In our last newsletter, we explored whether your business actually needs an app by examining the fundamental differences between web and app business models, identifying app-first business categories, and reviewing the signals that indicate a web business is app-ready.
If you missed it, here's the quick recap: apps aren't just websites in different packaging. They're entirely different business models focused on retention and recurring engagement rather than acquisition and conversion. And not every business needs one, despite what the tech hype would have you believe.
For those of you who answered "yes" to the three critical questions:
- You'd personally download and use this app if it wasn't yours
- Your app can beat the industry average 5.8% Day 30 retention rate
- You can commit to properly funding and staffing it for at least 2 years
...you're ready for the next step: figuring out the best way to build your app in 2025. Let's explore your options.
The Resource Reality Check: Traditional App Development
Before you get too excited, let's talk about what traditional app development actually costs in 2025:
Cost breakdown by complexity:
- Simple apps: $5,000 to $70,000 (basic features, simple UI/UX)
- Medium complexity apps: $50,000 to $163,500 (advanced features, multiple integrations)
- Complex apps: $120,000 to $500,000+ (AR/VR, healthcare compliance, high-end gaming)
Cost by platform:
- iOS apps: $55,000 to $500,000
- Android apps: $50,000 to $500,000
- Hybrid apps: $40,000 to $300,000 (more cost-effective for multi-platform deployment)
Development timeline:
- 3-6 months for simpler apps
- 6-12 months for complex applications
- Additional time for planning, testing, and deployment
Ongoing considerations:
- Regular updates to maintain platform compatibility
- Security patches and performance improvements
- Feature enhancements and user experience refinements
- Infrastructure and maintenance costs (20-30% of initial development annually)
Required expertise:
- iOS and Android developers (or a cross-platform team)
- Mobile UX/UI designers
- QA specialists for mobile testing
- App Store Optimization experts
- Mobile analytics implementation
Key cost drivers include feature complexity, design sophistication, third-party integrations, team location, and compliance requirements (like HIPAA or GDPR). Regional variations are significant—the same app might cost considerably less when developed in certain markets compared to the UK or US.
This traditional development approach represents a substantial investment. For most companies, especially SMEs, this level of spending is simply not realistic—nor necessary, given today's alternatives.
The 2025 Game-Changer: Vibecoding and No-Code Options
The good news? The app development landscape has been transformed by vibecoding and other no-code solutions. These AI-powered platforms have democratised app creation to an unprecedented degree.
Popular platforms:
- AI-enhanced IDEs like Cursor, Replit, Bolt, and Lovable (vibecoding)
- Specialised tools like Shopify app builders (e.g., Tapcart)
- Traditional no-code platforms with improved capabilities
Typical investment:
- Many platforms start at $20-250/month with usage-based tiers
- Development timeline reduced to weeks or even days
- Single codebase for both platforms
- Significantly lower maintenance costs
Many businesses have successfully scaled with these tools. Dividend Finance built their initial lending app on a no-code platform before securing over $330M in funding and transitioning to a custom stack. Comet, a marketplace for freelancers built on Bubble (no-code platform), has secured $12.8M in funding. Lovable, the no-code tool from Stockholm, has achieved $17M in annual recurring revenue (ARR), 30,000+ paying customers (including myself), and 1.2M+ apps built in just 3 months since launching in late 2024.
But these options come with important limitations:
- Scalability challenges when you exceed 50,000-100,000 users
- Performance constraints for complex functionality (AR/VR, real-time collaboration)
- Customisation limitations compared to custom development
- Platform dependency risks if the service changes or shuts down
- Security & compliance concerns for regulated industries
- Integration complexity with existing business systems
For many businesses, I would advise to start with no-code to test market fit, and move to custom development afterwards, instead of seeing no-code as the final solution.
Progressive Web Apps: An Alternative Middle Ground
Before diving into any app development, also consider Progressive Web Apps (PWAs), the hybrid approach that offers app-like experiences through your mobile browser. PWA market is projected to grow from $5.23 billion in 2025 to $21.44 billion by 2032, with a CAGR of 28.6%.
PWA capabilities in 2025:
- Offline functionality
- Home screen installation
- Push notifications (now supported on 97% of mobile devices)
- Camera and GPS access
- App-like interfaces and animations
Real-world PWA results:
- Twitter: Lite's PWA reduced app size by over 97%, with 65% increase in pages per session, 75% more Tweets, and a 20% decrease in bounce rate
- Starbucks: 99.84% smaller than its iOS app, with 2x increase in daily active users
- Pinterest: 40% more time spent and 44% boost in ad revenue
- AliExpress: 104% more new users across all browsers, with 82% increase in iOS conversion rate
PWAs offer a compelling middle ground: better than mobile web, cheaper than native apps, and faster to implement than either custom or no-code development.
My Staged Approach Recommendation for Most Businesses
If I were advising most SMEs today, I'd recommend this staged approach:
- Start by optimising your mobile web experience
- Improve load times, simplify navigation, reduce form fields
- This alone can yield 15-30% improvement in mobile conversion
- Implement PWA or build no-code MVP for your most valuable features
- Add offline capabilities, home screen installation, push notifications
- Target only the 1-2 capabilities that truly require native app functionality
- Test with a limited audience to validate assumptions
- Transition to custom development only after proving ROI
- Use data from your MVP to justify further investment
- Scale gradually based on validated user behaviour
This approach minimises risk while giving you the best chance to discover whether an app truly adds value for your specific business.
Next Steps: Your App Development Action Plan
Now that you understand the options, here's the action plan:
- Assess your current capabilities:
- Technical resources (in-house or accessible)
- Budget constraints
- Timeline requirements
- Choose your development path
- Set clear success metrics before you begin:
- Minimum viable retention rate
- Expected ROI timeline
- Feature adoption targets
- Start small and validate before scaling:
- Focus on core features that deliver unique value
- Test with a limited audience and gather feedback aggressively
Remember, the goal isn't just to have an app: it's to create sustainable business value through the right mobile experience for your specific situation.
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