What is cross-platform mobile app development?

Thanks to cross platform you no longer have to choose between different mobile operating systems when coding your app. Instead, it allows developers to use a universal language that can be exported to various environments (e.g. iOS and Android) simultaneously. In the past, while working on a mobile application, the team had to decide whether it was worth it to invest in two separate native apps supported by different programming languages, or to settle just for one and, hence, lose some potential clients. As a result, while choosing cross-platform you ensure that your product reaches wider audiences, while also reducing the development costs and speeding up the app’s time to market.

Native apps vs Cross-platform

First things first, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution or an ultimate winner in this ongoing battle between native and cross-platform advocates. Each has a wide list of pros and cons that must be taken into account before making a final decision. The key difference is that native apps are developed exclusively for a specific platform with a compatible language. An Android-native application won’t function on iOS and vice versa. Cross-platform apps, in turn, are compatible with multiple platforms.

What is Flutter used for?

Flutter calls itself “Google’s portable UI toolkit for crafting beautiful, natively compiled applications for mobile, web, and desktop from a single codebase”. For users, it is a perfect solution that makes the most enchanting app ideas come to life on-screen. For developers, it is an easy-to-master framework that speeds up development and lowers costs. Flutter supports cross-platform mobile applications, as well as interactive web and desktop apps. It is primarily focused on delivering highly customised designs, yet it also comes in handy when you want to create a pixel-perfect experience matching the Android & iOS design languages. You can find more information about Flutter and its application in cross-platform development & business on their official website.

Flutter vs React Native

Flutter and React Native are the two most popular choices when it comes to cross-platform development. Let’s see what they share in common. Both React Native and Flutter are open-source , meaning they are now mainly community-driven Both are supported by worldwide-known brands , so you can be sure that they will keep on evolving Both are used for Android, iOS, and Web development with just one codebase That’s where the similarities end. Here are some of the key differences between Flutter and React Native: React Native uses native Android and iOS components. Meanwhile, Flutter contains a whole UI rendering system built from scratch. The first one works well when you care about default mobile behaviours, while the second one is perfect for when your goal is custom and rich UI. React Native uses a mature and familiar Javascript (or Typescript), while Flutter runs on Google’s Dart, which is considered to be much more modern than Javascript. Flutter gives you great UI possibilities, however you might find a missing library or integration. On the other hand, React Native is much more mature, which means it provides numerous external libraries, navigation systems, testing tools, and widgets alongside the basic app development functions. Obviously, there are more pros and cons to each, however the ones listed above are the most crucial differences between the two.

Cross-platform mobile app development

Q: When to choose cross-platform development?

Choosing native app development over cross-platform or the other way around really comes down to a simple question: do your users prefer one operating system over another? If the answer is “yes” – go ahead and develop a native application for that specific platform. If, however, you expect your audience to be equally fond of iOS and Android – cross-platform might be the best option for you. Yet, there are more reasons that could encourage you to opt in for a cross-platform application. Consider going for it, if: Your development budget is limited You wish to enter the market as soon as possible You are considering launching a web or a desktop version of your mobile app sometime in the future If you’re still unsure and would like some guidance – feel free to reach out and our experts will be happy to help you choose the right solution for your project idea!

Access more users smoothly – develop a cross-platform app that works equally well on iOS and Android

Let’s work together

Cross-platform mobile app development bg

Develop apps for any screen with cross-platform solutions

Build once, reach everywhere. Revolutionise your web, mobile or desktop app development with Miquido’s cross-platform solutions. Reduce development costs while delivering top-notch results to your audience. Create software worthy of major industry players like Warner Recorded Music or Abbey Road Studios. Explore our Flutter, React Native, or GO cross platform mobile app development services and unlock new growth frontiers.

Why should you choose cross-platform software development?

Single codebase — multiple benefits. Choose cross-platform mobile app development services and accelerate your journey towards a swift, cost-efficient launch. Develop an application that effectively targets iOS and Android users while ensuring a consistent and engaging UX across platforms. Enhance your market reach and set your product on a path to further scaling – with streamlined maintenance, bug-fixing, and more.

