Find Out How to Estimate Cost of App Development With Weelorum

Many entrepreneurs have no idea how to estimate an app development cost.  It can lead to negative consequences for the business’s finances or reputation. App development cost depends on many factors, so it can be hard to tell immediately how hard a particular app will hit your budget.

Depending on the hours required to develop from scratch to the final stage, we can divide all applications into simple, medium, and complex. Thus, the less time it takes to create your application, the less budget you can allocate. Other factors can also affect the cost: the regional affiliation of the development team, the number and complexity of the implementation of the functions necessary for the quality work of the application without bugs, and much more.

Weelorum can help you create a mobile application for your business. Find out our price list and get acquainted with the offered services. Our experts will calculate the application cost after contact with you. Also, using our services, you will be sure of the quality of the final result.

What Affects Mobile Application Cost Estimate

How to estimate the cost of app development? Let’s discuss the crucial factors that affect a mobile application’s development time and complexity, thereby increasing the budget required for a perfect result.

Regional Pricing

As already mentioned, the rate per hour of development can vary significantly in different regions. For example, in North America, the cost of an hour of development for iOS and Android operating systems is the same and averages at $150 per hour. It is one of the highest prices in the world.

Now let’s take a look at another example—South America. Here, creating an application will cost you $43 per hour on iOS devices and $37 per hour on Android devices.

Well, the last, most frequent example is India. It is a country where the development of mobile applications and the condition of any other work on the creation of web platforms is the cheapest in the world. If you want to hire a development team from India, you will have to pay an average of $25 per hour for an iOS app and $26 per hour for an Android app.

As you can see, the difference is big enough, but why? It all depends on the qualifications of the specialists who will create your application. But this is not the only point. We can not say that every Indian specialist is poorly qualified. The cost of living and the average salary in the region also have a huge impact on pricing.

India has the largest defect rate, with experts frequently writing code only understandable to them, which dramatically complicates maintaining the application. Also, you may encounter bugs, misunderstandings due to language barriers, and so on, which contributes to such a low development cost.

Built-in App Features

Some features are easy enough to implement in your application. Aces get used to working with them; they can quickly write a code and design for these needs.

Such features include, for example, built-in registration or authorization through Google accounts, Facebook, etc. But some built-in search capabilities can be pretty challenging to implement into any application—for example, machine learning, blockchain technologies, and others. If you want your application to be high-tech and trendy, you need to pay extra for it because such functions take a considerable amount of time to implement.

Choosing a Platform for an Application

The choice of platform for development is an eternal problem in the cost estimate for app development. As you can see from the statistics by region, the cost of creating applications for iOS and Android devices does not differ too much, which, on the one hand, is good, but on the other hand, makes this process even more difficult.

Most specialists work with only one operating system. This way, we can achieve maximum productivity and reduce the time required to complete an application. However, the Android app development cost estimate would differ from iOS. Also, you will have to pay twice as much to create applications on two operating systems.

But what if you choose which application for which OS will be more profitable? There are no exact statistics on this aspect. However, monetizing products created for the App Store is easier, lowering the iOS app development cost estimate. All iOS devices cannot install from unknown sources (Internet). Users can only install verified apps from the App Store. Thus, you will dictate your own rules if your idea appeals to users.

But, if we take the coverage of users, then there are more Android devices in the world, and their variability today is simply outstanding. If your goal is to attract more people to your application—Android development will be a more profitable solution.

Chosen Design and Implementation Difficulties

One of the most crucial parameters in the app development cost estimation is the chosen design implementation. It takes up to 30% of the time to create a design of your app, and the more complex the design you select, the more difficult it will be to translate it into reality.

We are well aware that in the modern world, design is one of the essential aspects when creating applications, and we work on it with great responsibility. In some cases, user-friendly design is the sole thing that attracts new users to the application.

So, advanced design features, animations, and the number of possible application users increase the number of resources required to create a fantastic design. It is vital to consider this aspect when deciding a budget for your application.

Application Maintenance at All Stages

To accurately calculate app costs, you should understand that after completing the development of a mobile application, it will be necessary to test it for possible bugs and adjust it to modern versions of Android and iOS.

You might be developing your app for the current build but a new version may be right around the corner. When working with an application optimized for older versions of the operating system, difficulties may arise during operation—it simply may not open, there may be problems with animation and design, etc.

All these factors should be considered when allocating a budget for creating a mobile application. Due to the update of frameworks and libraries, there can also be difficulties. In some way, new versions of the OS can interfere with old libraries, which will also cause a lot of bugs.

Moreover, there is a dedicated employee of the development department who is involved solely in testing the application at the final stage. Bugs are inevitable—not even the largest corporations have completely bug-free apps.

Key Steps to Estimate Your Mobile App Development Project

When checking how to estimate the coding cost for app development, it is necessary to consider both direct and indirect factors. We offer you a look at five of the most impactful factors in the app development process.

Business Analysis

Do you think you have a fantastic idea for creating a mobile application that will bring profit to you and your company? We are happy to provide a preliminary estimate of the budget you will need to allocate to create this application.

