App Cost

Mobile App Development Cost in the UK – 2023

Looking to build an app with great design and development, want to know more about the cost of creating an app in...

Written by Ashok Kumar · 9 min read >
app development cost in uk

Looking to build an app with great design and development, want to know more about the cost of creating an app in the UK. Keep reading to find out more.

Over the past few years, we’ve helped multiple clients get their products from zero to lunch. So we decided to share everything that we’ve learned so far. And hopefully, you’ll learn something from this article.

Do you want to create a mobile app but don’t know How much would it cost to develop an app UK? Almost every entrepreneur, app developer, or individual with a unique app development idea experiences the same issue.

How Much Does It Cost to Make an App by Yourself?

We will need to consider multiple factors when it comes to the pricing of app development. Today, we will be discussing these factors. And at the end of this article, I will be sharing how much it costs to hire a developer to build an app with beautiful UI, good UX, and the primarily bug-free.

If you are reading here for the first time, I want to tell you that we are MAKE-AN-APP, the digital product consultancy, and advisory team, where we advise companies to build impactful digital products for free.

Before we dive into a disclaimer, all the costs we are showing you here are estimates. So if you need more precise cost estimation, reach out to the development firms. If you don’t have one just yet, we have sorted the list of 100 mobile app development companies worldwide. This list will help you to find the top firm for your project.

What affects app development cost and how to save on making charges?

Let’s start by understanding what affects custom app development cost. Factors that influence app development costs in UK

app development cost breakdown banner uk black color

Number one features and functionalities

The more complex the app you want to build, the more work will be needed to demand. So the complexity of an app is usually the most significant cost driver in app development; implementing certain features might take more effort and time. At the same time, some features might be relatively short and straightforward.

I will break down how much effort or time and, subsequently, the cost needed for specific features here.

The estimated time and cost breakdown for some of the more common features are as below

The visual and user experience design costs of app development also largely depend on the user interface and user experience design.

What kind of designs are you planning to build?

  • Do you want to build a modern, fast, beautiful, and intuitive app?
  • Or do you not care about the aesthetic of the app and just want an app that works protip always invest in good UI and UX design

UI and UX

We all add apps in our favorite category due to their beautiful UI and smoothness. What If the app constantly crashes? Will it increase the chances of business failure? So why not focus on building a world-class app and set your app up for success? We probably saw this coming. Yes, good UI and UX design do add additional investments to your project, factor, and retreat.

Platforms

Different businesses will require different app setups regarding the goals you want to create an app for. Depending on the business model, some companies might only need a web app to start, While some companies might need to start with a mobile app because that is their unique selling point. The more platforms you need to handle, the more the cost will go up. And if you’re planning to support both iOS and Android, get ready to pay more money for development because you will need a separate team for each of these platforms, and the app costs would be double.

One way to reduce app costs to handle both Android and iOS will be to go with cross-platform development frameworks, like React Native or flutter, where you only need one team to work on it but get the benefits of having two native applications build factors that affect app development costs. React JS vs. React Native

List of Top 15 React Native App Development Companies

Backend infrastructure.

And when it comes to building a mobile application, you will need a strong and updated back-end system with API to provide data exchange between the app and the database. The backend system is also a backbone of the whole system, where all the algorithms and processes are executed to provide excellent data for the mobile app to work.

Besides the back-end system. A lot of non-technical founders or product managers missed out on the admin panel where you can manage the app content and users. This is an essential dashboard for managing any content you need to display on the mobile app, creating, updating, or deleting users. Tracks are the metrics that are important for decision-making. And also to moderate any user-generated content you have on there.

How flexible and complex the back-end system and any panel you need will also affect the overall app development cost. The more complicated it is, the higher the price, the next factor impacts your app development costs.

Type of Development Team You’re Hiring.

There are a few differences in engaging with freelancer offshore development teams or the world’s best iOS and android app development companies for the context of this topic.

ComplexitySimple app cost in the UKModerate appAdvanced app cost in the UK
Cost£10,000- £50,000£50,000- £200,000£200,000+
DescriptionBasic features like notifications, database integration, user login, and so onCustomized UI/UX featuresAdvanced functionalities like audio/video streaming, real-time synchronization, etc.
Standard UI elementsBack-end supportCustom UI/UX design & advanced animations
Simple backend supportAPI integrationComplete back-end support
A limited number of screensBuilt-in payment gatewayHigh-security maintenance
No API integrationCan consist of 6-15 screensMulti-language support
3rd-party integrations
Can consist of 15+ screens
Database integration
Timeline 2-5 months 4-9 months 9+ months

Let’s take an eCommerce marketplace development as an example,

  • Freelancers and small development shops might be charging somewhere between £25,000 to £45,000
  • The offshore development team will cost you anywhere between £45,000 to £75,000,
  • While a full-cycle development agency might be charging somewhere between £70,000 to £135,000.

