How Long Does It Take to Develop an App?

It takes exactly 28 days and three minutes.

But honestly, nobody can tell.

But you can measure it like so:

Spotify has been in development for over 17 years. Instagram has been evolving for more than 13 years, and Amazon has been continuously built and improved for over 25 years. It's important to note that these apps are still actively being developed. Product owners constantly enhance these platforms, fix bugs, redesign interfaces, and add new features to meet their target audience’s ever-changing needs and desires.

You probably have an idea, and you want to test your hypothesis as soon as possible by building a prototype, an MVP, or a full-featured app, while there’s a window of opportunity here, right?

We have all the answers for you then!

Let’s see how long it takes to build different types of apps on average.

Building a prototype

This is the first and one of the most important stages of product development. Although some young and hungry entrepreneurs neglect this stage and tend to skip it, I really would not recommend doing that. But first, let’s clear up what a prototype actually is.

A prototype is an early model that visually represents an app, and demonstrates design and logic. Unlike MVP or a fully-fledged app, a prototype is NOT functional, meaning, you can only see the design, but you cannot test functionality.

Prototypes can vary in form and complexity. The most simple ones can be created on a tissue, and more complex ones can be designed as high-fidelity wireframes using special design tools.

Time: up to one month.

Building an MVP

MVP, or a minimum viable product, is a version of your app that includes key features to satisfy users’ needs. With its help, you can go to production fast, collect customer feedback, and evaluate the app’s potential.

Analyzing feedback, you can improve your app precisely according to users’ demands. With customers’ opinions, you know exactly what is wrong. You have a well-defined vision of how to build an app users need. Sometimes, ideas fail. But even if your first MVP attempt won’t be successful, you still have so many other chances to build a profitable product.

An MVP does not equal a final product. It’s the first testable version based on a startup owner’s predictions, ideas, and hypotheses. It gives an invaluable chance to better understand the target audience, the market, and whether there is a product-market fit.

MVP helps to start raising your brand. What is most important, it allows for attracting investments. This is a perfect circle: you raise funds with MVP, you invest them in app improvement, and you raise more funds to build even more advanced features and attract additional funds, new powerful users, and partners!

Also read: Why MVP Is The Secret Sauce To App Success: An Entrepreneurs Guide

Time: up to six months.

Building a full-featured app

This is the stage where you can actually let all your desires go! While an MVP includes only the most necessary killing features, when developing a full-featured app, you can add some “fat” to your lean product.

To do that, you can create exquisite designs, and add new features that are not essential, but still, they will make your app more convenient to use for your customers.

Working on a full-featured app does not mean you should stop doing what you’ve been doing with an MVP. You should still talk to customers to get their feedback and create and test new hypotheses.

Time: 12 months +.

As you can see, the development time varies. Everything depends on the development stage, the type of product, your allocated resources, and the number of features to be implemented. If you want to dive into details and find out how long it will take to build each stage of an app, check our resource

What makes the biggest difference in your app development timeline?

Things That Have an Impact on Development Time

Developing a mobile app is a complex process with many moving parts. Each step of the way, different factors can significantly influence the overall timeline. Understanding what these factors are and how they can affect your development time is crucial for setting realistic expectations and managing your project efficiently. Here’s a deep dive into the key elements that impact development time.

1. Feature Set

The more features your app includes, the longer it will take to develop. A basic app with minimal functionality might be developed in a few weeks, whereas a feature-rich app that includes user authentication, real-time chat, or integration with third-party APIs could take several months. Every additional feature adds layers of complexity, which in turn, increases development time.

Custom vs. Pre-Built Components

Using pre-built components can significantly reduce development time. For instance, leveraging existing frameworks or libraries for common features like social login, push notifications, or payment processing can save weeks of work. On the other hand, custom-built components, while offering more flexibility and uniqueness, will require more time for development and testing.

User Interface and User Experience (UI/UX) Design

A highly polished, custom-designed user interface can greatly enhance the user experience, but it also requires more time to develop. Simple, standard designs can be implemented faster, but if you’re aiming for a unique and engaging interface, be prepared to allocate more time for design and iteration.

