How much does it costs to maintain an App?
The app development process does not end at its launch. The tons of maintenance the apps require to endorse their quality standards. Even the leading developers can’t clear up all the bugs when launching the app. So app maintenance is the most vital mobile app development lifecycle stage. So it is wise to have a set-aside budget for app maintenance.
But the question is, how much does it cost to maintain an app?
Let’s find out.
It is an exclusive truth that behind the curtain of development, lots of effort and creativity play their role.
Publishing the app successfully in the Google Play Store and then its marketing is another story.
Any robust app should be backed with a strong maintenance plan. The maintenance of the app’s performance and ensuring all the users are getting the advancements at regular intervals.
Mobile app maintenance is vital so interruptions can be avoided, leading to even more costs. Not spending on mobile app maintenance could be one of the reasons for the failure of the app.
Factors involved in the Cost of App Maintenance
Many factors are involved in the app maintenance cost, such as the nurturing servers, push notifications, and payment gateways.
The published app on the play store requires monitoring the app’s Daily Active Users, which is the number of apps installed and the users engaged in your app.
Also, look at the Monthly Active Users (MAU), which points out the exact statistics but only every month. So the approximation should be to have both DAU and MAU performance exceptionally.
The app’s maintenance stage comes after the app’s development and publishing life cycle. The app maintenance typically needs additional expenses, which are remarkably higher during the first year. The maintenance cost decreases to 15-25% each year after that.
The number of operating systems also influences the expenses. So in the case of native Android and iOS apps, the app maintenance costs can be a little more. An average of around $250 and $500 monthly should be invested to enjoy the perfect functionality of the app.
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Factors included in the cost of maintenance of the app:-
Observing the analytics :
The natural growth of the app can be measured by its analytics. So it is unavoidable. The analytics includes user behavior, traffic measurement, average app usage time, and more. You can also determine which parts of your app show the most growth, such as using Google Analytics.
Identifying and fixing the errors :
Many unexpected errors appear, such as server upgrades, device changes, and hosting upgrades. The cost of detecting and fixing errors differs depending on the error type and the time it takes to fix it.
Improving the customer experience :
Another important task the developer should do is to sort out the application-related issues raised by the clients. Their feedback should be considered seriously and resolved appropriately. But the individual developer or their group can’t connect directly with the users. So the Customer Service Representative can resolve this issue.
Focusing on the hosting services :
The expense of hosting is always underway. Because no app can function without it, it allows you to invest the money depending on your budget and gives you time-limited access to the server. Aside from hosting, the type of data of your application also matters. Don’t forget to consider the CPU memory, support for media types on the server, and other features offered by the hosting provider.
App marketing activities :
The story doesn’t end with developing and publishing the app. The users should be aware of any changes they will be making in the application to secure their trust, primarily if such changes are related to the data, payment information, and privacy or users’ payment information. Any new changes in the app require promotion of the app again, which is another fated cost.
The process of mobile app development never ends even if no updates are added to the software. But if you want some long-term success, then update and offer your users a new feature. In the scenario where no updates are added, only bugs are fixed, along with other standard activities the average cost of app maintenance is around 15-20% of the primary cost per year.
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The cost of mobile app maintenance depends on factors such as project size, features count, technologies, update frequency, maps, and payment gateways like third-party services.
The topic of mobile or web app maintenance is not often talked about even being a crucial part of the app’s life and the app developer’s business model. The answer to how much it costs to maintain an app? is not easy to assert with certainty. This is due to so many factors involved and controlling the overall process. But one thing that is important to understand is that regular app updates are a must, independent of your internal team or if you outsource the maintenance services. You can use different ways for the app maintenance but it must be part of your business plan.
How can app maintenance costs be reduced?
After the app is released it will be rated by the users, so ultimately the users determine if the app is successful or not. Smart developers always go for the features that are preferred by the users.
The effective strategy is to start with the small and tailor the app based on the user’s feedback. The app can become more appealing if the end-user development strategy is applied, with reduced overall development and maintenance costs in the future. Since some of the changes cannot be omitted so it makes sense to keep the initial development costs low.
In the first few months release smaller updates and improvements. These are less costly and take less time than executing the incorrectly implemented features. The basic problems can be addressed with regular improvements before introducing the new features, making the situation more complicated.
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