The use of mobile apps is increasing as people find them convenient and easy. They have made life easier as you can do your shopping, pay utility bills, and even get medical advice from the comfort of your home. Nowadays every company has an app as it makes it easier to connect with its customers.

What is an MVP app?

An MVP is a variation of the final product. It stands for a minimum viable product and has the bare minimum features that are integral to the function and core of your idea. When developing an MVP, it is crucial to prioritize MVP features that align with your core value proposition. Launching an MVP app is considered a strategic move for startups. An MVP app helps in collecting important and relevant data that will help in making a profitable future investment. It makes it possible to get the user’s reactions to the features and purpose of the app. It is an excellent way of validating the app and preventing any major failures.

Here a few points that will help you understand the nature of an MVP app:

• It is a fully functional app and only has essential and basic functions.
• Developing new features in phases as it will not put too much pressure on the available funds.
• It helps in developing smart spending tactics so that you have adequate funds for developing the second phase of the app.
• MVP is a complete product that goes through some changes as you can add new features with time.

As per the reports, nine out of ten startups fail due to spending funds too quickly.

Why you need an MVP mobile app?

Developing an MVP is worth it because it gives a chance to test the strongest features of the append check customer responsiveness for those features. Customer feedback is crucial because it can assist in improving user experience.

An MVP mobile app has the following benefits to offer:

• An opportunity to test potential risks
• Save money by avoiding unwanted costs
• Spending resources wisely instead of wasting them on a single aspect of an app
• Get honest and real feedback from users
• Reducing business risks
• It can help in pitching app ideas to potential investors

Cost of building an MVP mobile app:

The cost of building an MVP is only a fraction of what a complete app costs. If you have developing skills then you can easily develop an MVP for a mobile app. The cost of developing an MVP depends on a variety of factors. Here are some factors that impact the cost:

MVP Development Cost

One of the most important factors that determine the developing cost is the choice of developer. Developing a mobile app even an MVP requires programming skills. You can hire in-house developers, outsource the project to a reliable IT company, or hire a freelancer.

If you hire a freelancer then the cost of MVP mobile app can cost you between $10/hour to $200/hour. The rate is determined by the experience and skill level of the freelancer.

Hiring an IT company is an quite expensive option as compared to a freelancer. More importantly, IT companies are trustable than freelancers. IT companies are good choice to go, the MVP development costs ranges $5000 to $150,000 with quality work.

If you do not have an idea of how much an MVP mobile app project costs then you can contact IT firms and freelancers and get a quote.

Design of the product:

The design of the product also impacts the cost of the project. The cost of MVP mobile app increases with the complexity of the app. Complex apps are not easy to and they require good developing skills. To get a rough estimate you should calculate User Interface (UI) that you have chosen and add it to the cost of the initial design. Choosing a simple UI keeps the cost low and ensures a good user experience.

Below is a simplified version of MVP Development Cost

Costs based on the development team

There are four major types of teams for MVP app development which are: outsourced, local, freelancer, and in-house development teams.

In-house MVP development

As for the in-house development team, the development costs vary depending on the expenses incurred during the whole process. The expenses include overhead expenses, benefits incurred, technology training benefits, software & hardware costs, IT infrastructure set-up fees, and salaries for developers. What’s more, an in-house development team requires extra benefits apart from the salaries. Therefore, these costs can amount to up to $150,000. However, below is a simplified table for in-house MVP development. The prices are estimates.

Outsourcing MVP development

Apparently, outsourcing MVP development is the best option. In fact, statistics show that about 78% of those who own businesses would go for outsourcing other than any other way when developing an MVP.

What’s more, offshore product development is the most preferred form of outsourcing compared to onshore outsourcing because of accountability and reliability.

Below is a table showing expenses incurred when outsourcing a team made up of five developers plus project managers and designers in India.

Local teams’ MVP development

If a business can’t afford an in-house team or outsourcing option, they can opt to go with local teams for their MVP development. This is especially a perfect idea if the business wants to be in close contact with the MVP development team.

The process involves doing a bit of research to get a perfect local company that delivers MVP development services. Even though going this route will help you save hardware/software and infrastructure expenses, paying the local team is way higher compared to when outsourcing for the same services.

Local MVP developers would require you to pay an hourly rate of around $150 -$200. In this case, hiring a team of five developers at the same amount will equal around $160,000 – 180,000 for the project to complete successfully.

