculators, note-taking apps, utilities, etc. The cost to create an app of low complexity usually starts at $10,000.

Medium-Complexity Apps 

These applications are multifunctional and often involve interaction with external services and systems – for example, via APIs. This multifunctionality also provokes complexity in the design. Due to this, the cost to build a custom accounting app can reach $50,000 or more.

Advanced Apps 

In addition to the above-mentioned multifunctionality, such applications require a scalable internal infrastructure and the implementation of complex user scenarios, adding complexity to the design. Also, this type of software often implies the introduction of complex technologies, such as AI, augmented reality, blockchain, etc. For example, AI-based custom marketplace app development cost is rarely limited to $100,000.

Detailed Breakdown of App Development Costs 

In this paragraph, we propose to find out how the project budget is formed taking into account the distribution of funds for individual development stages.

1. Pre-development Costs 

This type of expense includes everything that is not directly related to development but determines the further course of the project.

A. Idea Validation and Market Research 

Depending on the completeness of the data provided by the product owner, this stage takes about 10-20% of the total project budget. This is especially affected by the duration of marketing research – the more extensive and long-lasting it is, the more resources you will need to allocate for it. 

B. UI/UX Design and Wireframing 

If your app has simple functionality and predictable user flows, this stage will likely require about 10% of the budget. However, as its complexity increases and special design requirements arise (for example, when your team has to ensure its accessibility for people with disabilities), design can take up to 25% of the total budget.

2. Development Costs 

Now, let's move on to assessing the practical part of the project.

A. Front-end Development 

This stage generally requires about 20% of the total project budget, although this figure may change as the specifications change during development.

B. Back-end Development 

Here, everything is similar: this stage needs about 20% of the budget, but ultimately it is determined by whether any changes were made to the project requirements.

C. Third-Party Integrations 

Integrations usually require about 5% of the budget. However, if this implies developing new APIs, the budget for this stage may also increase.

D. Quality Assurance and Testing 

On average, this stage takes about 10-15% of the total budget, but as the product requirements become more complex, it may require more.

3. Post-development Costs 

Finally, let's look at the stages that take place after the application codebase is created.

A. Quality Assurance (QA) Testing 

After the application has passed the unit testing stage, which is carried out during the development process, it may still have errors that need to be fixed before deployment. This can take up about 5% of the total budget.

B. Deployment 

Deployment, which usually means uploading mobile software to mobile app stores, costs nothing. However, if developers find any inconsistencies with the policies of these stores, they may need additional time to adapt the project to these policies.

C. Maintenance and Updates 

On average, annual support for already deployed software requires expenses in the amount of 15-25% of the initial project budget.

Some Hidden Factors Impacting App Development Costs 

In addition to the above-mentioned aspects affecting the mobile app design cost, we would also like to consider non-obvious ones that can also determine the budget of your project:

• Changing requirements during the app development;
• Integration with third-party services (usually payment systems, social networks, maps, analytical tools, etc.), as well as payment for their subscription;
• Development of your own APIs to implement seamless data transfer with third-party systems and applications;
• Ensuring compliance with generally accepted and niche standards;
• Enhanced security measures;
• Ensuring increased usability and accessibility (for example, according to WCAG 2.0 guidelines);
• Support for previous versions of the OS and a wide range of devices (often takes place in Android development);
• Localization (necessary if you are going to create local solutions for specific regions/countries);
• Ensuring compliance with internal requirements of app stores;
• Fees for the use of copyrighted content.

Mobile App Development Costs by Platform 

Now, let's try to assess the average cost to build an app  depending on the chosen platform.

1. Android App 

A good average estimation of the cost to develop an Android app is $20,000. The final cost of development will be influenced by factors such as the range of devices supported (due to the vast number of devices based on this OS, ensuring compatibility with them can vary greatly in price), the tech stack used, and the time allocated for testing and performance optimization (these steps can require a lot of time from the team because of the wide range of devices that need to be checked). 

2. Cross-platform App 

Cross-platform app development (we mean iOS and Android support) typically starts at $27,000. It is important to consider factors such as the size of the unified code base, the need to implement native components for each platform, and performance optimization (most likely, it will be needed since native software usually performs better than cross-platform software).

3. iOS App 

The cost to create an app for iPhone can also start from $20,000. Moreover, iOS development may cost you less than Android due to a limited number of devices for which compatibility is required. On the other hand, if you are going to upload your software to the App Store, your development team may need additional time to ensure its compatibility with all internal policies of this platform (they are much stricter than in Google Play).

4. Web App 

Usually, the cost of web applications compatible with mobile OSes starts from $30,000. Such a high starting mark is explained by the need to ensure responsiveness for all supported devices (PCs, tablets, mobile browsers, etc.), which, in turn, significantly increases the design and testing time.

The Cost of Developing Apps for Popular Startups 

Most often, the cost of developing world-famous projects is confidential information, but we tried to make our own calculations and got the following:

• The budget of Uber in its minimum viable product version (which included calling a taxi via a mobile application, GPS tracking, and integration with several payment systems) was $50,000+;
• The app development cost in TikTok’s case, formerly known as Douyin, in its first version most likely exceeded the $100,000 mark due to the global scale and complexity of the functionality (which included a system of recording and editing short videos with the ability to add music, visual and sound filters, AI-based recommendation algorithms, as well as tools for social interaction);
• The budget of the first version of Tinder (which included the functionality for creating a user profile, a swipe mechanism, and functionality for interaction between users after a match) was approximately $60,000.

Conclusion

We hope that we have shed some light on how the mobile app budget is formed, and now, you understand how much it can cost you to launch your own mobile app. If you are looking for an experienced team that will bring your most ambitious business ideas to life using the best mobile development tools and technologies, feel free to contact us.