Reduced app development cost

The prominent advantage of cross-platform development? A single codebase that can be deployed on multiple platforms, including Android, iOS, Windows, Linux, MacOS, and the web. Cross-platform app development eliminates the need for dedicated teams and resources for each platform. The result? Remarkable cost savings in both development and maintenance, making Flutter and React Native an optimal choice for startups and budget-conscious enterprises.

Short time-to-market

Cross-platform frameworks offer high code reusability, enabling companies to release applications on multiple platforms much faster than in the native approach. After introducing necessary UI and UX improvements, cross-platform teams can deliver fully functional apps, ready to take the market by storm. As a result, businesses can quickly seize market opportunities and respond efficiently to user feedback.

Native-like performance

Miquido relies on mature frameworks such as Flutter and React Native to develop highly efficient applications. Users of cross-platform apps enjoy the same level of performance and responsiveness as native apps. Therefore, enterprises like Google Pay, NuBank, and Alibaba are adopting cross-platform to leverage their full potential and provide a seamless experience to extensive user bases.

Simplified app maintenance

Managing a single codebase for multiple platforms makes the maintenance process more efficient. Updates and bug fixes can be implemented across all platforms simultaneously, saving time and effort. Additionally, popular cross-platform technologies benefit from a thriving community that regularly contributes to developing new packages and plugins. This opens up possibilities for integrating services, APIs, and libraries, enabling businesses to effortlessly and regularly extend their capabilities.

Let’s work together

PAJO – Customer-Engagement Platform Delivered With Flutter

No download, no installation – just a seamless customer journey and immediate access to personalised offers, loyalty programs, stories and events, achieved with cross-platform development.

2 project
phases

Already completed

60 %

of estimated time to deliver a Proof of Concept

App-like experience

Read the full case study

Miquido’s cross-platform app development services

Develop once, run anywhere. Choose an innovative cross-platform software development framework that maximises the efficiency of your application development process. Pick a forward-looking solution that aligns with your tech stack and requirements, such as Facebook’s React Native or Google-backed Flutter. Operate more agilely, effectively, and quickly than your competitors using native solutions. Decide on cross-platform app development to benefit from reusable components, devoted developer communities, and cutting-edge technology updates.

Flutter mobile app development

Are you seeking a cost-effective solution to help your business reach its full potential? Flutter is a Google-backed open-source framework that allows the development of mobile, web, and desktop software with a single codebase. With Flutter, you can create visually stunning and high-performing applications that offer a seamless and expressive user interface. Take advantage of faster development cycles, quicker iteration, and debugging facilitated by the Hot Reload feature. Embrace technology optimised for growth-oriented, scalable companies and expand your business without any constraints.

React Native app development

Take your app to the next level. Benefit from a thriving ecosystem with regular updates and improvements while fully utilising native capabilities. In addition to typical cross-platform features like code reusability, React Native also supports native modules, making it an ideal framework for apps that require device-specific features. Embrace React Native – accelerate your app development and delight users with a unique look and feel.

Our tech stack

Flutter

Dar

Bloc / Riverpod

GetIt / Hive / Dio

Freezed / DCM

Flutter Test / Patrol

Android

Android Studio

Gradle

iOS

Xcode

CocoaPods

Third parties

Firebase

Amazon Amplify

Stripe

Sentry

React Native

Javascript / Typescript

React Query / Zustand / Redux

React Navigation

Jest / ESLint / Prettier

Choosing Miquido as your cross-platform app development company

Miquido is a cross-platform app development company known for adopting Google technologies from their early beta days. With 11 years of experience working on digital projects for enterprises and start-ups, our developers know how to create top-notch, scalable and reliable cross-platform apps. Our specialisation lies in assisting businesses by quickly validating their concepts through MVPs, developing high-performance mobile and web apps, and enhancing existing solutions to drive business growth.

Custom development approach

At Miquido, we create software specifically designed to meet the unique business needs of our clients. Choosing our custom cross-platform software development services gives you complete control and flexibility over the final product. As a fully agile company, we involve our partners in all stages of cross-platform development to ensure that each technological solution aligns with their goals. Our Flutter and React Native developers ensure the bespoke software integrates smoothly with your systems and streamlines your workflows.

