The Ultimate Guide to Mobile App Maintenance Cost

Your app has finally been completed, which is a huge relief! Your months of hard work have finally paid off. You’ve been promoting it for quite some time. It was released on the App Store or Google Play Store. 

1. Your application is currently being downloaded.
2. Your app is being used by customers.
3. But wait, is that it?
4. But wait, there’s more!

The next stage is to keep the app running smoothly. Because the more downloads your program receives, the more upkeep it will necessitate. And, of course, you want more downloads, right?

According to a Gartner survey, 77% of apps fail beyond the launch period owing to a lack of maintenance. We know it’s a significant %.

Yes, mobile app maintenance is one of the most crucial things to take care of, even when users are enjoying and using your app a lot.

To understand its significance and why it should be the next major thing you should think about, check out this blog, which covers everything from mobile app maintenance costs to things to consider, as well as mobile app maintenance best practices.

What is Mobile App Maintenance?

Mobile app maintenance is a way to maintain and take care of the already deployed application in the market. No matter whether your app is being liked by the users, it always requires maintenance be it in terms of bug-fixing, error corrections, upgrades, updates, hardware competency, etc.

It is required because you never wanted to make your application obsolete or less competitive in the market as compared to other coming applications. As per Google Play Store statistics, every day over 6140 apps are added to the app. 

The image portrays why maintenance of the app is required by cutting down the features that are not being used or abandoned fully by the users so that you can come up with better features, functionalities, and others. 

So, understanding the dire need for mobile app maintenance, let us have a look at the importance of mobile app maintenance.

Types of Mobile App Maintenance

1# Emergency maintenance 

As the name itself suggests, emergency means abrupt, sudden, or not planned situations. And when talking about the name in the field of mobile app development, then it portrays the emergency condition or situation that might be abrupt in the app. 

The emergency nature of the problems is often unpredictable, unexpected, or sudden. In such a scenario, opting for immediate app maintenance is required for a seamless user experience along with letting users be assured that their data is safe!

2# Adaptive maintenance

Adaptive means adapting to the nature and demand of the users and the market. With adaptive maintenance, developers will be required to keep track of changes in the application for the updated system always. 

3# Perfective maintenance

For more competitiveness, more mobile features and functionalities are introduced in the market. Hence, to beat the competition, it is required to make changes in the app too as per the market needs and user requirements. 

In order to make changes as per the need, feedback from the end-users is also important. Once done with it, taking care of functional modifications then can be made easily offering a great user experience. 

4# Preventive maintenance

Preventive maintenance takes care of mobile applications and prevents them from errors and bugs. Also, the major focus remains here is on reducing the app complexity while improving the maintainability factor. The maintainability factor can be achieved through code optimization, documentation updating, code restructuring, and so on. 

5# Corrective maintenance 

Using corrective maintenance, you can always take care of faults, defects, repairs in the mobile app functions. 

Here the maintenance part also includes coding, designing, application logic, and so on. 

The next thing to unveil is what factors are included in the app maintenance. 

What is included in the Mobile App Cost Maintenance

1# Development and design maintenance 

Even when the app is deployed and liked by the users, there is always a scope of improvements in the app, be it in terms of aesthetic or performance-related nature. Also, most of the time the potential fixes are made from customer feedback. 

Here the maintenance is divided into Development and design. 

Development maintenance 

The development maintenance here looks after- 

• Bug fixes,
• Third-party compatibility work analysis
• Refining codes
• Adding new features and removing the not so required features

Design maintenance 

We have already mentioned the importance of UI for great UX. Top mobile app UI design trends along with UX techniques to follow can help you understand the concept more in detail. 

However, always ensure you are hiring the right UI expert for your app designing maintenance. 

2# Mobile app security 

Ensuring that your app is secure requires the cost to maintain a mobile app that can’t be skipped or substituted. 

Also, there are two things you need to take into consideration- 

• Ongoing security optimization
• Legislative imposed changes

In order to safeguard all your users’ information and sensitive data, developers are required to keep a track of privacy changes, updates made in third-party integrations, and so on. Enhancing  mobile security by skipping even the smallest of updates unaddressed can cause security issues.

3# Infrastructural services 

Just like app development, app maintenance also needs to look at infrastructural services like third-party hybrid application maintenance cost, human resources, server maintenance, database, hosting, and others. 

However, not just the external medium of spending money, the mobile app maintenance cost also consists of the total number of time spent by human resources. 

4# Analytics for app

Just like taking care of the user’s demand, it is also important to track & analyze how your users are interacting with the app. Here mobile app user persona can definitely help to make you list down the important things required for tracking and analyzing user demand. 

By understanding how a user will be interacting with the app can make you realize what features can be added or what should be removed using various types of tools. 

5# Administrative & customer support services

As more users are downloading your application, you will also be required to see their accounts too. Thus, you will also be required here to organize a CMS platform for website development.

Along with that, for any customer query or communicating with the users, you need to have someone respond to them. Appointing people for communicating with users will make you spend money too.

How much does It Cost to Maintain an App?

(A Major 5 Step Cost Breakdown Process)

We have mentioned most of the points in the aforementioned details. And here in this section, we will be briefly looking at the importance of cost to maintain an app breakdown factors in detail. 

1# App Hosting cost

Hosting cost is involved in the app maintenance cost and is a very crucial expense that can never be substituted or skipped. For this cost affair, you need to first decide the server you want your app on- this will result in an accurate app hosting cost. 

2# App analytics

We have already mentioned bugs, crashes, glitches, and needs to be corrected for enhanced user experience and longevity success of the application. Thus, for app analytics, you can opt for various tools like Google Analytics for getting greater insights for better decision making.

3# Third-party 

For the app development process, you also need to opt for licensed technology by paying some fee. 

Thus, anything that comes from a third or external source involves monthly and yearly app maintenance cost. Third-party integrations such causes 

4# Bug fixing

No matter how great your application is, it will always come up with some bug fixes issues. Improving & maintaining your app always helps in eliminating the bugs and enhancing the overall performance of the app.

5# Customer support

You do not want your users to choose someone else over you! For that, you need to connect with your audience 24*7 and listen to their queries, concerns, and then answer them. 

Thus, as and when the technology changes or requirements, queries increase, always need a customer exerprience to support the system.

Factors Affecting the Mobile App Maintenance Cost

1# Complexity in software

The choice of technology you are using for mobile app development also plays a significant role. On the other hand, iPhone vs Android choices or going ahead with cross-platform app development also affects the mobile app maintenance cost.

2# The app designing

The app design will always affect its longevity, hence, ensuring you are involving the expert designers for the role. However, if your app is poorly designed in the initial phases, how much does app maintenance costs post-deployment will always haunt you. 

3# App development team’s location

The choice of mobile app development company also plays an important role during the mobile app maintenance cost phase. Demographic location varies as per the country and the experts, developers, designers working with the firm.

There are majorly two options you can opt from- either outsourcing app development or In house app development.

How Appventurez will Help with the Development Cost of Application?

No matter how great your application is, it always requires nourishment for its effective health. The health and nourishment here mean timely updates, upgrades, bug fixing, error corrections, and so on. Without them, it will be difficult to let the app be everyone’s favorite app!.

Appventurez a mobile application development company always focuses on client service, developers, marketers, and QAs to keep your app competitive. We ensure to keep your app at its best, so the return for more.

For more information about what’s the cost to maintain an app and for resolving any app maintenance smallest query also, connect with our experts.  

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