App maintenance is a recurring and crucial task for every app. Even if you had built an amazing app and added every possible security and safety feature, apps can still have glitches revealing themselves after some time. Therefore, the need for mobile app maintenance occurs.
App maintenance is not only important due to glitches, apps can be upgraded, modified, and much more. Whenever you plan to develop an app, apart from the development cost of the app, it is a smart move to measure the approximate cost of maintaining an app. It will help you in avoiding sudden burdens in case of any unpredictable event.
How much does it cost to maintain an app?
Well, there are different perspectives in the industry regarding that. However, it also depends upon the complexity of the app, the technology which has been used, the platform for which the app was built, and much more. Experts usually suggest that app maintenance can cost 15-20% of the total development cost.
Here are a few factors to answer how much does app maintenance cost?
- The average cost of maintaining an app includes the cost of content generation, promotional activities, graphic creation, purchasing media elements, and much more;
- Upgrading servers, or hosting services also affect mobile app maintenance costs;
- Recurring maintenance costs like code modifications, new technology integration, upgrading platforms, etc.
Apart from that, here are a few other elements that might affect the mobile app maintenance cost:
- Servers: $(20- 60)/ month
- Push Notifications: $10/ month
- Payment Gateways: $149+/ month
- Additional unpredictable events: Depends upon the event
How Much Does It Cost To Keep An App Running?
Well, figuring out the exact application maintenance cost is tricky as it involves multiple predictable and unpredictable aspects, as mentioned above as well. However, there are some additional possibilities for answering this question, I am going to mention them further for your reference.
- The cost of hiring a developer or a small app development company can influence the average cost of maintaining an app;
- As mentioned earlier, the predictable maintenance cost of a mobile app might reach up to 20% of the total cost to develop an app;
- According to the breakdown we mentioned above, the average cost of maintaining an app can fall between $400 to $900 per year. It can have a huge variation depending on your market location, type of technology, and type of upgrade;
- The amount spent on the app marketing strategy will also be counted as your total application maintenance cost.
Important Aspects To Cover With The Cost Of Maintaining An App
Aspects of app maintenance where you should invest more -
Compatibility with evolving Operating systems and devices
With technological developments, devices, and operating systems, both are evolving. You need to make sure that your app is compatible with these evolutions. By targeting some of your application maintenance costs here, you can increase its lifespan.
Modifying and upgrading the UI and UX
Upgrading the User Interface and User experience to make your app more user-friendly is a wise decision you can make. You can observe the most popular apps, go through suggestions by users, and use your ideas to make changes. Your ultimate goal should be that users feel the need for your app. It will be better if they get addicted to it the way apps like Instagram and Facebook keep many of their users glued.
Upgrade functionalities and add new features
After now and then, you will observe that many popular apps add something new to stand out. For example, gaming apps like subway surfer, or temple run, invested in upgrading their graphics. Moreover, food delivery apps like Zomato and Swiggy adapted live tracking systems for their orders. It improved users’ satisfaction without any doubt.
Final Words
If you observe the market, you will find that many of the best android app development companies are applying these tactics while they are trying to build applications for their clients. The reason is that apps of many types are increasing in the industry. Therefore, the competition is much higher and every step taken towards the development can either improve your apps’ reputation or depreciate it. However, following these standard procedures can help you in planning your cost and keeping it as minimum as possible.
Content Source : https://www.mobileappdaily.com/cost-to-maintain-an-app