The cost of developing a mobile banking app is a spectrum, ranging from as little as a few thousand to millions of dollars. Naturally, the price will reflect certain influences on the app development process, such as its design complexity, the range and intricacy of its features, the platforms it will operate on, its refinement level, and the development team’s location.
As such, business owners and entrepreneurs interested in learning more about how much investment it takes to develop a banking app should first understand the factors at play. For example, a simpler, entry-level, proof-of-concept app versus a high-end, extensively featured app with scaled features and scope will require completely different mobile development processes.
As specialist app developers for BFSI clients across Sydney and around Australia, our team at KMS Solutions will explore the factors that influence the cost of app development in Australia, as well as strategic approaches to budget management in app development.
How Much to Develop a Banking App: Questions to Ask When You Make a App in Australia
What Type of Banking App Are You Building?
The app’s category, format, and operation significantly influence the overall app development cost in Australia.
Understanding the implications of your banking app’s category, such as the number of screens, diversity of user roles, backend structure, and integration of external services, can help you make more informed decisions about your budget and the mobile app development solutions required to bring your vision to life.
By incorporating the right mix of functionality and innovation, app developers in Sydney, Melbourne, and around Australia can deliver custom mobile app development solutions that meet business needs while aligning with budgetary constraints.
If you’re pondering how much to develop a banking app or looking to make an app in Australia, it’s crucial to consider these factors to estimate the potential investment accurately.
The type of banking app can be categorized into:
- Apps requiring more complex mobile development solutions: Artificial intelligence tools, Security-intensive applications, etc.
- More economical app development projects: Calculators, QR scanners, Apps with static content, etc.
These types offer streamlined functionality, which reduces mobile development overheads.
What Features and Functionalities Are You Integrating in Mobile Banking App?
The scope and sophistication of features will greatly determine the app development cost in Australia. Taking a banking app as an example, some features that you should consider include:
- Must-have features for banking app: these features are fundamental for enabling users to manage their finances, conduct transactions, and access banking services conveniently and securely from their mobile devices. Examples of must-have banking app features include payment, money transfer, account management, ATM/branch locator, budgeting and expense tracking features, etc.
- Innovative features for banking app: these features go beyond traditional banking functionalities and offer unique value propositions that empower users to manage their finances more effectively and conveniently. Examples of innovative banking app features include QR Code Payments, AI-powered Chatbots, Voice-activated Virtual Assistants, and many more.
Incorporating cutting-edge features like real-time data synchronisation, machine learning capabilities, or custom user interactions will significantly enhance the app’s user experience but will also reflect in the development costs. Your app developers need to be skilled at balancing feature complexity with cost efficiency, ensuring that businesses can achieve a high-performing app within their budget.
Moreover, businesses should also consider integrating external services, APIs (Application Programming Interfaces), or functionalities into the app to extend its capabilities and provide additional value to users. These integrations allow mobile apps to interact with other systems, or services seamlessly, enabling features that would otherwise be unavailable or impractical to develop from scratch. Examples of integrations in mobile banking apps include:
- Payment Gateway Integration: Enabling users to make purchases, donations, or transactions within the app using payment processors like PayPal, Stripe, or Square.
- Card management integration: Integrating with card management platforms to enable users to activate or deactivate debit or credit cards, set spending limits, and receive real-time notifications for card transactions.
- Cloud Integration: Allowing banks to store customer data securely in cloud storage services.
For businesses wondering how much to develop an app with specific functionalities, it’s important to consult with experienced mobile app developers who can offer detailed insights and transparent cost breakdowns. Doing so will allow you to make informed decisions, optimising their investment while tailoring the app to meet their unique needs.
What Supported Platforms to Include in Your Banking App?
Choosing between iOS and Android platforms—or opting for both—affects the amount of banking app development solutions your project requires. As iOS and Android apps are crafted using distinct programming languages for finance and fintech, targeting both can escalate the cost of developing an app.
If an app developer employs native coding practices, they will need to create the front-end interface twice—once using Java or Kotlin for Android, and again using Swift or Objective-C for iOS. Fortunately, the backend, which involves server and database interactions, can typically be shared across both platforms, reducing some of the digital banking app development workload.
A more budget-friendly option is to leverage a cross-platform framework that enables developers to write the code once and deploy it across multiple platforms, effectively reducing the front-end app development cost in Australia by avoiding duplication of effort. The approach simplifies development and speeds up the time to market, making it a popular choice among app developers.
What is Your App’s Level of Detail and Refinement?
The degree of detail and refinement applied to development significantly influences the wider banking app development cost in Australia.
Every aspect of the banking app—from the user interface (UI) design and server architecture to animations, interactive elements, and tablet optimisation—serves as a potential cost factor. Generally, the more enhancements and ‘polish’ an app undergoes, the higher the development and ongoing maintenance expenses.
In most projects, apps evolve through multiple stages of mobile development, each adding more sophistication. Rarely is the initial version released to the public and contains the final selection of features.
Instead, for most startups, the inaugural release is often a basic, cost-effective. Minimum-viable product for banks and financial services purely serve to validate the strategy of BFSI businesses, ensuring there is a potential market or user base before additional funds are invested in further development.
Understanding these stages is crucial for entities considering how much to develop an app. Mobile development strategies often require balancing immediate needs and long-term goals. Engaging with experienced app developers can help craft a development plan that aligns with financial constraints and market demands, providing tailored mobile app development solutions that grow with your business.
Where is Your App Development Team Based?
The geographic location of your app development team may also be an unexpected factor affecting the cost of app development in Australia.
App development is a labour-intensive process, and labour costs directly affect the overall expense of developing an app.
In Australia, labour costs are comparatively higher than in many other countries, likely leading some businesses to consider offshoring their app development to regions with lower labour costs, such as Vietnam, India, Mexico, Philipines. The expertise of these offshore teams can be comparable, provide greater flexibility across multiple time zones, ensure a faster method of scaling development, and more.
Read more: Why Vietnam Is in Top Destinations for Software Outsourcing
Want to Learn More About the Cost of App Development in Australia?
Selecting a trustworthy app development partner can be challenging. As you may need to consider many factors, including app performance, security, and more, it can be challenging to consider all at once. The mobile app developers at KMS Solutions can help you in building a secure and scalable mobile app on your requested budget.
Not only does KMS Solutions provide top-tier IT specialists for every phase of app development, but it also operates from Melbourne, ensuring excellence in every project from a premier Australian app development company.
If your organisation is interested in custom mobile app development from an experienced team of developers, speak with our experts at KMS Solutions today.