Cross-platform pioneers

Choose a team with a proven track record of early cross-platform adoption dating back to the Flutter beta version. Miquido began by creating Topline, an award-winning music app featured at the Google I/O conference. Since then, our experts in cross-platform app development have consistently delivered innovative Flutter and React Native applications for industry giants like Warner Recorded Music, Abbey Road Studios, and Nextbank, continually honing their skills.

Full-service development partner

As a Google Certified Agency covered by Time & Forbes and named the Top Mobile App Company in the UK, Miquido doesn’t simply help businesses adapt to digital acceleration. We empower brands to drive it forward with AI, no/low-code technologies, and cross-platform development. Over the past 12 years, our teams helped to build 250+ digital products for brands such as Dolby, Skyscanner & TUI.

Get to know our work process

1

Scoping & estimation
2

Workshops & preparation
3

Design & development
4

Product release
5

Maintenance & support

Learning about your goals

Understanding your business needs and getting to know your idea is crucial for getting started. We identify the scope of your project, go over the features you want to include, and pick the best solutions for your cross-platform app. If all goes smoothly, we’ll decide on proceeding with Flutter or React Native and provide you with an estimated development time. At the end of this phase, you’ll receive a general quotation and development schedule.

Preparing for development

We offer a variety of workshops depending on the stage of your project and each of them is tailored to fit your unique needs: whether you wish to focus on UX/UI features of your application, to get a deeper understanding of all its technical aspects, or to improve the overall business strategy for your product, you can be certain we’ll provide you with the best team and flawless execution. By the end of this phase, we’ll have prepared product wireframes, gathered development requirements, and have gone over the basic documentation for the project.

Bringing your application to life

Let’s get some coding done! This is where we set up the backend architecture of your app, finalise the designs, and develop your frontend solution. We pride ourselves on web and mobile applications that work on every screen: from tiny 4-inch mobiles to large kiosk devices using the best RWD patterns. On average, it takes us up to 3 months to create a fully functional MVP – a minimum viable product. However, every project is unique and the final development time depends on the app’s scope and complexity.

Launching your app on the market

With the MVP ready there’s nothing left to do but to see how your app performs with real users! We’ll take care of the deployment and release, making sure that every individual part of the system is delivered on schedule and works smoothly, without any downtime.

Our work doesn’t end here

Once your application is live, we are ready and willing to provide ongoing support. If you decide on a few extra features or changes, we’ll get straight to work. We’ll also take care of all the necessary system updates if needed. Finally, if you choose to entrust your app to your in-house team, we’ll help you plan the process and pass it on in the most effective way possible. We aim at building long-term partnerships, so we want to see you succeed as much as you do!

Let’s work together!

They’re probably one of the easiest vendors I’ve ever worked with in the digital space.”
Dominika Drońska Senior Digital Marketing Manager at Abbey Road Studios

They didn’t feel like an outsourced vendor; they feel like part of our team.”
CEO, Eat & Joy

Learn more about cross-platform app development

What languages are best for cross-platform development?

There are two main programming languages that are used for cross-platform development:

JavaScript is a popular language for web development and is commonly used for building cross-platform mobile apps using frameworks such as React Native . One of the most significant advantages of JavaScript is that it uses a similar UI mechanism for iOS and Android native apps, which can positively affect the user experience.
Dart is a very popular language used for developing mobile apps with Flutter – cross-platform development framework developed by Google. One of the main advantages of using Dart for cross-platform development is that it provides a rich set of features, including hot-reload, which allows developers to see changes to their code immediately. Another advantage of Dart is that this language can be used for both server-side and client-side app development.

Choosing the right language for cross platform development is strictly an individual matter and depends not only on your needs, but also on the technical and design requirements of your solution. If you don’t know what language will be suitable for your product, contact us and we will help you choose a solution that will meet your every need.

Which frameworks are best for cross-platform development?

There are several very popular frameworks for developing cross-platform applications:

Flutter is one of the most popular frameworks in 2023. Flutter was created by Google and allows you to develop apps for both Android and iOS using the same codebase. Flutter is primarily valued for its ability to create user-friendly, eye-catching design and hot-reload features, allowing you to quickly see changes to your code without compiling.
React Native is also one of the more popular frameworks for creating cross-platform solutions. It is built on Java Script, and its most significant advantage is creating native-like mobile apps on both Android and iOS. It is open-sourced, which provides access to multiple sources and tools and increases productivity.
Xamarin is a framework created in 2011 by Microsoft. It is an open-sourced solution based on the C# language. Xamarin is appreciated for its ability to develop native-like custom user interfaces in multiplatform solutions. In addition, with compile-time checking, developers can prevent many bugs.

