Companies moving toward consumer-centricity contributed to price increases within most industries, including ours. Higher healthcare app development costs are forcing business decision-makers to become tightrope walkers, balancing the line between cost and quality of care.
Studies have revealed that 45% of software and app development projects are over budget while delivering 56% less value. So, how can you continue healthcare app development without falling into the same trap?
As an experienced technology provider with 15+ years of experience in the healthcare industry, we are here to help you understand the cost of developing a healthcare app, implement cost-effective strategies, and follow current best practices.
Current Healthcare App Development Market Overview
Since the proliferation of smartphones, mobile apps have flooded the market, and industries worldwide are shifting towards offering their services by embracing app development.
Statista reports that digital care management services are keeping pace with this current trend, with almost 30% of the global population expected to use some form of digital care services by the end of 2024. Estimates are that the digital healthcare products market in the US will generate revenue surpassing $19 billion by 2024.
However, the pace is decelerating. Global investment in digital health dropped by 3% in Q2 2023, amounting to $3 billion—the least in six years. Usually seen as a barometer of tech investment in the sector, venture capital funding decreased by roughly 30% in 2022, from $39.3 billion to $27.5 billion.
Tight margins from decreasing public funding, reduced outpatient revenue, prolonged inpatient stays, and lower demand for care after the pandemic have squeezed provider margins, leading to lower investments in healthcare app development.
While the growing demand for personalized care and remote patient monitoring drives the need for custom healthcare apps, healthcare organizations must make the most of their resources to strive in this fluctuating landscape. Understanding the cost-benefit relationship here is crucial.
What are the Types of Healthcare Apps?
The cost of developing healthcare apps can vary, and understanding which type of healthcare app you’re planning will guide you to more appropriate cost decisions. Every healthcare application presents unique challenges and opportunities that affect the necessary budget, from enabling virtual medical appointments like chatbots in healthcare to integrating complex hospital networks.
Healthcare apps generally fall into three primary categories based on who they serve: patients, healthcare professionals, and medical facilities. Here’s a breakdown for each category:
| For Patients | Telemedicine App |
| mHealth App | |
| Appointment Scheduling App | |
| E-prescription App | |
| Medical Reference App | |
| Patient Engagement App | |
| Chronic Disease Management App | |
| EHR/EMR Systems | |
| Remote Monitoring App | |
| Hospital & Clinics Management App | |
| For Healthcare Professionals | Medical Networking App |
| Appointment Arrangement App | |
| Digital Health Records App | |
| For Medical Facilities | Service Quality Check App |
| Medicine Inventory Management App |
7 Factors Influencing Healthcare App Development Cost
Each phase in transforming a healthcare app from code to cure can contribute to the total costs. Let’s examine 7 essential elements that influence the financial equation to help you form a cost-efficient app development approach.
- Goal and complexity
- Features
- Design
- Platform
- Development team
- Regulatory compliance
- IoT integration
1. Goal and Complexity: Starting Point for Cost
The costs involved in developing a healthcare app are decided mainly by how many features the app requires and how these features serve the users. Different goals and complexity will lead to varied development strategies. For example, opt for modular development to develop a healthcare app with scalable functionality. An iterative development method can prove helpful when handling complex algorithms by enabling ongoing enhancements.
Defining the right goal and choosing the right strategies to meet different levels of complexity is the key to optimizing development efforts. This will cut down costs while ensuring the app meets predefined expectations.
2. Features: Basic or Advanced
The cost of developing a healthcare app varies based on the complexity and number of features desired. Advanced features like using AI for preventive care, telemedicine options, and linking with IoT devices require more resources, increasing development costs.
Start by pinpointing key features that directly contribute to fulfilling the app’s primary purpose. Give priority to functionalities that improve user experience, cater to critical healthcare needs, and guarantee smooth operation. Consider user feedback and market research to learn which features will benefit your target users most significantly.
Strategically organizing features according to their significance and necessity boosts the app’s capabilities and maximizes financial investment by redirecting resources to where they most effectively contribute to its success.
3. Design: Making the App Easy and Appealing to Use
Intuitive and user-friendly UI/UX design is vital for any healthcare mobile app, influencing user satisfaction, engagement, and performance. The pricing of UI/UX design services for healthcare app development may vary depending on various factors:
- Design complexity
- Screen amount
- Customization capabilities
- Market research and user testing
- Responsive design
- Staffing model
“A user interface is well-designed when the program behaves exactly how the user thought it would.” Therefore, regular user testing and feedback cycles can help improve user experience, preventing the app from getting too complex for users.
