Cost of Mobile App Maintenance in 2024 and Why It’s Important

Introduction

With the number of smartphone users increasing and applications becoming more and more popular with each passing day, many businesses and organizations are turning to mobile application development to broaden their appeal to the masses. However, many business owners make the mistake of thinking that the complete lifecycle of a mobile app comes to an end with its launch. What they fail to realize is the fact that mobile app maintenance is an integral part of the lifecycle of mobile apps and can largely determine its success. More often than not, business owners get confused and ask themselves “how much does it cost to maintain app and why is it important?”.

According to Business Standard, Google and Apple have decided to abandon around 869,000 apps from Google Play Store and 650,000 apps from Apple App Store simply because they have not been updated for more than 2 years. Not only does maintaining an app help you stay relevant in the marketplace for a long time, but it will also help you retain and attract new users continuously.

Whether you’re a startup or an established enterprise, understanding the nuances of application maintenance and the cost associated with it, can mean the difference between an app’s success or its decline into obscurity. Let’s dive in to unravel the layers of application maintenance and the importance of mobile app maintenance cost.

App Maintenance Cost – Setting the Context

Did you know that 89% of users are more likely to recommend a mobile app that delivers a consistently positive experience? Maintaining your mobile app and constantly releasing updates not just retains existing users but also draws in a significant number of new users. Just like how a proper mobile app development plan is crucial to create a robust app, an equally rock-solid app maintenance plan is essential to make your app outperform. 

In a market that is overflowing with apps for users to choose from, it is highly unlikely they will stay loyal if your app is constantly frustrating them with glitches and interruptions. This poor performance will not just lead to a surge in uninstalls but also paint your brand as mediocre. If you are asking yourself “how much does it cost to maintain app and questioning how to reduce it?”, knowing the tricks of the trade is vital.  

Why Maintaining and Updating Mobile Apps is important

If you are a business owner, the importance of mobile app maintenance cost will be a major factor. Most owners often reduce maintenance costs and heavily focus on the development part. While this might seem cost-efficient and beneficial at first, your app might struggle to keep up with its competitors in the long haul. Here are some compelling reasons why maintaining and updating mobile apps is pivotal for lasting success.

1. To Fix Bugs

Providing a smooth and good user experience without interruptions is mandatory for any app. Having bugs in your app will not just hurt the functionality of your app but also drive away users and attract a negative impression. According to statistics, a total of 88% of users will abandon an app because of bugs. This figure substantiates that bugs are a major enemy to your mobile app’s success and you need to get rid of them then and there to save your app from crashing completely.

2. Improve User Experience

User experience (UX) plays a major role in determining your app’s success story. Smooth navigation, minimal loading times, and user-friendly interfaces are indispensable to retaining users and encouraging them to continue using the app. A great UX will also provide grounds for quality conversions like in-app purchases or ad revenue. A user-friendly UX will help not only users but also the owners as it drastically reduces the need for support. Regular maintenance to add exciting features and improve functionality will aid in setting your app apart from competitors and make it stay ahead of the curve.

3. Reducing Uninstalls

Any app is bound to face a number of uninstalls for various reasons. While most app owners are fully armed with different strategies like app marketing and promotion to drive installments of their app, they often end up finding themselves at sea when coming face to face with a lot of uninstalls. Here are some common reasons and their intensity in triggering uninstalls: 

Therefore, it is extremely necessary to constantly watch your user retention rates, their preferences as well as expectations to update your app. Leaving your app outdated will also hurt its app store listings which is not something to be taken lightly as a decline in the rank of your app can trigger these stores to remove your app during their cleanups. 

4. Curtailing Downtimes and Revenue Losses

An app downtime is a period when a mobile application becomes temporarily unavailable to its users due to planned or unplanned maintenance. During this time, users may encounter disturbances like the inability to access certain features, error messages, or even black screens. This can cause major disruptions in operations, such as losing revenue, productivity, and users. Regular maintenance of your app will make it more resilient to attacks and security breaches. It can also significantly bring down the downtime by identifying and correcting issues before they grow to a large scale.

