Over the years, the focus in app development has turned to increasingly scalable, highly functional, and cost-effective hybrid solutions.
That’s why we’ve reached out to industry experts on the topic and cover everything you need to know about hybrid app development: what it is, how it works, and why it's a smart choice for businesses looking to reach a wider audience without breaking the bank.
Table of Contents
- What Is Hybrid App Development?
- How Do Hybrid Apps Work?
- Pros & Cons of Hybrid App Development
- How Much Does Hybrid App Development Cost?
- 5 Best Examples of Hybrid Apps
- What Are the Most Popular Hybrid App Development Tools?
- How To Choose the Best Hybrid App Development Company for You
- Takeaways on Hybrid App Development
What Is Hybrid App Development?
Hybrid app development is the creation of a single app that can run on multiple operating systems, including Windows, Android, and iOS.
In other words, hybrid apps are a combination of both web and native mobile applications. When a software development firm creates hybrid software, it utilizes a single codebase for all platforms. This means they only need to write the code once and run it anywhere.
This is possible through specific tools that make communication between the native platform and web view easier. Thanks to these tools, hybrid mobile apps can be compiled and transformed into native apps.
How Do Hybrid Apps Work?
Developers build hybrid apps using web technologies such as JavaScript, CSS, and HTML. The code is then wrapped within a native application using open-source hybrid mobile app development frameworks like Ionic or React Native. This allows the app to run through each platform’s embedded browser instead of the web browser, which means they can be installed on mobile devices and submitted to app stores for sale, just like regular native apps.
Plugins enable full access to the device's hardware and features, such as GPS, camera, or address book. The wrapper solutions also provide a suite of UI components to create a native interface.
In contrast, native apps are built for a single operating system and tailored for the mobile devices' unique features and hardware. Developers only use the languages that the specific platform accepts. For instance, Google and Android developers create mobile apps exclusively on Android. Google Maps, Facebook, and LinkedIn are examples of native mobile apps designed dedicatedly for iOS and Android. So, these apps require separate codes.
Hybrid apps allow developers to write a single code base compatible with multiple operating systems. This is why hybrid app development is an easier and more cost-effective approach to creating mobile apps.
Hence, major global players like Amazon, Nike, Walmart, and Etsy, have already chosen the hybrid model over native development.
Pros & Cons of Hybrid App Development
Hybrid apps are more cost-effective, take less time to create, and are easier to manage than native ones. Other significant benefits of hybrid app development include:
- Easier scalability: Hybrid apps are more cost-effective, take less time to create, and are easier to manage than native ones. Other significant benefits of hybrid app development include.
- Single codebase to manage: Unlike native app building, where you have to create two separate apps, hybrid software development involves only one app, so you only need to manage one database.
- Faster build time: Since there is only one database to manage, hybrid apps can be built more quickly than native apps.
- Low cost of development: Hybrid mobile apps cost less than native apps. Because developers write one set of code, the initial costs and the maintenance costs are low.
- Offline availability: Hybrid mobile apps cost less than native apps. Because developers write one set of code, the initial costs and the maintenance costs are low.
However, hybrid mobile app development has a few disadvantages as well:
- User experience: Since hybrid apps use one codebase for all platforms, the user experience across different operating systems might not be consistent. After all, it’s difficult to customize an app based on multiple platforms.
- Lower performance: Hybrid mobile apps typically load in a web view, which can result in lower performance compared to native apps. This is one of its biggest drawbacks.
- Availability of features: Some new features introduced in hybrid software may not be available across all platforms. What’s more, certain native features may not be supported at all in hybrid apps.
- Errors: Hybrid software may have hidden errors or compatibility issues that can affect its functionality and user experience.
How Much Does Hybrid App Development Cost?
The cost of hybrid app development is determined by the time necessary to build the app, its functionality, and its design.
Let’s see how much hybrid mobile apps of different complexity approximately cost:
- Simple hybrid mobile apps have very few features, and developers can create them in a shorter time. They would cost approximately about $10,000.
- Medium-complex hybrid mobile apps are more complex than simple ones and could cost between $10,000 and $50,000. Companies would need 2-3 months to create them.
- Enterprise hybrid mobile apps with plenty of features are even more complex apps that require more time to be developed. They take about 3-6 months to be launched and can cost $50,000 to $150,000.
- Games are the most difficult apps to create, and hybrid mobile app development companies might charge up to $250,000. Some companies can charge hourly as well, starting from about $50 per hour.
5 Best Examples of Hybrid Apps
New technologies and the increasing availability of hybrid app frameworks have allowed large companies to create high-performance mobile applications with great interfaces and functionality.