4. Platform: Choosing Between Android, iOS, or Both
Your future healthcare app’s mobile platform selection will heavily rely on your target audience and market. Creating an app for a single platform (like iOS or Android) is generally more budget-friendly, whereas developing for both can expand the app’s accessibility.
If your primary users are on a specific platform, focusing initially on that platform can be a cost-effective approach. As the app gains traction, expansion to other platforms can be strategically planned, aligning with user feedback and resource availability. This decision isn’t just about reaching a wider audience; it’s about a phased approach that aligns with your user base and budget constraints.
Targeting the platform where your primary users are initially present can be cost-effective. Once the app is popular, developers can map gradual expansion to other platforms. Remember to keep these efforts in line with the app’s user feedback and your budget constraints.
5. Development Team: Choosing a Staffing Model
Choosing the appropriate development team and collaborative approach is a major decision that significantly influences your budget and your app’s investment attractiveness. Consider your project’s scope, timeline, and expertise requirements.
An in-house development team provides complete control over the development process but comes with upfront costs like salaries, benefits, and office space. Conversely, outsourcing healthcare software development helps lower healthcare app development costs. However, choose a reliable technology vendor to achieve the desired outcome.
While cost matters, consider the team’s expertise. A comprehensive strategy aligns your selected development team with your project’s specific needs, balancing cost efficiency and project success.
6. Regulatory Compliance: Understanding the Healthcare Landscape
Remember to follow a guide to healthcare software compliance when developing healthcare apps. It’s required compliance, but it’s also a cost-effective step. Adhering to the standards of HIPAA is fundamental for protecting patient data privacy. Company compliance with the GDPR demonstrates a clear commitment to protecting user data privacy. Violations of these regulations lead to malware and intrusions and hinder your app’s reach in the market.
Healthcare app developers also consider compliance costs such as certification fees from regulatory bodies such as the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and expenses for meeting other legal obligations. Developers often have additional charges for continuous app maintenance and updates to guarantee compliance.
7. IoT Integration: Enhancing the App’s Functionality
Integrating IoT devices into apps is becoming more prevalent. These devices provide valuable data and insights to aid healthcare professionals in delivering higher-quality care to patients. However, it’s important to note that additional development and testing to ensure smooth integration and data alignment will raise costs.
When integrating IoT devices, match deployment with a particular healthcare requirement. Identifying key areas where IoT can offer real advantages, like remote patient monitoring or real-time data tracking, can reduce technical and cost uncertainties.
Calculating the Cost of Developing a Healthcare App
Look for ways to cut costs without compromising quality. Properly budgeting development costs can eliminate most of the questions you’ll encounter and increase cost-effectiveness.
Here’s a simple 4-step guide to estimate your healthcare app development costs using the KMS Healthcare App Development Cost Calculator:
- Define all cost-influencing factors
- Estimate your team size
- Using an app development cost calculator
1. Determine All Cost-Influencing Factors
Based on the 7 factors that influence healthcare app development cost, outline your core software functions, business cases, scope, and feasibility, which will determine most of your healthcare engineering costs.
A well-defined project provides a comprehensive scale for cost estimation and helps you establish a healthtech product roadmap for better resource allocation.
2. Estimate Your Team Size
A standard healthcare application development team consists of experts from various fields, and the size of the team can potentially expand depending on the project’s scope and deadlines.
- Software Developer
- Quality Assurance Engineer (QA)
- Project Manager (PM)
- Business Analyst (BA)
- UI/UX Designer
- DevOps Engineer
The cost of each team member may vary based on location, level of expertise, and experience.
3. Calculate App Development Cost with KMSH Calculator
The KMS Healthcare App Development Cost Calculator provides information on all app development cost factors, from labor to operations. You can break down your costs based on your team size and categorize them into two main parts: variable costs for staff and fixed costs for the development infrastructure.
Utilize the KMS Healthcare Cost Calculator for App Development to effectively strategize your healthcare app development project, guaranteeing cost-efficiency and productivity.
Read more: How to Estimate Your Healthcare Software Development Cost in 5 Simple Steps
Strategies for Cutting Down Healthcare App Development Cost
Developing healthcare apps can come with a hefty price tag, especially if you lack the knowledge to approach it economically and effectively. Here are the steps to lower app development cost without compromising quality:
- Conduct thorough market research, and user needs analysis
- Embrace agile methodology
- Prioritize developing an MVP
- Outsource your app development
1. Conduct Thorough Market Research and User Needs Analysis
End users may not all view the million-dollar app concept as favorably as we do. Before embarking on the app development process, conduct thorough research on the specific market and target user group. Confirm that the idea can evolve into a mobile app that targets and solves users’ pain points. Otherwise, the app can waste resources, money, and time.
