作者:Melissa

你可能已经有了一个开发应用的想法，也完全了解它的所有功能和用途。唯一的障碍就是，你担心自己无法承担开发这款应用的成本。

你的担心不是多余的，毕竟，你可能真的没有大公司那种庞大的预算。所以，你该如何估算自己的应用开发成本呢？另外，你该如何节省开发成本呢？

影响开发成本的因素

有些因素会影响你将应用投入市场的过程：

*应用功能。你的应用必须含有哪些功能？你希望它是一个简单的定位器还是同时拥有包括计算器或转换器、音乐或声音等功能？它应该能够连接到网站还是其他外部信息源？它是否能够创建列表或保存文本？

*应用设计。许多潜在用户会因为外观设计和易用性而被某款应用所吸引，所以这是你必须考虑的因素。你想用精致而令人难忘的设计来吸引他们，还是坚持用简单的界面保持视觉上的整洁性？

*聘请开发者。除非你打算自己开发应用（对某些人来说这是个可行的选择），否则就要争取一些开发者的帮助。这一行中有不少代工开发应用的小公司，但一分钱一分货，你得到的产品并不一定很好；也有一些能够推出真正优秀的应用并为其提供支持的大公司，但你得投入更多费用。

*应用支持。你的应用上线后，你的开发者或第三方合作伙伴仍会通过内容管理系统、更新、反馈和其他运营事项向你收费。

mobile-app-development(from tomsitpro.com)

应用开发成本

那么应用的成本范围是多少？这要取决于以上提到的因素，其成本范围可能介于几百美元至20万美元之间。

基础应用——介于5000美元至1.5万美元

如果你知道该接触哪家公司或如何与之协商，那么你有可能以更节省的成本开发一款应用，但也要知道一款入门级的应用成本介于5000美元至1.5万美元之间。

这种应用可能已经包含了一个计算器或小型实用应用，一个存储定位器或者品牌延伸应用，以及一个简单的关联应用。这种价格的应用可能没有云计算服务，并且拥有标准的图像和用户界面。许多定位器应用就属于这一范畴。

正如上文所言，有些公司也许能以更低价格为你提供一款应用，但其质量与价格是成正比的。

复杂应用——介于2万至8万美元

那些价格更高的应用通常具有以下属性：应用内置内容的动态更新，同步设备或用户的云数据库，离线模式支持，第三方服务（例如Facebook、天气服务等）。

它们可能还有定制用户控制方式，允许用户购买IAP内容，拥有订阅服务或推送通知。它们可能还能兼容多种类型的移动设备，具有复杂的动态图像或动画。

许多商务应用，例如那些帮助管理库存和追踪销量的应用，就属于这种类型。

高端应用——至少10万美元

这也是那些很能盈利的应用。它们需要大量的开发时间和资金，通常要经过大规模的测试、调整、返工和迭代才会发布。此类应用通常具有极为丰富的UI设计、出众的画面和动画，复杂的定制云服务，甚至还有一个数据库或文件存储系统。可能还含有一个网络服务界面，管理工具，以及多设备兼容功能。

许多商务应用，游戏和娱乐应用属于这一范畴。

如何节省应用开发成本

如果你认为自己无法承受这一天文数字，所以可能无法制作自己的应用，请记住你还可以节省一些开发成本。

*了解你的应用应该含有什么功能。你不能在没有首先调查目标市场的情况下就决定制作一款应用。要了解目标用户的需求，这样才好规划自己的应用。你还可以通过削减那些不必要的功能，或者并不吸引目标市场的功能来节省开发成本。

*简化。保持简单性，至少应用的首个版本应该保持简单性。不要一次性添加太多功能，承认你的应用能够完成多种任务。记住，你可能会根据应用的成功程度，发布多个版本的应用。首个版本不要添加太多功能这也是一种策略，可以让那些已经在使用你产品的用户告知你，他们所需要的功能，或者你是否该发布多个版本的应用以满足不同用户的需求。

*循环代码。这是你可以要求开发者去做的事情。应用需要编程和代码，这一块工作可能会占据你的多数开支。可以让他们使用旧应用或客户产品的代码来节省时间和资金。记住，并非所有开发者都愿意如此行事，如果他们使用了非开源的代码还可能陷入麻烦，甚至卷入剽窃风波。（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译，拒绝任何不保留版权的转载，如需转载请联系：游戏邦）

Estimating How Much an App Will Cost

by Melissa

You might already have an idea for an app; you know fully well what it does and all of the features it should have. The only thing holding you back is the worry you might not be able to afford to actually make one.