5. Boosting ROI

Return on Investment (ROI) is one of the primary objectives of any mobile application. Timely maintenance of your app will maximize your ROI by cutting down costs to attract new users and fixing bugs immediately instead of later which will end up escalating expenses. During app maintenance, you can also abandon the underutilized features in your app and introduce better-enhanced ones for more user engagement and satisfaction.

6. Staying Relevant in the Market

In the highly competitive app landscape, staying relevant in the market is the only option to continuously attract new users. Keeping up with the latest technological trends and integrating new features will provide a competitive advantage to your app and drive more people into downloading it compared to other competitors. Staying relevant in the market also requires regular upgrades so that your app is consistently being useful to the evolving needs of your users. 

Also Read: How to Choose the Best Mobile App Development Company for Your Business

Types of Mobile App Maintenance

App maintenance can be divided into many types based on their urgency, complexity and time required. There are namely 5 different types of mobile app maintenance. Understanding these maintenance types is essential for app owners to plan accordingly and allocate the required budget. Here is a detailed preview of the types: 

Emergency Maintenance: 

Your application might come face to face with unprecedented problems at times. These issues might be significantly hazardous to your app’s functionality and require immediate action. Such issues are labeled as emergency maintenance. As an app owner, you must be ready for such disruptions to occur and armed with the right strategies to tackle them instantaneously. 

Perfective Maintenance: 

With evolving needs, it is important that your app is adaptable and stays relevant. For that, perfective maintenance is key. Through perfective maintenance, you can constantly update your app with fresh features and upgrade it with the latest technologies to stay ahead of the game. Actively responding to user feedback on your app functions and taking in their suggestions are also part of perfective maintenance. 

Adaptive Maintenance: 

Every now and then, your app needs to update its latest versions that are more compatible with new operating systems, recent updates in hardware and in the software environment. This refers to adaptive maintenance. Neglecting adaptive maintenance can pull down the performance of your app considerably. 

Preventive Maintenance: 

As the name suggests, preventive maintenance refers to anticipating any issues that might stem in the future and be ready with the measures to nip it in the bud. Some of the measures that preventive maintenance includes are optimizing applications, keeping documentation updated and restructuring code. This will help maintain your app better and cut down costs of sudden disturbances. 

Corrective Maintenance: 

A mobile application will be continuously met with ongoing issues with design, logic, coding, functionality, performance and technical aspects during its lifespan. Corrective maintenance refers to identifying and correcting the existing flaws on your app to  ensure that your app continues to perform as intended. 

How Much Does It Cost To Maintain App?

In the complete lifecycle of mobile application development, the maintenance comes after the development stage. If you are getting confused and asking yourself, “how much does it cost to maintain an app”, the rough estimation will be 50% of the development cost in the first year and around15% – 20% in subsequent years. Maintenance costs can also increase if your app supports various operating systems like Android and iOS. Here is an average breakdown of annual app maintenance costs for various components:

1. Hosting

A major contributor to expenses in mobile app maintenance is app hosting costs and server prices. Depending on the type of server required, your mobile app maintenance costs will significantly vary. Determining the type of server starts with finding how much data is associated with your app. If your app mostly includes static or text-based data instead of audio and videos, it requires less CPU, disk space and memory. Other factors, such as the number of users and projected growth, also play a part in deciding the hosting fees.

2. Analytics

Improvising your app based on random assumptions will not work in increasing its efficacy. Properly analyzing user expectations and preferences through tools that provide valuable insights is vital for making the right data-driven decisions. While there are plenty of free tools available in the market, most of them only provide surface-level data. Hence, you may need to pull up some funds to invest in an extensive tool that presents you with critical insights. Along with analyzing user preferences, these tools should also assist in monitoring crashes, bugs, and other technical glitches.

Also Read: 10 Critical mistakes to avoid while Mobile and Web App Development for Business

3. Bug Fixing and Updates

Bug fixing and seasonal updates in the functionality and user experience of your app are inevitable throughout the mobile app lifecycle. While regular updates can fix the existing bugs, you also need to plan for periodic updates that mark better changes for users. These large refreshments for your app might cost you anywhere from $1,000 to $2,000, depending on the complexity and nature.