Thorough research provides a clear vision, helping you focus on your core objectives, reduce market risks, and ensure the final product meets users’ needs. A detailed user needs analysis gives you the necessary information to minimize scope that does not offer value to your user, maintaining project cost efficiency and bringing your app to market faster.
2. Embrace Agile Methodology
The incremental approach of Agile methodology allows the developers to make changes as and when required on the road to the complete and final product. Agile methodology allows the incorporation of changes at each sprint of development, testing, and deployment, which means you can continuously review and refine the app’s features and functionalities throughout development.
The key strength of the Agile approach is its ability to make adjustments and enhancements and provide ongoing feedback. It can help avoid costly late-stage changes and allow for necessary adjustments early in the process when they require fewer resources to execute.
3. Prioritize Developing an MVP
​​An MVP is a scaled-down version of your product with basic features that meet your target group’s needs. By focusing on minimum-viable features, your MVP will help you get your product to market much faster, gather user feedback, and enhance your final product without wasting resources on unnecessary features.
Moreover, creating an MVP can help you launch your app quickly and test the market before creating a final product. That way, you can make data-driven decisions on future functionality enhancements rather than heavily investing in advanced features that might not be well-received.
Learn more: What is a Minimum Viable Product (MVP), and How To Apply It To the Healthcare Industry?
4. Outsource Your App Development
Hiring skilled engineers for mobile app development can become quite costly. Glassdoor indicates that the estimated annual wage for an app developer in the United States is about $143,000.
If you don’t have a development team, ramping up an entire team can quickly become expensive. Opting for various freelancers may be cheaper, but it comes with risks like coordination and quality problems.
That’s why trusting your development needs to a reputable technology vendor such as KMS Healthcare can offer you a range of advantages, such as:
- Cut down development costs
- Access to a global pool of talent
- Ramp up a skilled development team immediately
- Scale resources on projects’ need
A reliable partner with expertise in healthcare offers a cost-effective path to development success, whether in new product creation, software maintenance, or mobile app development.
Read more: 7 Qualities to Look for in a HealthTech Outsourced Software Product Development Company
FAQs
1. What are the must-have features for a healthcare app in 2024, and how do they affect the development cost?
In 2024 healthcare apps need to focus on strong data security, HIPAA compliance, user-friendly design, and smooth integration with wearables and IoT devices. Features such as telemedicine, remote patient monitoring, and AI-driven diagnostics are now part of the patient care package, requiring specialized skills that increase development costs. Yet, incorporating these features can increase user satisfaction and your app’s functionalities, potentially cutting long-term costs.
2. How much are the ongoing maintenance costs after deploying a healthcare app?
Ongoing maintenance costs for healthcare apps run high, with annual costs ranging from 15% to 25% of the initial development cost. Regular updates for security patches, bug fixes, and compatibility with new devices and platforms also contribute to the overall costs.
Regulatory compliance, user support, and ongoing performance optimizations also contribute to the maintenance costs. Be sure to properly budget and plan for these expenses to facilitate the app’s longevity and success.
3. Can I update my app after it’s launched, and what should I consider regarding cost factors?
Yes, you can update your healthcare app after launch, so be sure to plan for regular updates. You’ll have to manage new feature requests, bug fixes, platform updates, and user feedback. Budget for ongoing development and maintenance.
Embracing the Agile development framework can streamline the update process and ensure your app remains relevant, secure, and compliant with evolving healthcare regulations. User needs can be accounted for, while also optimizing long term healthcare app development costs.
KMS Healthcare – Your Trusted Partner for App Development
With healthcare costs increasing and margins shrinking, healthcare providers demand technologies with a compelling return on investment. A reliable app development partner like KMS Healthcare can address inherited technical debt, bridge costly expertise gaps, and help you confidently execute each development step.
KMS Healthcare can help you get a head start towards the finish line with the following:
- A healthcare app development team with 15+ years of experience that can ramp up immediately
- Proven track record of app development to meet the varying requirements of mid-sized, small-scale, and enterprise-level clients.
- Skilled data scientists, AI/ML engineers, and leaders in emerging healthcare technologies
- A trusted discovery process with platform-certified developers
Our team of experts is more than ready to help you build cost-effective solutions that impact bottom lines and keep you ahead of your competitors. Schedule a free consultation with us now!
