Are you interested in app development but do not have a clue about how big your investment should be? You have come to the right place.
The size of your initial investment is determined by multiple factors, which we will address in this article. The amount of money you should invest can vary significantly according to the type of application (from simple to complex) you are looking to develop and, of course, how much you are willing to spend. But if you want to see your project succeed, we advise you to never go below five thousand pounds.
To better understand the cost of different phases of app development, our team dedicated to app development in London divided the process into three sections:
- Preparation, design and prototype
- The second is programming, coding and testing
- App operation, maintenance, and updates
Section One – Planning, Design, and Prototyping
App Preparations
Start with thorough preparations for your app building with the help of experts. Create a clear and concise business plan, determine your target audience, research user pain points, and develop a marketing plan. This initial stage should only cost you your time and the time of your employees and colleagues.
Design and Prototype
During this phase, reflect on the design, including UX design elements. How do you want your app to look? How can you promote a pleasant user experience? Invest in prototyping as well since it is a valuable way of getting insight into your target users and potential customers.
Design Sprint
Design sprint is an adequate prototype to test and improve your app. You will need to make several design sprints as your project moves forward. It requires an investment of anywhere between £3.500 and £12.000, depending on the size of your app, but it is a smart investment as it saves you a significant amount of resources in the long run. This value should cover the capacities of a product designer, UX/UI designer, tester, project manager, and maybe a few more experts if necessary.
Cost: £3.500 – £12.000
Section Two: Programming, Coding, and Testing
This is the densest, most costly, and most time-consuming stage of app development. About 50% to 80% of your budget goes to this part.
This large investment is spread over several phases:
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Methodology development: typical project management or agile development?
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Choice of adequate technologies: hybrid or native development?
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Team size: how many people does your team and what job positions are more relevant to build a successful app?
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App features and complexity: which features do you want to include in your app?
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Marketing: what is the best strategy to publicize your app?
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Advertising: do you want to partner up with an ad agency?
Cost: between 50% to 80% of your total budget
Section 3: App Operation, Maintenance, and Updates
Developing an app is an ongoing project. There are always issues to fix, updates to set, and improvements to make. Therefore, there is an annual expense for this section.