What is the average cost and time to have a prototype built in an app?

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To stay active and stand a chance to rank high in the mobile app market, mobile app development companies are positively looking toward the app prototype module. There are tons of benefits, to begin with, the mobile app prototype than launching the main product straightaway. Generally, MVP mobile app will bring you a broad view of the market which we could not analyze in the first place.

The app prototype tool or the Minimum Viable Product is a basic version of your mobile app that is considered to collect users’ feedback and develop the features in the upcoming main launch. Moreover, the prototype app development costs less than the regular mobile app development.

Mobile app prototype has become an integral element in the modern app development process. It comes with confidence that supports the organization from the early failure.

So, how much does it actually cost to get the app prototype design ready?

Mobile app prototype | Mobile app design

Though it is the initial setup, it isn’t that easy. We need to be sure of the product and how complete our MVP will look. The cost and time required to build the required app prototype then depends on several factors;

1) App Idea and Planning:

The foremost factor to calculate the cost of your app development depends on your app idea. It is imperative to examine your mobile app development plan from a different angle. We get so many thoughts, but in reality, we cannot work on all of them. The ideal app prototype consists of some key app elements and features. The app purpose has to be clear when deciding the app functionalities.

Once we understand and finalize our app features, we can certainly make a note of total development time and cost.

2) Determine your Audience:

When we talk about our audience, it should not be limited to age groups only. For instance, if you provide service to all (men, women, kids and elders) and deal with inexpensive products, you can positively invest a little more time in-app design. The idea is to attract more prospects and facilitate them with a comfortable app experience. Understand your audience and invest in the app accordingly.

3) Understanding user needs:

Once you determine your target audience, it is time to precisely understand them. If you already have a competitor with a mobile app in the market, try to understand users who have uninstalled their app. Knowing the needs of the users will aid with the functionalities required in your app.

Imagine some fictional users and their needs, and rank the features as per your app development budget.

4) Selecting Appropriate Design:

As mentioned above, design is the key to hold back users. It should be attractive, engaging and possess a user-friendly environment. It should help users in easy navigation with an organized sitemap. All icons, forms and other content must be clearly displayed.

As we are building a prototype, there would be room for improvement for sure; it has to maintain a perfect balance with a good design and low cost.

5) Finalizing Wireframe:

After the app prototype design, the team can process the required mobile app wireframes. The team can certainly go through a couple of app wireframes and select the best fitted as per the app specifications.

Again, if you deal with premium clients, you can certainly invest in more mockups and get them approved by the team.

6) Development:

MVP mobile app does not require a complex development database. All that is needed is a database with a general API. The database is used only to receive and store information. The data contains users’ feedback, response and other information, which would be useful to build the upgraded version of the app later.

Besides, as per the budget, the organization can include an admin panel.

7) App Release Platform:

Don’t get confused. The goal of the MVP is to record clients’ feedback for the main mobile app. Hence, there is no specific need to build the mobile app prototype for both platforms: iOS and Android. Releasing the app on one platform will definitely save a lot of time and money.

Nevertheless, there are ways to find out the best platform for app launch as per your location and target audience. For instance, in the US and Canada, there are likely more iOS users compared to Android; hence, in that region iOS wins the discussion.

Calculation of time and cost to build an app prototype:

The above-discussed factors are certain that directly influence the cost and development time of the prototype. Moreover, for a better understanding of the cost estimation, we have included some specific details as per our experience and current market trends:

A. Product requirement: 10-30 hours
B. Wireframe: 60-100 hours
C. Backend: 60-100 hours
D. OS development: 100-150 hours
E. Landing pages: 30-50 hours

Total hours: 260 – 430 hours
Hourly Rate: USD 15 to USD 50 (varies as per the developer’s location)

Related Blog: Do You Know the Reasons Why Users Are Uninstalling Your App?

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