Freelancers

Another option for selecting talents for your MVP development project is hiring freelancers. While this will help you save extra costs, the main disadvantage lies in finding an expert and knowledgeable freelancer in the same field. This is the main reason why many businesses won’t prefer freelancers in this case. Another major challenge is open and regular communication, especially in updating the progress of the projects.

Nonetheless, hiring freelancers for MVP development is way cheap. To get a full-stack developer, you can get an expert at $5000 per month.

Again, to get a freelancer who is an expert designer, you can easily get one at $3000 per month. Apart from the main developers, you will incur extra costs of $2500 per month to pay a tester.

With this analysis, you can get a freelancer for your MVP development at a cost ranging between $3000 –$ 12,000. However, you cannot define the final results unless you’ve worked with the freelancer for a while and you are sure of the best results.

Summarized costs of MVP development based on the teams

MVP development based on Geolocation

The prices of developing an MVP product vary depending on the nation from which the talent was outsourced. This is because of the varied living conditions in different locations. An MVP developer from the US is likely to earn more than a developer from Asia.

Below is a summarized hourly estimate of MVP development costs depending on the location of the developer.

Features:

The number of features you decide to add to the MVP mobile app can tell you how much the project will cost. More feature means more developing time which ends up increasing the cost. It is important to be clear about the type of mobile app you are developing because it will help in determining the must-have features for the app. The developers should include all the basic and must-have features in the MVP mobile app.

Choice of technology:

The cost of developing a mobile app MVP is determined by the MVP technology stack you use for the project. It is possible to save time by coordinating the pre-tailored solutions and develop an MVP. It is better to avoid using native codes in a hybrid environment to develop features as it adds to the eventual development cost.

Costs based on the anticipated platform

When developing an MVP mobile app, the choice of platform you will use impacts the overall costs of MVP development. For an MVP that supports both desktop, mobile, and web platforms, the costs will be higher since the whole process will be complex. For instance, testing the MVP functionality, performance, and performing optimization on each platform is complex and costly when done on multiple platforms unlike on a single platform.

Costs based on the type of industry

MVP mobile app development costs vary widely based on the targeted industry. Some industries have high regulations that require specific compliance. This calls for extra expenses, especially since some MVPs will require extra features and functionalities to ensure regulatory compliance. This, of course, affects the overall MVP development costs.

Costs based on integration with other systems

In most cases, the MVPs will require third-arty services integrations to enhance their effectiveness. For instance, API integrations and integration of payment solutions are some of the must-have integrations in most MVPs. This impacts the overall MVP development costs, especially due to the data exchange techniques involved, compatibility issues, and complexities involved during integration processes.

Costs based on engagement model

Another element that impacts general MVP mobile app development is your engagement model with your development team. The common engagement models include a dedicated team, time & materials, and a fixed price model. Each model differs from another with different benefits and pitfalls at the same time. Above all, some models are cost-effective while some are costly, thus impacting the total costs of developing MVP mobile apps.

Costs based on maintenance and support services

Regular maintenance and support are crucial aspects of the MVP mobile app development process, and they impact the whole budget.

Once you launch the MVP, you will need to identify and fix bugs, update the features & functionalities, and offer user support, which can be costly in one way or the other.

Make sure you include maintenance and support costs in the early stages for a smooth planning and execution of the MVP mobile app development process.

In a nutshell, the cost of MVP mobile app development can range between $5,000 and $150,000 or even more, depending on the factors highlighted in this guide.

MVP Development steps with the costs and timelines

MVP mobile app development is a process that takes several phases to complete successfully. Each phase is a set of tasks that need to be executed, and this amounts to certain costs. We’ve broken down the costs under each phase for a proper overview. Check out below:

• Product discovery phase–between $4,000 and $8,000

This is the stage where the whole MVP concept is born. The processes include conducting thorough research in the market to identify potential users and collecting valuable insights that will make the MVP concept a valid idea.

You can do this through brainstorming, interviews, and workshops, whichever works well with your plan. During this phase, make sure you highlight the core values and vision of your MVP in the long term.

This phase can take 1 to 2 weeks, resulting in expenses of approximately $4000 and $8000.

• Prototyping and design between $6,000 and $10,000

This is the second phase after the product discovery phase. It is all about transforming the whole MVP idea into wireframes and visual designs. In this case, the development team designs a user-friendly and intuitive interface that shows the actual functionality of the actual product. The visuals are top-notch, ensuring they align with the type of business and what users need.

All these activities attract costs that amount to $6000 and $10000.

