What is the cost of creation of mobile application?
February 06, 2016We have been developing applications since 2007 and the article is based on our experience of completed projects and communication with customers. Necessary material is too extensive for one article, so I will describe the criteria that will help in the choice. The article is intended for those wishing to develop an application for business or a startup, but not yet identified with the contractor. This content will help understand what the cost of creating a mobile app consists of and will tell you about the main stages of development.
So, you want to create an application for your business or startup. You described your vision of project in several paragraphs, maybe made a draft on the paper or graphics editor. You already know how to choose a mobile app developer and decided on the contractor's company. What’s next?
Interface design and software requirements
At this phase you decide, which screens are needed in the application, which elements and where are located, how navigation is built in the app, how the server interacts the client-server applications, how data is taken to display to the user and where the user data is stored.
For this phase you need a project manager, a system architect, an expert in user experience, a designer, a technical writer. Sometimes one person takes 2 or 3 roles, such as a designer and an expert in user experience. More often at this phase with you work 2-4 people for 2-5 weeks, depending on the complexity of the project. The output is an exhaustive document of 30-100 Letter pages. An example of such a document for a simple app can be found here..
Design
At this phase, the style of the app is determined, all elements on all screens are worked out. An expert in user experience and designers should understand for which target audience the app is intended and to conduct research. Successful stylistic reflects the idea of the application, the tastes and views of the target audience.
For example, apps for children are bright and friendly:
• Actiplay project
• Educational Mosaic project
The application with the functionality of the diary in the old diary style, creating an atmosphere of personal, the font is readable, but closer to the manuscript than the standard:
• Day by Day project
If you have a brand book, use it. Be sure to use the guidelines for Apple, Google, Microsoft.
After approval, all graphic elements are cut into separate files for use by developers on one or more platforms in all resolutions.
For this phase, you need a project manager, an expert in user experience and designers. In some cases, the designer consults with senior developers on the appropriate platforms (iOS, Android, Windows Phone), when he is cutting graphic elements, since the programming of non-standard interface elements can vary greatly. The design takes 4-7 weeks.
Development
The development requires a project manager and from 1 to 10 developers for each platform. On average, it lasts from 2 to 9 months, but it can take several years, depending on the size of the project. Experienced companies use the know-how to reduce the time and improve the quality of the app.
If the development of a mobile application requires receiving data from outside (from a site, database) or exchanging data with another user of a mobile app, then the development of a server part is required that includes the following components: server core (database and API), administrative part for management and monitoring of the system, if necessary, the user’s account, a promotion site, a push notifications service.
Testing
At this phase, quality engineers check the app for a clear compliance with the software requirements, find errors as in the standard use cases and less common ones, such as simultaneous clicking on controls, incoming calls with an open app, interrupting the connection to the network. Designers check the app’s interface for compliance with approved layouts. Testing is carried out on physical devices in all form factors.
Publication
For the publication of the app, in addition to the text, prepare screenshots of the application for all device sizes and for all localizations.
Creating a memorable icon will highlight the application in the App Store, Google Play, Windows Store.
Guarantee period
The guarantee period in 90% of the companies lasts 1-3 months. During it, problems are corrected, which identified in “live” use of the app.
Technical support
Technical support is optional, so often it is a separate agreement with a subscription fee. It’s important for projects with a large number of users.
The terms of the technical support are discussed individually for each project, the typical option may include the following items:
So, you want to create an application for your business or startup. You described your vision of project in several paragraphs, maybe made a draft on the paper or graphics editor. You already know how to choose a mobile app developer and decided on the contractor's company. What’s next?
Interface design and software requirements
At this phase you decide, which screens are needed in the application, which elements and where are located, how navigation is built in the app, how the server interacts the client-server applications, how data is taken to display to the user and where the user data is stored.
For this phase you need a project manager, a system architect, an expert in user experience, a designer, a technical writer. Sometimes one person takes 2 or 3 roles, such as a designer and an expert in user experience. More often at this phase with you work 2-4 people for 2-5 weeks, depending on the complexity of the project. The output is an exhaustive document of 30-100 Letter pages. An example of such a document for a simple app can be found here..
Design
At this phase, the style of the app is determined, all elements on all screens are worked out. An expert in user experience and designers should understand for which target audience the app is intended and to conduct research. Successful stylistic reflects the idea of the application, the tastes and views of the target audience.
For example, apps for children are bright and friendly:
• Actiplay project
• Educational Mosaic project
The application with the functionality of the diary in the old diary style, creating an atmosphere of personal, the font is readable, but closer to the manuscript than the standard:
• Day by Day project
If you have a brand book, use it. Be sure to use the guidelines for Apple, Google, Microsoft.
After approval, all graphic elements are cut into separate files for use by developers on one or more platforms in all resolutions.
For this phase, you need a project manager, an expert in user experience and designers. In some cases, the designer consults with senior developers on the appropriate platforms (iOS, Android, Windows Phone), when he is cutting graphic elements, since the programming of non-standard interface elements can vary greatly. The design takes 4-7 weeks.
Development
The development requires a project manager and from 1 to 10 developers for each platform. On average, it lasts from 2 to 9 months, but it can take several years, depending on the size of the project. Experienced companies use the know-how to reduce the time and improve the quality of the app.
If the development of a mobile application requires receiving data from outside (from a site, database) or exchanging data with another user of a mobile app, then the development of a server part is required that includes the following components: server core (database and API), administrative part for management and monitoring of the system, if necessary, the user’s account, a promotion site, a push notifications service.
Testing
At this phase, quality engineers check the app for a clear compliance with the software requirements, find errors as in the standard use cases and less common ones, such as simultaneous clicking on controls, incoming calls with an open app, interrupting the connection to the network. Designers check the app’s interface for compliance with approved layouts. Testing is carried out on physical devices in all form factors.
Publication
For the publication of the app, in addition to the text, prepare screenshots of the application for all device sizes and for all localizations.
Creating a memorable icon will highlight the application in the App Store, Google Play, Windows Store.
Guarantee period
The guarantee period in 90% of the companies lasts 1-3 months. During it, problems are corrected, which identified in “live” use of the app.
Technical support
Technical support is optional, so often it is a separate agreement with a subscription fee. It’s important for projects with a large number of users.
The terms of the technical support are discussed individually for each project, the typical option may include the following items:
- Service Level Agreement – the agreement has a description of the levels of criticality of problems and the speed of the developers’ reaction on each level.
- Guaranteed hours – a certain a number of hours are guaranteed to be allocated to the project for per month to work on new tasks.
- Support for the release of new version of operating systems includes testing and fixes for the future systems: major and minor version.
- Analytics. Each month/quarter, the project manager gathers analytics of app usage and together with developers and experts in user experience, write suggestions for improving the application.
Roman Leshukov,
CEO & Director of Design.