2. Platform Choice

Single vs. Multiple Platforms

Choosing to develop your app for just one platform, whether iOS or Android, will generally result in a faster development process. However, if you want your app to be available on both platforms, development time will increase. Each platform has its own design guidelines, coding languages, and testing procedures, which means essentially doubling your development efforts if you go for both.

Native vs. Cross-Platform Development

Native apps, which are built specifically for iOS or Android, tend to perform better and provide a more seamless user experience. However, developing two separate native apps is time-consuming. Cross-platform development, using tools like React Native or Flutter, allows you to build a single app that works on both platforms, potentially saving a significant amount of time.

3. Development Team Size and Expertise

Team Size

The size of your development team can have a major impact on how quickly your app is built. A larger team can divide the work more efficiently, allowing for parallel development of different features or components. However, larger teams also require more coordination, which can sometimes slow things down if not managed well.

Skill Level and Experience

A team of experienced developers is likely to work more efficiently, write cleaner code, and avoid common pitfalls, all of which can shorten the development timeline. Conversely, a less experienced team may take longer to complete tasks, require more revisions, and potentially extend the development time.

In-House vs. Outsourced Development

Whether you choose to develop your app in-house or outsource it to a third-party agency can also influence development time. In-house teams might have better alignment with your company’s goals but may lack specific expertise, leading to delays. Outsourcing to a specialized agency can bring in the needed expertise but may require more time for communication and coordination.

Thinking about how much time it takes to build an app, you should analyze on-site vs outsourcing software development. In-house development requires much more time as you need to find and hire a skilled recruitment and HR team, attract the best tech talents, interview and onboard them, find a perfect office, etc. In the case of outsourcing, you can either hire an entire team or extend the existing team with experienced professionals in a matter of days.

4. Development Methodology

Agile Development

The Agile methodology, which breaks the development process into smaller sprints, allows for flexibility and continuous feedback. This approach can help identify issues early and adjust the course as needed, potentially speeding up the overall process. However, frequent changes and iterations can also lead to scope creep, which might extend the timeline if not managed carefully.

Waterfall Development

The Waterfall methodology is more structured, with each phase of development completed before moving on to the next. While this approach can make the process more predictable, it is less adaptable to changes, meaning any late-stage revisions can cause significant delays.

5. Communication and Project Management

Clear Requirements

One of the most significant factors in determining the development timeline is how clearly the project’s requirements are defined from the start. Ambiguous or evolving requirements can lead to miscommunication, rework, and delays. Thorough documentation and detailed specifications are essential for keeping the project on track.

Regular Updates and Feedback

Consistent communication between the development team and stakeholders ensures that everyone is aligned and that any issues are addressed promptly. Regular updates help to catch potential problems early, allowing for quicker resolutions and preventing major delays.

Effective Project Management

A well-organized project management process, with clear milestones, deadlines, and responsibilities, can significantly reduce development time. Efficient project management helps to keep the team focused, prioritize tasks effectively, and minimize downtime.

The time it takes to build an app can vary widely, ranging from about 600 hours to potentially endless development. The duration of the process depends on several key factors, including the project's requirements and complexity, the development methodology you choose, the expertise of your team, and other less significant considerations. By understanding all the stages that contribute to app development time, you can optimize them to improve efficiency and performance. Implementing the right strategies to reduce development time allows you to launch your product faster than your competitors, giving you an edge in capturing market share.

But there's a "magic pill" in this process a solution that saves time, attracts investments, gathers user feedback, and helps build a better product. This magic pill is known as the Minimum Viable Product (MVP).

Developing a high-quality, well-tested MVP usually takes just a few weeks. Once launched, it allows you to start collecting user feedback immediately. Of course, the timeline still depends on your specific requirements, but an MVP offers a low-risk way to take the first step toward success with minimal time and financial investment.

Are you dreaming of launching your own tech startup? We know how to create apps that attract investments.

Schedule a free consultation today to discover how to turn your idea into a successful app.