How to Define Your Mobile App Development Budget 

When it comes to defining the budget of mobile app development, there’s no magic, one-size-fits-all figure. Different projects and businesses have different needs and, depending on the functionalities and purpose of the app, the development budget can move up or down.

However, there are concrete factors that you can look at to help you define the budget for your mobile app project, and these can give you a strong base to work from when apportioning cash for the design, development and roll out process.

Define Your Platform

There isn’t a huge choice out there where it comes to the platform you’re going to use for the development of your app – you’ve got a choice between iOS and Android (or PWAs of course!). But it’s important to think about which platform corresponds to the majority of users you expect to use the app once it’s out there in the wild.

It’s never a good idea to simply cover all the bases and develop for both as, firstly, it’s likely your target audience resides more on one platform than the other and, secondly, developing for both more a doubling (or more) of your development budget.

So, take the time to research the platform your users use, and then you can get to work thinking about functionality and the features you want to include.

Hone in on Features

Every good app, from the ground up, has a strong focus on the features that will deliver maximum value to users and attract the best uptake numbers.

It’s important to avoid including features just for the sake of having them present. What this means is you need to take stock of what exactly it is you want the app to achieve – regarding the user and in terms of the overall budget. Haphazardly adding features not only means higher expenditure it also often means conflicts with other features. And that means having to go back, resolve issues and, ultimately, more money spent than is necessary.

If you have a clear, concise idea of what the app will do, the features therein will flow naturally from your forward-planning approach. The result is a much tighter, realistic budget.

Consider Hardware

If the app you’re developing makes use of onboard device hardware like a camera, for example, then it’s important to know this will push up development costs. This is the case because the development process will require more man-hours to ensure your app meshes with the technology. And, moreover, the testing phase will likely run longer.

If you’re considering integrating mobile device technology with your app, it’s vital to add the associated costs into your budget and then maybe even a little more besides to account for unforeseen issues.