4. Third-Party

Most apps nowadays have third-party integrations that need renewals every now and then. As an app owner, you need to set aside sufficient funds for renewing your partnership with other third-parties to facilitate smooth operations on your app. A common example is using licensed technology for developing your app from third-parties which might involve monthly or periodic renewal costs. 

5. Customer Support

Prompt and proper customer support is the only way to retain users even after they have faced an issue with your application. From the moment your app has gone live, you need a dedicated customer support team to assist users with any complaint they might have and resolve them in the best way possible. While customer support might be an ongoing expense, it is non-negotiable as it has a direct hold over the user retention rate. 

Best Practices for App Maintenance

When it comes to mobile apps, a simple launch-and-go strategy will not cut it. With regular maintenance, it is possible to hold your application under the spotlight over a long period. Here are some best practices to solidify your app maintenance strategy and make the most out of it. 

• Integrate New Features: 

To keep your app relevant to users over a long span, it is pivotal to release new features according to the changing market needs. A great example of this is when Instagram quickly noticed short-form videos picking up pace on social media and introduced its most favorite feature, reels. This feature not only gained significant traction, but it also boosted the app’s popularity to a great level. 

One way to identify new features that can become a hit is to study the behavior of your existing users and how they interact with your app. Feedbacks, short in-app surveys, personal interviews and reviews can provide valuable insights. As much as introducing new features is important, it is also essential to discard unnecessary elements within your app to keep it user-friendly. 

• Keep User Interface (UI) Updated: 

Updating the user interface (UI) can add a fresh look to your app as well as reflect evolving trends. With constant changes in usage habits and more people going after new trends, evolving your app plays a major role in your app’s success by creating much-needed hype. While it is important to introduce positive changes, your UI design still has to adhere to your brand’s image and drive its purpose. A UI that does not work with your current customization might cost you your old users and become a catastrophic problem for your application. 

• Monitoring Performance:

To provide a good user experience, the average loading speed of your application must be 4 seconds or less. Issues with responsiveness, frequent lags, and poor loading times are major issues that can break your app and bring down its user rates. Analyzing your app performance and fixing any issues without delay is paramount to make sure your users do not get frustrated with your app and end up discarding it altogether. Apart from analyzing lags, monitoring common patterns of usage, conversion rates, and churn rates is vital to implement changes accordingly. 

• Ongoing Tests For Compatibility: 

With iOS and Android constantly rolling out fresh updates to keep their users more secure and away from bugs, they might sometimes lead to compatibility issues with your app which will make a large impact on the usability of your app. Hence, app owners always have to keep regular tabs if their applications are passing the compatibility tests with any new upgrades from operating systems. 

This involves testing the full functionality of the apps across multiple devices and scheduling maintenance if there are any issues. Keeping up with these maintenance checks maintain a uniform presence of the application across devices and ensuring a smooth usage. 

• Security updates:

Security breaches and cybersecurity threats have become a common problem in the digital landscape. With smartphones being the storehub of sensitive personal and official data, they have become a common point of target for hackers. According to a study, at least one in four mobile applications are launched with a high-security flaw that makes it vulnerable to attacks. 

Building a strong and resilient armor for your application and constantly improving it with daily checks and routine updates is crucial. It is important to understand the seriousness of security updates as your application will store sensitive data about users like their address and contact details. Securing your app from unauthorized access and data theft will not only protect your users but also build a strong sense of trust and loyalty. 

• Scheduling System Maintenance: 

Planning for regular system maintenance in advance is a proactive strategy that does not harm the users as well as developers working on it. With a pre-planned maintenance, you can inform your users priorly, help manage expectations and maintain user trust, as they are informed in advance about temporary unavailability. This also cuts down the costs of unexpected downtime and emergency fixes. 

By addressing potential issues before they escalate into serious problems, you can ensure a smoother operation for your application and a better overall experience for your users. This not only enhances system reliability but also fosters a more productive environment for developers, allowing them to focus on improvements rather than reacting to crises.

