Speaking of mobile app development, there are 4.4 million apps in the App Store and Google Play. The application of these apps is reaching more than 14 billion mobile telephones in the world. When it comes to the launch of a mobile app, the major decision that needs to be made is whether to take a hybrid or a native mobile app. In case you have conducted any research on mobile app development technologies, then you would have been irritated by the option of either selecting native or cross-platform development.
The native apps are more efficient in terms of design features, whereas the cross-platform development is more cost-effective in terms of time to market and faster performance. Going further, you discover that modern cross-platform frameworks effectively reduce most performance issues to a level that feels minuscule.
Does the ability to launch across multiple platforms at the same time trump the marginal advantage in load speed? In this post, we will understand the comparative analysis between the two applications.
What Is Native App Development?
Native app development is the development of applications designed to fit a particular operating system, e.g. iOS and Android. In this process, the developers are able to capitalize on the native features and aspects of the system so as to give the user a smooth user experience. Nonetheless, all of that comes at a cost, and native mobile applications are more expensive than cross-platform app development.
Native applications are developed on platform-specific languages and frameworks that provide optimum performance, load time and experience. The industry-standard technology for iOS development is Swift, while Google’s Android is run on Kotlin.
Due to the elevated costs of native mobile apps, this type is mainly used for applications that depend on high performance and a premium user experience. As an example, the audio and video editing software demands outstanding performance and low latency.
WhatsApp, Spotify, and Uber Eats are some of the main instances of native apps. These apps often need access to your hardware features like geolocation and camera, and can manage heavy loads of traffic and computing.
Why is Native Mobile App Development the most preferable to Enterprises?
Regarding the native and cross-platform apps, the advantages of the former are as follows:
Better app performance:
Native mobile applications perform faster and better than most non-native and cross-platform applications. This is because native enterprise mobile apps are created and optimised for specific platforms, which also involves compiling them using the desired platform’s APIs and programming languages. As a result, native mobile apps are quite efficient, fast, and responsive to a user’s actions.
Better app stability:
Apple and Google are reputed to have remained in support and enhancement of the iOS and the Android mobile operating systems. As an example, the two tech giants have SDKs, interface components, and other essential development resources that the iOS and Android developers can utilize to develop and perfect mobile application development.
Excellent user experience:
Native enterprise mobile apps offer a seamless user experience. During native mobile app development, developers don’t need to worry about any dependency on the app version from various operating systems. As a result, a native mobile app is faster and simpler to customize or configure as per the enterprise’s preferred OS and business goals.
What Is Cross-Platform App Development?
Cross-platform app development is the process of creating an app that can be deployed on many platforms. It is done with the assistance of such tools as React Native, Xamarin, and Flutter, where in each case the apps developed may be installed on Android and iOS.
Startups will favour the reduction in time and cost with cross-platform mobile apps. However, you’ll need to bear in mind that it might be more difficult to customize the mobile app development services beyond what’s allowed in the frameworks.
Popular Cross-Platform App Tools
Creation of an Android cross-platform mobile application requires Android SDK on Windows, Linux or MacOS. In iOS, it requires the iOS SDK, Xcode and a machine based on MacOS.
In addition to these, the applicable IDEs required for successful cross-platform development are:
- VS Code, Xcode, Atom, Android Studio, and WebStorm for React Native apps
- Visual Studio for Xamarin or .NET MAUI apps
- Android Studio, IntelliJ, and VS Code for Flutter apps
Why Choose Cross-Platform Development?
When considering native vs cross platform apps, there are many reasons to pick the former. Some key ones include:
Code reusability:
Reusability is one of the main reasons why enterprises choose cross-platform app development over anything. Unlike native, in cross-platform, developers can store the app’s complete codebase in one place to save time and effort. The combined codebase allows the development team to work on the Android and iOS platforms simultaneously, which ultimately saves expenses.
Quicker development time:
Since cross-platform apps involve a single development cycle to deploy them on different platforms, the overall development time is faster. Moreover, the app’s code reusability allows enterprises to eliminate the need for separate teams working on separate platform projects, which expedites the time-to-market as well.
Decreased development costs:
As mentioned earlier, considering expenses for native vs cross platform apps is important. The cross-platform in this instance is usually preferable as it involves only one development team, rather than two, and this automatically lowers the costs of development.
What To Consider When Choosing Between Native and Cross-Platform Development?
