How Much Does it Cost to Create An App in 2024?

Last updated on February 15th, 2024

Stop whatever you are doing for a moment. This is kind of important (for the blog). We would like you to answer these questions –  

• Were you using an app to do the task you were doing? 
• Did you use an app to do the task you did before the task you were doing? 
• Are you about to use an app after you finish reading this blog? 
• What part of your waking life (and even otherwise) do you spend on an app? 

Your answers to the questionnaire above are of absolutely no use to us. However, they are quite important for you to realise the undeniable truth that apps have now become the essence of our lives. There is hardly any second of our lives that is not ruled by any app and even so, there are a number of new apps making their way into our lives every single day. 

So, allow us to come straightforward to the most important question – are you aspiring to build a stellar, sophisticated, and secure app? There is no chance that you are not, while living in this app-centric world. So, wrong question!

Are you having stress with regard to building an app, cost being a major stressor? If yes, then this blog is for you. In this blog, we are going to discuss the cost to create an app in 2024 in absolute detail with you. Rest assured that you would be devoid of any doubt as you finish reading this blog. 

How to Estimate the Average Cost to Create an App in 2024?

There is a formula for everything. Then, why would there not be one to calculate the cost of app development in 2024? There is one and before we dive into the details of the factors that influence the app development cost, we would like you to know the formula and its various elements first. 

The formula to calculate cost to create an app in 2024 has been stated as under – 

Time taken for (Frontend development + Backend development) x Hourly rate of developers

In order to help you clearly understand the above-stated formula, we will elucidate the various elements of the formula – 

• Frontend Development – 

Every app consists of two parts – frontend and backend. Frontend refers to that part of the mobile application which a user navigates and interacts with. Also known as user interface, it comprises all the visual elements of the mobile application. 

• Backend Development – 

What goes behind is the backend development of a mobile app. The backend development is the backbone of the app and comprises development of server, system, and database that enables the smooth working of a mobile app’s frontend. 

• Hourly Rate of Developers – 

Obviously, for the purpose of calculation of the cost of mobile app development, you need to add the frontend and the backend development hours and multiply the total with the hourly rate of developers. 

The hourly rate of developers would depend upon the location of the development team. The developers from the South Asian countries would charge you less than the developers from the USA or the UK. We would further elaborate upon this in the upcoming section. 

Which Factors Influence the Cost to Create an App in 2024?

Now, as you know the formula, you are ready to grasp the factors that majorly influence the cost to create a mobile application. But before we do that, we would like to tell you that the cost of mobile app development may range between $ 10000 and $ 300000 and may exceed the latter if the situation demands. Obviously, this is a very broad range and is influenced by various factors about which we are going to talk next. 

So, sit back, relax and tighten your seat belts as you are about to undertake a detailed journey into knowing all the factors that affect app development cost. 

The factors have been stated as under –

• Complexity of the Mobile App – 

On the basis of its complexity, the app can range from being simple to highly complex. A simple app may cost a mere $ 10000, whereas an app with abundant complexity may cost a massive $ 300000.  

The reason for this vast cost range is more obvious than it may seem to be. A simple app would require a very basic frontend design and is close to like a minimum viable product (MVP). 

As the complexity of a mobile app rises, it would move away from its MVP identity and would demand a more intuitive user interface along with more and more ultra-modern features and third-party integrations. Therefore, the cost of app development is bound to rise. 

For your reference, we have tabulated the estimated costs of app development on the basis of app complexity. Take a look – 

• Number of Features & Functionalities – 

This point is basically the continuation of the previous point. As you know, the complexity of an app increases or decreases, based upon the number of features and functionalities it has. 

The more features and functionalities you would want your mobile app to have, the more would be the cost to develop your app and vice-versa, a reason why a full-fledged app is costlier to build than an MVP. 

It is not just the number of the features and functionalities of the mobile app, but also the advancement they hold. Therefore, it would be cheaper to integrate a basic user login option than an in-app chatting/calling platform for your users. 

Hence, it becomes essential to keep in mind the number and the complexities of the features of a mobile app before you make any sort of decision with regard to app development. 

• Category of the Application – 

App category plays a quintessential role in determining the cost of mobile app development. There are an endless number of mobile app categories – gaming, ecommerce, social networking, on-demand delivery, video streaming, educational, to name a few. 

Each app category serves a distinct purpose for a distinct audience and accordingly has a distinct frontend and backend. Therefore, the cost of mobile app development varies as you jump from one app category to another. 

Suppose you are planning to build a gaming app. A gaming app is futile without a high-end frontend and backend design. Accordingly, you would have to spend more money for the same. 

An ecommerce app may also cost more, but for a different reason. An ecommerce app has to be loaded with a diverse range of features to make it highly user-friendly for the consumers, adding to its cost of development. 

However, what you want to build is a simple meditation app, you do not have to worry so much about the cost factor. A simple meditation app could be made using simple features and functionalities and needn’t have a complex UI/UX design. 

• Advancement of App Design – 

There is a lot that goes into the frontend designing of an app. The more sophisticated design your mobile app demands for a better user experience, the more goes into making it. 