An Experienced Technology Partner for App Maintenance

If you are aiming to give exceptional user experiences, position your app in the spotlight over a prolonged period, and attract desirable conversions, it is crucial to prioritize mobile app maintenance. A well-maintained app ensures smooth performance, repels bugs and technical glitches, and cultivates a strong user base. While seeking experienced professionals for app maintenance, it is important to collaborate with a partner who perfectly aligns with your business goals and truly makes your app stand out in the market. 

5 Tips to Reduce Mobile App Maintenance Cost

Most business owners will invest significant effort and resources into building a robust mobile app and their next objective would be to minimize mobile app maintenance costs as much as possible. However, the importance of mobile app maintenance cost has to be managed effectively in order to stop it from growing to a considerable expense. Here are 5 expert tips that can save you a large sum without compromising efficacy. 

1. Incorporate Maintenance in the Lifecycle Planning

One of the most effective ways to cut down mobile app maintenance costs is to pre-plan your maintenance and incorporate it at periodical intervals during lifecycle planning. This means that you have to anticipate potential issues that might stem after your app launch and plan for regular updates that can solve bug fixes and other errors. By setting aside budgets for maintenance early, you can avoid large unexpected costs down the line. It also makes sure that your app remains agile to the changing market conditions and user expectations. 

2. Focus on User Experience

Your app development and maintenance strategies should always revolve around User Experience (UX). Giving your users a sense of satisfaction while using your app will be the driving force toward achieving desirable conversions and a large user base. A well-designed app is unlikely to be met with significant issues, reducing the frequency and cost of maintenance. Constantly analyzing user feedback and planning essential updates during your regular maintenance schedules will cut down the occurrence of immediate issues and save you from unexpected expenses. 

3. Keep Your App Updated

To scale the performance and security of your app, keeping it updated regularly is important. Updating your app includes ensuring its compatibility with the latest operating systems and devices and introducing fresh features and enhancements. Both iOS and android apps are always requiring updates. With an established update routine for your app that includes both minor bug fixes and major implementations, you can address potential issues before they escalate. This will ultimately help you save time, money, effort, and resources in the long run.

4. Types of Maintenance to Consider

With a deep understanding of the various types of maintenance like Corrective Maintenance, Adaptive Maintenance, Perfective Maintenance, Preventive Maintenance and Emergency Maintenance that are mentioned above, you can prioritize your needs and allocate resources effectively. Keeping in mind these types and implementing them, you can create a solid maintenance strategy that maximizes app performance while cutting down cost for outsourced app support. 

5. Optimize Recurring Costs

Recurring costs can quickly add up into a large sum if they are not managed proactively. Selecting a hosting provider who meets your needs without overspending resources is important. While analyzing user performance and interaction with your app, identify the peak times of usage and adjust your resources accordingly. Apart from this, you can also optimize recurring costs by automating certain tasks to cut down labor and enhance efficacy.

Top Agencies to Help You Develop and Maintain Your App

If you are looking for agencies which offer reliable and quality services to develop as well as maintain your app, here is a list of some of the top agencies: 

1. APPWRK IT Solutions

APPWRK IT Solutions is a leading player in the app development landscape. They have successfully completed over 7000 projects for over 3400 clients across diverse industries including major names in FMCG, healthcare, and transportation. 

APPWRK leverages cutting-edge AI and IoT technologies to design highly interactive applications that operate around the clock, connecting seamlessly with smart devices and offering augmented reality experiences. Their technological expertise includes React Native, PWA, Xamarin, Swift, Flutter, iOS, Android, Hybrid, Ionic, Windows, and cross-platform solutions.

Why Choose APPWRK? 

1. Deep Technical Expertise: The team at APPWRK consists of seasoned mobile app developers well-versed in the latest technologies.
2. Extensive Industry Knowledge: With experience across several sectors such as agriculture, aviation, healthcare, banking, education, environmental management, and finance, APPWRK brings valuable insights to each project.
3. Commitment to Innovation: The team at APPWRK stays abreast of the latest technologies, software, and trends, consistently integrating innovative ideas into their work.

APPWRK is renowned for its flexible and transparent project delivery, earning the trust of clients. Coupled with their talented workforce and extensive industry experience, their services offer exceptional value for business owners seeking cost-effective solutions.