Our estimates will be based on the vast experience we have in creating different apps, so with Weelorum, you will get the most accurate result possible. It is worth considering that, nevertheless, this estimate is approximate since there are various pitfalls—but more on that later.

Creating a Plan

It is necessary to break the project into the smallest possible steps. In this case, you will conduct a cost estimate for app development with a minimum deviation from the potential price. Moreover, in this way, it will be much easier for you to manage your project because of the cost breakdown. Also, it’s a way to motivate your employees—achieving goals every day will inspire and give confidence to your developers.

Furthermore, you will understand all the problems that may arise during development. Perhaps you lack a highly qualified professional, resources, or motivation to maximize the profits.

Determining Application Complexity

As already mentioned, the complexity of creating an application and the number of advanced features significantly affect the final cost. It is worth considering how much budget you can allocate to the application to make a profit. 

You may have to give up some features to fit the budget, or you may add convenience to the interface or other components that make the application unique and different from others. Also, it is worth considering not only the direct return on investment in the application but also what advertising and other useful functions it can perform for your company and users.

Determining the Time Required to Create an Application

Your calculations should be based not only on your expectations and practice. In the app development cost estimation, your developers play a major role. Still, they will be involved in creating the application, so relying only on your own expectations would be rather short-sighted.

The easiest way to understand how long the development can take is to hold a planning meeting with a ready-made development plan described in the first paragraph. Give this plan to your experts so that they can read it, and even better, have them help you write it. In this case, you will be able to account for the wishes of the developers, thereby giving them even more motivation and responsibility for a completed project.

Full Assessment of Risks and Preceding Steps

By considering the opinion of all the people involved in creating the application, it is possible to draw potential conclusions about the determination of the smartphone app development cost estimate. Do not forget to consider all the possible risks that can be taken from the development statistics of your own or other companies. 

For example, the possibility of an employee’s illness, especially now, is vital to consider. Also, it is worth considering the cost of amortization of the devices necessary to create an application. In our case, these are high-tech and rather expensive aids, so do not forget about them.

Possible Pitfalls in the App Estimation Process

The Difference Between Rough and Accurate Analysis

As mentioned before, it is impossible to accurately calculate the cost of a mobile application at the idea stage. Many nuances can arise, which are simply impossible to take into account until the time comes for development.

Our preliminary analysis allows you to understand what budget is worth allocating to implement your idea. However, a more accurate valuation involving our experts also requires time and resources, so the cost may change after a full valuation.

Uncertainty and Changes

Even if you think that everything has been expected and thought out, it is most likely not. A complex application can take up to a year or even more to complete. During this period, you can change your mind about the design, functionality, and even the purpose of your application. 

We had many cases where the app’s goal was changed entirely midway through development. There are many reasons for this: your business can go in a different direction, market trends can change, new problems can arise, or vice versa, you can find an easier way.

All these factors are impossible to take into account, but they will pop up during development.

Unaccounted Options

Even breaking down the development of the application into small steps, it will be pretty challenging to take everything into account at the first stage. Here we are not even talking about a long period, but rather about risks. Simply, a competitor’s mobile application may come out, after which your app will not bring profit to the company.

This is just one example of possible unaccounted options that can either increase or decrease the cost of developing your application.

Cost Estimate for App Development Indicates the Budget is Not Enough: How to Reduce Costs

You can reduce the development cost in several ways, including combining multiple ones. You should be aware that the quality of the finished product may be lower in some cases.

How Weelorum Provides an App Development Cost Estimate

We make a high-quality product in terms of price-quality ratio. We build applications from scratch to full readiness. Let’s get down to planning. When you come to us for a consultation, you can already get an estimated cost of the application at the idea stage. We will calculate the time required for the complete realization of the application, taking into account all possible risks, and offer you a plan according to which we will work. After that, you will be able to monitor the application’s readiness at each stage, making changes to the workflow.

We have completed many applications, so it is almost impossible to get a more accurate estimate of the budget and time required to complete a great application.

Consider Weelorum Your Trusted Partner in Developing Your Mobile App

Weelorum is not just a company that creates applications. We are a whole platform that helps people around the world create cost-effective solutions for their businesses and customers.

By buying our services, you will be sure that you are paying for the quality result that we guarantee every time.

We provide full-cycle app development services along with analysis, quality assurance, and product management. We have all the expertise you need in one place to produce a fully-fledged, stable, and reliable piece of software.

You can count on the following services:

• Creating a clear plan;
• UI/UX design;
• Web and mobile development;
• QA testing;
• Ruby/cloud backend;
• Analytics & support.

Do you still doubt whether you have enough funds to complete the project? We can quickly help you decide.

Final Thoughts

In conclusion, we can say that creating an application is a long process that requires careful preparation. Even talented and experienced app cost estimators can have trouble estimating app development costs. Nevertheless, it is worth taking this issue with all responsibilities to avoid additional expenses during development.

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