Your concerns are valid; after all, you might not exactly have the backing of a big corporate budget. So, how do you estimate how much an app will cost? And also, how can you save on the development cost of an app?

The factors that will affect the cost of your app

Several key factors will affect how much you have to spend to get your app out into the market and stay there:

App functionality. What features do you want your app to have? Do you want it to be a simple locator or do you want it to have other features as well, including a calculator or converter, music and sound. Do you want it to be able link to websites or other sources of information outside? Do you want it to be able to make a list or save text?

App design. A lot of potential users can be attracted to an app after seeing its design and ease of use, so it’s a factor you have to consider. Do you want an elaborate and impressive design to lure them in or stick to a simple interface to make it easier on the eyes?

The developer to hire. Unless you plan on developing that app yourself (which can be an option for some), it’s assumed you will be getting the help of developers. There are small companies that develop apps out there, but you might be getting what you pay for. There are also big ones out there that can turn out a really good apps and support it, but be prepared to spend a small fortune.

App support. Once your app is out there it may not be over where the costs are concerned. Your developer or third parties may charge for the management of your app through content management system, updates, feedback and other operations.

How much do apps cost?

So, what is the price range of apps? Depending on the factors already mentioned above, they can go for as low as a few hundred dollars to as high as $200,000.

Basic apps – between $5K to $15K

low cost appsIf you know what companies to approach or how to negotiate, you can actually build an app for less, however it is estimated that an entry-level app can cost between $5,000 to $15,000 to build.

Such an app may already include a calculator or small utility apps, a store locator or brand extension apps and simple reference apps. At this price range it also might have no cloud capabilities and will have standard graphics and user interface. A lot of locator apps fall into this category.

As mentioned above, some companies may be able to offer you a much lower price for an app, but you get what you pay for.

Complex apps – between $20K to $80K

medium cost appsThose in the much higher price category usually enjoy the following features: dynamic updating of in-app content, a cloud database to synchronize data between devices or users, offline mode support, third party services (like Facebook, weather services, etc.)

They might also have custom user controls, allow for in-app purchases as well as subscriptions or push notifications. They may also be available for more than one type of mobile device and have complex dynamic graphics and animations.

Many business apps, like those that help you manage inventory and keep track of sales, fall into this category.

Sophisticated apps – $100K and above

high cost appThese are the ones that are likely to earn money. They also take a lot of time and money to develop and are not usually released until after extensive testing, tweaking, rework and iterations. Expect such an app to have a really extensive UI design, great graphics and animations, a complex custom cloud services and maybe even a database or file storage system. You may also expect a web service interface, administrative tools, as well as the multi-device capabilities.

A lot of business apps also fall into this category, as do games and entertainment apps.

How to save on app development

Before you come to conclusion that you might not be able to make your app after all due to the astronomical prices, remember that there are things you can do to cut down on the costs.

Know what your app should have. You can’t have just decided to make an app without first doing research on the possible target market. Know what they want and what they are looking for so you can streamline your app. You also get to save because you don’t have to put the features you don’t need or those that do not appeal to your target market.

Simplify. Keep it simple, at least where the first version of your app is concerned. Don’t put in too many features at once, in promising to be able to do a lot of things your app might be able to do any one thing well. Remember, you might have to release more than one version, depending on how successful it will be. Holding back on features for your first release is also strategic in a sense that you can have users who have actually used your app tell you what features they want added, or if you have to release multiple versions of an app to suit different kinds of users.

Recycle code. This is something you can ask your developer to do. Apps require programming and coding, and this may actually take up the bulk of your bill. Asking them to use code from an old app or client products will save them the time and you the money. Keep in mind, however, that not all developers might be willing to do this and they might get into trouble if they use code that is not open source or is subject to copyright.（source：bluecloudsolutions）