How Much Does it Cost to Make an App: Full Cost Breakdown

Before splurging money into this area, you need to have a complete breakdown of all the associated financial elements.

You also need to go over specifics as well, i.e. app icon, paywalls, features, sign-up forms, and more.
To make an informed decision, you must calculate your steps and control the monetary aspect of it so that you don’t go bankrupt. Because of this, we will provide you with a complete breakdown of how much will it cost you to acquire an app.

App Development Costs Around the World

Mobile app development does not come cheap since an ordinary app with limited abilities would cost around $25000. On the other hand, an app with complex design and tons of features will have a price tag of around $70,000.
The cost of the apps will be impacted by the geographical location as well. When it comes to development charges, North America is the most expensive region and can charge around $20 to $250/hour. On the other hand, Southern Asia is the least expensive, with its development charges ranging from $10 to $75/hour.
There is the question of choosing an app platform as well. Do you want to limit your app to iOS users or do you want to extend your app services to the Android users as well? Once you are clear on this step, you will need to overcome another obstacle, i.e. to outsource or not to outsource.
If you are in a budget crunch, outsourcing may be a better option; however, if you are looking for physical proximity, a local development option may serve your interests best.

Cost of App Development based on Features

From being gimmicky and useless to becoming a vital part in consumers’ lives; mobile apps have come a long way. Because of the unending competition, now the apps need to have certain features in order to set the bar. However, the incorporation of such elements can easily gather hundreds and thousands in money.

• Screen optimization for tablets

If you want your app to be versatile when it comes to screen measurements, you need to adapt your app for tablets as well. Generally, many of the apps specifically launch for tablets as well. However, the high costs required for the adaption may stop developers from navigating these waters.

• Offline mode

If you want your mobile app to support offline mode, you must integrate cache algorithms in it. The costs required to accomplish this step is around $8000. The costs are likely to increase if you decide to integrate syncing option as well. With cross-device sync, the total cost would reach a whopping $12,000!

• Mobile Ads

Displaying mobile ads is a great way of earning money. However, the integration of this feature will add around $1600 to $2000 into your total budget.

• Chat

Designing chat functionality is like building an app within your app. Not only is it complicated, but it can also add a hefty amount into your total budget. A custom chat module within your app may cost you $12,000! However, you also have the option of opting for a third-party chat app if you do not want to spend a huge amount.
Using a third-party chat app will cost you $2400 during development phases.

• Multi-lingual support

If you want to target consumers from various geographical locations, you need to provide support in various languages. Of course, you do not need to include every language; just the major ones would be fine. This feature will add $500 to your entire development budget.

• Push notification

37% of the consumers turn off push notifications after receiving around 3-5 notification from an app. So, is it still worth going over the trouble? The answer is yes since it is the only way of updating your users about your recent developments. The costs required to achieve this feature range from $1500 to $2500.

• Portrait or landscape mode

Portrait and/or landscape mode is when the app measurements adjust to the screen automatically. It is a great feature; however, designing your app to support the landscape mode can increase your budget by 30%.

• Creating a user profile

Creating a user profile means that users will be able to register themselves by providing some personal details. It is a pretty common feature which will cost you $2400. In addition, you can lessen the costs by providing a social media log-in feature since they cost $500 per social media network.
If you want to add QR codes, payment gateways, OCR, navigation, etc. you should be ready for some serious expenses since each of these features come with an approximate cost of $2600.

Back-End Charges

The above charges’ breakdown is what we like to call ‘front-end’ charges. Now, let us take you through the back-end charges that take place behind the scenes.

• App analytics

You need to know how your consumers interact with your mobile app. This is why you need the right analytics tools that will provide you with all the crucial insights. Based on the insights, you can make informed decisions about the working of your app.
Depending on what analytics elements you want to integrate within your app, you can start the analytics process by spending around $2000.

• Patent costs

The legal matters only become apparent when the app becomes an overnight hit. So, it is better to protect your intellectual property from the start. Keep in mind that the patents do not come cheap. A typical patent application for mobile apps will cost around $3000 to $6000; not to forget the filing fee that ranges around $70 to $140.

Wrapping Up

The costs of the app development do not come to end with the back-end expenses. This is because you also have to set aside a budget for marketing purposes. In addition, you need to consider app maintenance and update costs as well.
Setting a marketing budget depends on you; however, the maintenance and update expenses will cost you $10,000 to $14,000 per update!
So, you see; creating an app is not a cheap task but one that is absolutely mandatory. Because of the ever-increasing competition, there is no chance that businesses can pass on this opportunity.
So, set aside a huge budget, gather your developers, and be ready to articulate your app idea. You can also hire mobile app development services if you do not have qualified staff.