Now, you might be asking, what is the difference between all the above options? Why shouldn’t I go with the cheaper freelance option that could save me a vast mobile app setup cost? When you should hire an offshore development team and when to set up an in-house development company.

Well, hiring a freelancer for a business project is risky. If you are hiring a developer for a small or blog-type project, choosing a freelance is a good option. But big no for larger vision projects.

Why do I say so? You might be your first time hiring a freelancer, or perhaps you’re not a technical person, and you don’t have anyone that understands software development to handle the project for you? How do you know if the freelancers you hired are doing a good job creating the app you want to envision?

I’m not saying Development Agency is the only way to go. You can still find route and experience freelancers or offshore development teams.

I know some friends who have successfully hired freelancers and options, better teams. There are always pros and cons to all the possibilities. So make sure you do your due diligence before engaging an app developer.

So these are some of the factors that will influence how much it costs to build an app in the UK.

As I promised at the beginning of the article.

Now I’ll be sharing how much does it cost to build an app in the United Kingdom

With beautiful UI, great UX, and mostly bug-free.

Let’s start calculating the price for an app that doesn’t need a back-end service.

  • Let’s say you already have someone working on the back-end development, or you plan to rely on the backend as a service provider, like Firebase costs for such an app will most probably be somewhere around £50,000 to £100,000.
  • As for an app that requires full-cycle development, meaning from requirements, gathering, design, development, testing, and then launches, the cost of app development can range from £100,000 to £500,000.
  • Depending on the complexity. Don’t forget to budget for future updates, marketing, or any costs from third-party services that you’ll be using as well.

To make a successful app requires a variety of skills and specializations. If you’re going to give your app and yourself a chance, make sure it passes the quality test.

We have already calculated the app development cost for popular categories and apps available in the market

Let’s have the look.

How to Much Does It Cost To Money Transfer Apps Like Venmo & Cashapp in the United Kingdom?

A financial project like Venmo is a peer-to-peer app. It necessitates a high level of expertise as well as extensive knowledge. The cost to make an app like Venmo will be approx £90,000 or £90,000. You must need a minimum team of 10 people.

How Much Does It Cost to Develop an App Like Uber?

The cost to build an app like Uber may range anywhere between £30,000 or £40,000 for one or two user apps (for iOS and Android), respectively.

What is the Cost to Make a Forex Trading App Like Robinhood and Webull in UK?

The estimated cost of the forex trading app and software could be between £50,000 to £150,000.

How Much Does it Cost to Make an App Like Instagram?

The estimated cost of developing a social app such as Instagram would range £50,000 to $60,000.

How Much Does it Cost To Make An App Like Lyft?

The cost of developing a Lyft-like app will be determined by a number of factors. Approx You’ll need funds somewhere between £25,000 or £35,000

How Much Does It Cost To Make An App Like Cred?

The overall cost of developing a credit card bill payment app like CRED will cost you between £45,000 to £60,000.

How Much Does it Cost to Develop An App Like Tiktok?

The cost of developing a TikTok-like app ranges from £55,000 to £60,000, depending on the custom features. At the tender age of three years, it turned out to be a behemoth app.

How Much Does It Cost To Develop A Game Like PUBG in UK?

Games like Pubg will cost between £250,000 to £500,000 depending on various factors.

How To Make A Delivery App Like DoorDash in 2022?

The cost to develop a mobile app like Doordash is varying from  £15,000 to £25,000

Cost to Develop an App for Milk Delivery?

The cost to develop a MilkBasket is varying from  £15,000 to £25,000

How Much Does It Cost To Develop A Newspaper Mobile App?

General MVP cost estimate for newspaper app ranges between £18,000 to £20,000 for a basic app.

How Much Does it Cost to Build Communication App Like Marco Polo?

Walkie Talkie is currently the most popular application. The vast majority of individuals rely on this tool for instant communication. The cost to make an app like Marco polo is £50,000 or £60,000

Conclusion

That’s all for now on the topic of app development cost. Hope We’ve provided some good insights into the factors affecting app development cost. We would love to hear what you think about the elements we’ve mentioned. And whether or not you’re considering the numbers that we’ve shared helped? Let me know in the comments below, and I will check every word and personally reply to yours.

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Written by Ashok Kumar
CEO, Founder, Marketing Head at Make An App Like. I am Writer at OutlookIndia.com, KhaleejTimes, DeccanHerald. Contact me to publish your content. Profile

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