• MVP development – approximately $30,000 or even more

After the prototyping and design phase, you now have a clear overview of how to develop your Minimum Viable Product (MVP) project. You know the core features and functionalities you need to prioritize to ensure they align with the business vision and, most importantly, target user needs.

You can adopt agile methodology here to ensure continuous feedback and improvements as you refine the product over and over again. This ensures rapid development with proper adaptability to the changing requirements over time.

Make sure you prioritize core features and functionalities to avoid overspending. This phase can take around 3 to 5 months depending on several factors like the project’s complexity, costing at least $30,000 or more depending on the nature of the product.

• Quality assurance & optimization – Between $8,000 and $12,000

After the MVP development phase, you need to test and optimize the product to ensure stable functionality, enhanced performance, and streamlined workflow.

The QA team tests the MVP product on different environments and devices to identify and fix any bugs, usability issues, and potential glitches that will impact the product’s performance.

Most importantly, you’ll need to perform security, scalability, and speed optimization to improve overall user experience.

The QA and optimization phase takes about 2 to 4 weeks, costing between $8000 and $12000.

Post-launch MVP development cost

After you’ve launched and tested your MVP product, there are some cost launch services that attract some more costs, thus impacting the overall costs of MVP mobile app development. The activities and their estimated costs after launching an MVP include the following:

• Maintenance & support – between $400 – $1,000

Once you launch an MVP, you shouldn’t ignore continuous maintenance and support to ensure the product is fully functional and reliable in all aspects.

The activities under this phase include regular updates, fixing bugs, and technical help to correct any issues that arise after launching the MVP. Based on the nature and complexity of your MVP, this may attract costs ranging from $ 400 to $1000 per month.

• Scaling -this depends on requests

With time, your MVP product will start gaining traction and growing rapidly. In this case, you will need to scale your MVP app to accommodate the expanding userbase.

You can perform scaling through feature expansion, performance optimization, and server upgrading techniques depending on your unique scalability needs.

The costs incurred during scalability depend highly on the nature of the product. The costs can change with the changes, as seen in the projected growth.

• Marketing and advertising

Marketing and advertising help attract more users to the product. In this case, you must plan and select marketing & advertising strategies that align with your target userbase and your business goals.

Email marketing and social media campaigns are typical examples of marketing strategies you can use to attract potential users.

The costs of marketing and advertising plans vary based on the campaign scale and scope of your campaigns. The good part is that you can customize the strategies to fit your budget and deliver the intended message seamlessly.

Tips to save on MVP app development costs

MVP mobile app development can be costly. However, with the following tips and approaches, you can always save more without compromising the quality delivered:

• Prioritize user research

The whole MVP mobile app development process depends on what users want. Doing research well will enable you to understand the issues affecting a specific user base and gaps in the market. You will then get proper insights on how you should tailor and align your MVP to meet these user’s needs.

In the end, you will use resources that will lead to more returns. Again, you won’t create an MVP that will need more reworking, which can be costly. Ways through which you can perform user research and get valuable insights include:

• Social media outreach
• Feedback forms
• Focus groups
• Interviews
• Questionnaires
• Surveys

As you do user research, ensure you create personas, use varied research methods, and do product discovery to validate your concept.

• Prioritize core features of your MVP

When developing MVP’s features and functionalities, including irrelevant features will be costly, plus it will take too long to finish your MVP, thus wasting more time. This means launching the product late, and you might fail to attract the right large userbase in the early stages of product adoption.

Some guidelines to help you decide on the viability of features include:

• Check if your competitors have the same features
• Evaluate the feasibility of the feature on the technical aspect
• Analyze if the feature aligns with user requirements
• Check if the feature meets your business objectives

• Hire a dedicated team

The hiring model you choose can help you save more. While you might spend more on a dedicated team, the quality and delivery timelines will always be on point. Besides, you will get a whole team of experts specialized in different fields, all under one roof. Aalpha Information Systems, is your ideal MVP mobile app development partner. Our team of experts will deliver high-quality MVP in a timely manner, ensuring you launch your product timely in the market.

• Consider building a cross-platform MVP

Building a cross-platform MVP that supports both Android and iOS is the real deal, especially if you want to attract both iOS and Android users. Of course, developing separate MVPs for iOS and Android will be costly.

When building a cross-platform MVP, keep the focus on performance optimization, UX, and most importantly, use the right tools and cross-platform frameworks in the process.

• Select open-source tools and templates

Open-source tools and templates will help you save the costs of MVP mobile app development. Xamarin, React Native, Flutter, and Android Studio are typical examples of open-source tools and templates you can use to simplify the MVP development process. First, they accelerate the development timelines, ensuring you release the product to the market early to gain a competitive advantage.