These are just some of the most commonly used frameworks for creating cross-platform solutions. Each of them has various features that make them an increasingly popular choice for developers. Contact us to help determine which framework is best for your digital product. We will be happy to help you find a tailor-made solution for you!

How long does it take to develop a cross-platform app?

The time it takes to develop a cross-platform app depends on several factors, including its complexity, the features and functionality required, and the development tools or technologies used. However, it is worth remembering that the application development process does not consist only off writing code but many individual steps:

Planning and Research: The first step is to define the app’s purpose, target audience, and features. This phase is crucial to the market and competitors analysis, but also to identify app goals, user needs and requirements.
Design: The design phase involves creating the visual part of an app, including a user interface (UI) and user experience (UX) design consistent across all platforms.
Development: The development team will write the app’s code using a cross-platform development framework once the design is finalised.
Testing: After the app is developed, it’s essential to ensure it’s free of bugs and errors. The QA team will test the app to ensure it works correctly on all platforms.
Deployment: Once the app is thoroughly tested and ready to go, it’s time to deploy it to the app stores. The app deployment process may take a little longer on the App Store due to their stricter requirements.
Maintenance: App maintenance is an ongoing process. It includes continuously monitoring and updating the app to keep it running smoothly.

Each of these phases can take from a week to as long as several months , so estimating the exact time to develop an app is extremely difficult. The average time for simple apps with basic functionality may take 2-4 months. For medium-sized apps with more features and functionality, developing a cross-platform app may take around 4-6 months . In contrast, for large and complex apps with advanced features and functionalities, the timeframe may increase to 6-12 months .
That is why the actual development time can vary significantly depending on the specific requirements of the app. In addition, breaks between each stage in the app development process may increase the development time.

How much does it cost to develop a cross-platform app?

The cost of developing a cross-platform app can vary depending on several factors, including the app’s complexity, the features and functionality required, the development tools and technologies used, or even the industry. The most significant influence on the cost range may be factors such as:

App Complexity: The app’s complexity is a significant factor in determining the development cost. This is directly related to the project team’s work time. That is why apps with basic functionality will cost less to develop than apps with advanced features.
Design: The design phase is crucial in enhancing the user’s experience while using your application. If you want to create a custom UI and UX design, it will cost more than pre-made templates but will also be much more tailored to the app and its user needs.
Technologies: The cost of using different development tools and technologies also varies. For example, developing an app using a popular cross-platform development framework like React Native or Flutter may cost less than using a less popular framework.
Development Team: The cost of hiring a development team also varies. The country of origin influences this factor. An hour of work for a programmer in the US costs much more than in European countries.
Maintenance: It is worth remembering that the total cost does not include only the creation of the application but also its subsequent maintenance. Regular updates, bug fixes, and maintenance will add to the overall app development cost.

Considering all these factors, the total cost of developing cross-platform applications can range from $50,000 to $300,000 or more . However, it is worth mentioning that a cross-platform solution is much more beneficial than developing separate native apps for iOS and Android and can reduce the cost of developing a mobile app by as much as 30%!.

When to choose cross-platform development

Creating cross-platform solutions will be a great solution if you have a limited budget. Cross-platform applications are much less expensive than native solutions due to the fact that you need to hire one development team and one design team. This significantly reduces the cost of application development. In addition, cross-platform development will be ideal for this task if you want to release your product as soon as possible. Since a single cycle of development is needed to create apps for both Android and iOS, your mobile solutions can be launched much faster. It’s also worth mentioning that creating cross-platform solutions using the same code makes it much easier to update and maintain your app later on. Cross-platform solutions give you great flexibility, as you no longer have to decide which operating system to choose first. It’s worth considering choosing cross-platform solutions, as they can significantly reduce the time and cost of developing a mobile app and make it easier to maintain later.

Want to talk about your project?

Fill out the form or write us at hello@miquido.com. We’ll get back to you soon!

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