Look at the five best hybrid mobile apps popular among users across the globe:
- Example #1: Instagram
- Example #2: Uber
- Example #3: Gmail
- Example #4: Evernote
- Example #5: X (Formerly Twitter)
Example #1: Instagram
Instagram is one of the most popular social media apps for sharing images and videos, with over 2 billion monthly users. Going hybrid enables the app to support tons of media and data. The app allows users to access its features, media, photos, and short videos in the offline mode.
Example #2: Uber
Another great example of hybrid mobile app development is the Uber application. With easy navigation and an intuitive user interface, Uber is easily accessible and convenient, which is why this hybrid app is one of the most used ridesharing apps in the world.
Example #3: Gmail
Previously built using HTML, Gmail upgraded to HTML 5 to provide users with new, advanced features and functionalities, thus enhancing the user experience. This is the perfect example of combining native and web elements to create a high-performance mobile application.
Example #4: Evernote
With a beautiful design and flawless cross-device compatibility, Evernote is a productivity app that stands out for its performance — going against the below that hybrid apps are slow and of low performance.
Example #5: X (Formerly Twitter)
X (formerly Twitter) is another hybrid app that proves performance is not an issue for social network app developers. The social media application can handle huge amounts of traffic, and it’s accessed by millions of users every day.
What Are the Most Popular Hybrid App Development Tools?
Here are the best hybrid mobile app development tools and their unique features:
1. React Native
Because it’s based on React and JavaScript, React Native is the preferred hybrid app framework for developers. It provides native modules and allows them to convert the source code into native elements, thus delivering users a native experience.
2. Flutter
Powered by Google, Flutter supports various programming languages and is compatible with multiple operating systems. It’s most appreciated for its speed and the many features it provides, such as a rich collection of widgets or real-time updates.
3. Ionic
The most popular tool for creating hybrid apps, Ionic is a free and open-source framework with a large community of developers. It has an extensive set of tools and features, including native UI components and layouts, debugging, testing tools, and more, that help developers create interactive mobile apps. Furthermore, this hybrid app framework provides services such as scalability and maintainability.
4. Aurelia
Aurelia is an MIT-licensed open-sourced framework that allows you to build software using vanilla JavaScript or TypeScript. Its extensive ecosystem includes different tools such as Chrome debugger, CLI, VS Code, and several official plugins for state management, internationalization and validation.
This easy-to-use hybrid app development tool allows even users with the simplest knowledge of Java and HTML to build complex apps in minutes. It enables powerful reactive binding and, as stated on its website, Aurelia is also “the only framework today that situates your code at the center of your app, rather than the framework.”
5. Native Script
Native Script allows users to code using any language that can convert to Java, making it an excellent hybrid app development tool. This means that, aside from JavaScript, it integrates with Angular, TypeScript, Vue, and several other software frameworks. The platform gives access to both Android and iOS APIs, and you can use libraries from Maven, CocoaPods, Android Arsenal, etc.
How To Choose the Best Hybrid App Development Company for You
You should consider many factors when finding the best hybrid app developers for your business needs. Here are the most important ones:
1. Expertise
Hybrid mobile app developers should have certifications and technical experience. To fulfill all the tasks involved in the building of your app, these individuals must be experts in hybrid app development. By hiring experienced professionals, you can ensure the app development process can achieve the best possible results.
2. Location
Hybrid mobile app developers should have certifications and technical experience. To fulfill all the tasks involved in the building of your app, these individuals must be experts in hybrid app development. By hiring experienced professionals, you can ensure the app development process can achieve the best possible results.
3. Cost
The cost of the app is another crucial aspect to look at. Not all hybrid app developers charge the same. That’s why you need to determine how much you can spend. Set a budget and ask potential candidates for a price estimate. However, also think about whether you want to save money or spend a higher upfront cost, which may bring you a higher ROI.
4. Post-Launch Services
Just because the app is live doesn’t mean the developer’s work is done. Apps need to be maintained and updated continuously. Therefore, you need to make sure that the developers are available for future services and consultation.
5. Level of Involvement
Although it’s the developers building the app for you, you should still be involved in the whole process. However, at the start, you probably don’t know the level of involvement the developers require. That’s why you should figure out this aspect in advance.
Once you collect all the necessary info about the potential hybrid app development companies, choose the best one for your mobile app needs.
Takeaways on Hybrid App Development
Aside from the convenience of operating on any platform or device, hybrid apps are simple to create and download. They can also provide a native-like user experience by combining native elements.
As a result, hybrid app development is more popular than ever before. It enables marketers to launch a single app across different mobile devices, allowing them to reach their target audience while saving time and money. If you want to go the hybrid way and create this type of mobile app, you can choose from the best hybrid app developers that can assist you.