Some aspects to consider when using open-source tools and templates include the following:

• Selecting tools with active and solid community support
• Tools that offer regular security updates
• Check licensing requirements

• Adopt early testing

Yes, you need to launch the product to the market early enough to attract early adopters. However, this doesn’t mean you skip the testing phase. When you perform early and thorough testing, you identify issues early enough and fix such issues, which could, in one way or another cost you more in the later stages. In fact, testing and fixing issues after product launch is very costly.

You can use approaches such as unit testing, regression testing, performance testing, load testing, and integration testing to ensure the product is steady and highly reliable in all aspects.

As you perform testing, use the following pro tips:

• Use real devices for testing
• Have a testing plan
• Use automated testing tools

Tips to build MVP mobile app successfully

Its possible to build an MVP but fail due to some reasons or mistakes you make along the way. The following tips will help you to build an MVP mobile app and launch it successfully, ensuring smooth market penetration:

• Idea or concept validation

Don’t start the MVP mobile app development process without validating your concept. Idea validation involves approving your set budget, the need for such a product in the market, evaluating competitors, regulatory compliance, and availability of the development team, among many other considerations.

Idea validation is essential because:

• It helps you save time and resources by focusing on something significant in the long run
• You will know the core features to work on
• Reduces risks related to product failure

• Know your competitors

Always do a competitor analysis to understand what your competitors are doing and the gaps in the market. The insights will help you position your MVP product to solve the missing gaps while opening other avenues that your competitors haven’t discovered. In the end, your product will be successful as it will attract most users.

Most importantly, consider the 4Ps (promotion, place, price, and product) when doing competitor analysis.

Competitor analysis is important because:

• It will help you determine the best price range
• You will know how to position your product best
• You will identify market gaps

• Use agile approach

Using agile methodology in MVP mobile app development is the real deal as it will give you the flexibility to change and adjust the product outlook with the changing user needs and industry changes.

Some of the common agile methodologies you can consider include extreme programming, Krystal, Kanban, and Scrum.

Agile methodology will enhance your MVP mobile app development to succeed because:

• It will help you to launch your product to the market faster
• Enhances productivity and collaboration
• Accelerates the development process

• Prioritize key features

Make sure you focus on the features and functionalities that will enhance the effectiveness of your MVP mobile app. This means using user research insights to produce a product that aligns with what users prefer.

In the end, you will produce an MVP mobile app that will penetrate the market successfully, thus yielding more returns on investment.

There are different methods you can use as you prioritize the feature. These methods include the following:

MoSCoW (must have, should have, could have, & won’t have), RICE – (reach, impact, confidence, & effort), Value vs effort, & Kano.

Feature prioritization is important in the following ways:

• Improving the overall quality of an app
• Reducing costs
• Shortening the development timeline

• Use feedback and iteration techniques

User feedback and iteration techniques are crucial in facilitating the successful development of MVP mobile apps.

The process involves collecting user insights and feedback, analyzing & prioritizing the feedback, following up with end users, and then taking action in accordance with the feedback collected.

You can use approaches like focus groups, user interviews, questionnaires, feedback forms, and in-app surveys to collect user feedback.

User feedback and iteration enhance a successful MVP mobile app development by:

• Minimizing risks associated with failure
• Enhancing user satisfaction and retention
• Producing a product that fits perfectly in the market

• Leave room for future scaling

Scalability is one aspect to consider if you want to build an MVP mobile app successfully. Of course, the user base and demand will grow overtime. How will you ensure the product accommodates the expanding user base? How will you modify the product to adapt to the changing industry trends and emerging technology? It can only be through proper scalability and this means planning beforehand to put everything else in order.

You can consider using cloud computing services such as Oracle, Google Cloud, Azure, and AWS for better scalability.

Scalability enhances a successful MVP mobile app development process by:

• Avoiding future overhauls
• Supporting speedy growth
• Enhancing a seamless user experience

Conclusion:

Determining the cost of a mobile app MVP is not an impossible task. By weighing important factors you can easily determine the cost and get the results you are looking for. A minimum value product is critical for laying the foundation of a successful mobile app. Once you have an MVP mobile app. You can release the MVP and get valuable feedback from the target customers. The feedback is crucial in making the required improvements.

Back to You!

Are you looking for MVP development services at the best price? Connect with us today! Our experts at Aalpha Information Systems will guide you end-to-end to successfully build an MVP product.

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