So let’s look at some factors that can help in choosing between native and cross-platform app development:
App Complexity
In case you are creating an application that is simply showing the information that was brought by the network, cross-platform development will be appropriate. But when it comes to high processing or one that needs access to higher-level APIs, such as Bluetooth, then you will want to use native mobile app development.
Cost
Native app development produces apps with high performance, but it can be costly to build. If you have a limited budget to work on, cross-platform app development is the ideal choice. You’ll save around 30%-40%, as only a single codebase is created for an app that works on both Android and iOS.
Development Time
At other projects, you will wish to have an MVP app in place as quickly as you can. This is the area where cross-platform mobile app development will be worth considering. You don’t have to work on two versions of the app. Instead, only a single cycle of development is needed for an app to be released for Android and iOS.
UI/UX design
Native mobile app development is the solution if you want to have beautiful images and an experience. When a developer develops in a native environment, he/she can access UI/UX components. The choice of a cross-platform mobile app will severely restrict the element of UI/UX of the app.
Native Mobile vs. Cross-Platform: What is Best for Enterprises?
As you might have realised by now, both of the aforementioned native and cross-platform development have their own advantages and disadvantages as far as the deployment of enterprise mobile apps is concerned. Which one to choose then in business?
The question of the pros and cons of cross-platform apps versus native is a critical one, and to make a choice in favour of one, you have to take into consideration several important aspects. These include:
Time to market:
Time to market is one of the most significant factors in cross-platform vs. Native mobile development. Whereas cross-platform development and testing are faster, native app development is slower, but gives a more uniform user experience. In that way, in case your business requires the rapid deployment of the app to begin receiving quality user feedback, cross-platform development would be the option.
Testing feasibility:
Your enterprise mobile app development process will remain incomplete without a proper testing round. Deciding between native and cross-platform development plays a crucial role here, too, as native apps are more challenging to test, as they involve individual testing for different app versions on different operating systems. Contrarily, cross-platform apps are easier to test due to their single codebase.
Development budget:
As is evident already, a cross-platform mobile app is a more cost-efficient option than native mobile app development. The latter involves deploying two standalone apps when targeting both operating systems. And this would involve employing more developers, dedicating more resources and eventually, using more money. That is why, when you have a small budget and the restrictions do not appear to be that bothersome, pick cross-platform development.
App performance:
How you want your app to perform will also influence the choice between cross-platform vs. native mobile development. Mobile app development services often entail high computing requirements, specifically for gaming apps. If your enterprise needs an application with accelerated performance and seamless user experience, a native app is the best fit.
Security:
Security is another important factor to note when it comes to the debate of using native or cross-platform to develop a mobile application used by your firm. Security matters, and in particular, when the apps are storing and handling a lot of data. Under these circumstances, they are better with a native mobile application because they are very strict in terms of security since they are developed in this OS-specific environment. But in case you focus on the maintenance, the cross-platform mobile app would be the most suitable.
The Final Word
There are also both pros and cons in the process of making choices regarding native and cross-platform apps. At the end of the day, though, the choice between the two is made depending on the requirements of the project being carried out as well as the knowledge of the developers.
Original mobile applications remain the most preferred in terms of user experience and performance. It will be more expensive, but you will be satisfied with fewer defects and better images.
Apps can be made on cross-platform easily and fast, but it will be more difficult to provide a similar user experience on other platforms.
Still doubtful about choosing between native app vs. cross-platform app development?
MSM Coretch is a leading mobile app development company in Jaipur that stands with your assumption and delivers you the accurate software development service that you are seeking.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What differentiates a cross and native app development?
The native application operates through its extensive code development which creates its exclusive functionality for a single operating system platform that includes iOS and Android. The cross-platform application functions through its development on one software platform which enables its operation across multiple operating systems.
What are the benefits of developing native applications in comparison to cross-platform applications?
Native development provides users with a superior experience and better performance results when compared to cross-platform development. The difference is also insignificant in small and medium applications, but becomes critical in complicated applications that need computational abilities.
Native or cross-platform app development: which is better?
In case you operate within the budget and do not need all the capabilities of the hardware, cross-platform applications are a good option. Native development might be more suitable in case your project is heavily based on heavy datasets and animations.
Can I switch from cross-platform to native development later?
The migration requires code refactoring, which can only be done by a professional. It’s recommended to make the choice between cross-platform and native mobile development early in development.