2. Applligent Technologies

Applligent Technologies is a company that offers mobile and web app development services on platforms like iOS, Android, Flutter, and Ionic. The agency has a good reputation among offshore clients in the U.S., Canada, and Europe and specializes in backend development.

3. Calibraint

Based in California, Calibraint is an agency that focuses on enterprise mobile app development and emerging technologies such as machine learning and blockchain. They are a young agency with a customer-centric approach and are working towards the path of innovation in their products. 

4. Appticz

Appticz, located in Madurai, India, offers IT outsourcing and app development services at affordable rates. With a good team, they assist businesses in turning ideas into effective mobile and web applications and are continuing to strive to ensure quality and market alignment.

5. Expert App Devs

Operating from Peoria, Arizona, Expert App Devs provides mobile app development services for both Android and iOS. The agency focuses on leveraging advanced technology solutions to enhance productivity and user engagement for a diverse clientele.

Also Read: 20 Best Mobile App Development Companies in the United States (USA)

6. Wolfpack Digital

Wolfpack Digital is a recognized app development company that has featured some apps in the app store. They are located in Romania and also specialize in software development. They are continuing to find a balance between speed and quality while building products. 

7. PixelCrayons

PixelCrayons is an India-based company and offers a wide range of software development services. They have a good track record with services like ecommerce, CMS, frontend, Blockchain, AR/VR, IoT, machine learning as well as web and app development.

8. CodeLabs Inc.

CodeLabs is an agency that specializes in custom web and mobile solutions and has completed some projects in this niche. They have substantial experience and an understanding of business operations making them capable of providing tailored software development services for a variety of industries.

9. Essence Tech Labs

Essence Tech Labs focus primarily on providing custom software solutions for businesses and they offer a range of IT services, including startup consulting, custom software development, IoT development, software outsourcing, offshore software development, and digital marketing.

10. Sector 7 Apps

Based in Phoenix, Arizona, Sector 7 Apps is an app development company that specializes in custom app development for iOS and Android. They have successfully completed various projects and can deliver your product efficiently.

11. Strivemindz Pvt Ltd

Next on the list of the top agencies is Strivemindz that focuses on game app development but is also capable of developing other apps. Their dedicated team is capable of creating visually unique softwares that can capture the attention of users. 

12. Front Desk Helpers

Based in Old Bridge, New Jersey, Front Desk Helpers offers services at good rates. They focus on business process outsourcing and have developed a proprietary telecom platform that integrates HR management with app development.

13. Binmile

Last but not least, Binmile offers services related to software testing, cloud computing, DevOps and web/app development. They are an affordable agency that tries their best to ensure scalability and performance while tackling complex business challenges.

14. Edlution

Since 2013, Edlution has been assisting businesses along with non-IT departments in Singapore with tailored IT solutions. They focus on automating processes and enhancing productivity to help organizations gain a competitive edge in their respective markets.

Conclusion

For any business looking to maximize their app’s performance and scale it to great heights, mobile app maintenance is a crucial area to invest. By strategically planning regular updates that take into account fixing bugs, tackling technical glitches, introducing new updates and improving compatibility you can not only cut down unnecessary expenses but also keep your app user-friendly and streamlined. 

Are you confused and asking yourself “how much does it cost to maintain app?”. Look no further than APPWRK IT Solution, an app development and AI-driven digital transformation company that offers a wide range of mobile application development services from Android app development to iOS app development at the most affordable rates. Contact us now to bring your app vision into a successful reality.

App Maintenance Cost FAQs

1. How Much Does it Cost to Maintain App Based on Different Locations?

The cost of app maintenance can vary significantly based on geographical location due to differences in labor rates, economic conditions, and market demand. In countries like the United States and Canada, the average hourly rate for app maintenance ranges from $50 to $200. However, it’s crucial to factor in not only the hourly rates but also the agency’s expertise and the complexity of the app. 

2. How Much Should I Spend on Mobile App Maintenance?

Determining how much to spend on mobile app maintenance depends on various factors, including the app’s complexity, the frequency of updates, and the level of support required. A common guideline suggests allocating about 15% to 20% of the initial development costs annually for maintenance.