There are a number of factors that have to be kept in mind while designing an app. The more complex the app becomes, the more development hours are spend for each factor mentioned below – 

• App Research – 

An app design cannot be made out of blue. An elaborate research has to be conducted into the market, the competitors, and the consumers, before coming up with an app design. 

• UI/UX Design – 

As an app design strategy is finalised after a thorough research, the onus now shifts onto building an efficient and elegant frontend and backend design for your mobile app.   

• Branding – 

The design of your mobile app not just goes into building your app and improving user experience, but it also helps to define the brand for your app and accordingly build a branding strategy. 

• Animation – 

Your mobile app may require sizzling animations or illustrations that elevate the app experience of your users. With animations and illustrations, the cost of development of your app is bound to rise. 

• Native vs. Cross Platform Development – 

As you already know, an app has to be deployed on a platform for it to be used by its potential users. There are two major platforms on which the mobile apps are deployed – Google Play store and Apple’s App Store. 

You have three pathways to go for with regard to deployment. You can make a native iOS app or a native android app or both or a cross-platform app. All the pathways have been thoroughly defined below. Take a look – 

• Native Android or iOS Development – 

If an app is built particularly for one platform, the app is called native app. When you choose to build a native app for both iOS and android platforms, you would have to keep in mind that doing so may cost you a lot. 

However, building native apps also ensures a very high performance and a seamless app experience for the users. 

• Cross-Platform App Development – 

As we already said, the cost of native app development may sting you. Therefore, the option you are left with would be to go for cross-platform app development. 

Cross-platform app development helps you build an app that works reasonably well on both iOS and android platforms. There are various frameworks available to do so, flutter and react native being two popular ones. 

The cost of cross-platform app development may be less than that of native app development and hence, be suitable for startups. However, the performance is subpar when compared to that of native apps. 

• Size and Region of the Development Team – 

Obviously, the ones who develop your app will affect the cost of its development. How? Let us see. When it comes to development of your app, you have three options – 

• You can hire an in-house team, which could prove to be quite tiresome and expensive.
• You can go for freelancers, who may be cost-effective, but prove to be unreliable in terms of both work quality and availability
• The last but not at all least option available to you is outsourcing the development of your app, which can be both easy-peasy, cost-effective, and a credible method of app development. 

When you outsource your app development, there are two more factors that influence the cost of app development. Those factors have been discussed below – 

• Size of the development team – 

The requirements of your mobile app development will determine the number of professionals you want onboard your development team. The professionals can belong to diverse job roles which are UI/UX designers, developers, managers, QA specialists, etc. 

• Location of the development team – 

The region to which your app development team belongs significantly influences the cost of the development of your app. The cost differs from one region to another due to the varying availability of workforces, differing economies, to name a few. 

The table below shows hourly development rate across different regions of the world. Take a look – 

What are the Hidden Costs of Mobile App Development?

The factors that we discussed just now were the obvious ones. In this section, we are going to discuss the costs, other than the obvious ones, that add up to the cost of mobile app development. 

The hidden costs have been listed as under – 

• IT Support Costs – 

A mobile app without continuous IT support can lead to chaos and breakdown. Therefore, there is a dire need of continuous support services in order to make sure that the app runs glitch-free. 

All mobile apps need technical support. However, the grade of technical support varies from app to app. Hence, the more technical support an app needs, the more is added to the cost of its development. 

Technical support for an app is delivered in the form of services such as maintenance, update, and debugging. 

• Functional Costs – 

It is quite unviable to build each and every functionality of a mobile app from scratch. Therefore, you would have to resort to many third-party integrations to facilitate your app to execute a specific function. 

These third-party functionalities can be accessed if and only if you buy the subscription to avail them. Hence, the cost of subscription of these third-party functionalities also gets added to the total cost of the development of your mobile apps. 

Third-party integrations take the forms given below – 

• Social media integration
• Mapping services
• Push notifications
• SMS services

• Licence and Platform Costs –

If you are making an app, you would have to deploy it and you can do so on Google Play Store or iOS App Store. But in order to do so, you would have to make a publishing charge. While the Google Play Store charges one time payment of $ 25, you would have to make yearly payments of $ 99 in case of iOS App Store. This cost of publishing would make up the cost to create an app in 2024. 

At the development stage of your app, there is a need for SDKs and libraries in order to construct your app and catalyse its development. Some of these SDKs and libraries are available in exchange of some licence fees which adds to the cost of creating your app. 

Related Article: How Much Does It Cost To Develop An Urban Like App?

Are you ready to turn your mobile app idea into reality?

iTechnolabs is a premier app development company that has garnered a massive reputation across the globe. We have delivered our top-notch services to clients belonging to diverse industry segments. Our professionals possess world-class skills, an incredible experience, and relentless passion to create new and powerful mobile app solutions. 

We use cutting edge technologies to create solutions that are innovative, intuitive, and efficient. Our pricing models have been devised in such a way so as to facilitate you to build your dream app with the reduced cost of app development. Hire professionals from iTechnolabs and get unbelievable services with reduced cost to create an app in 2024.