Raj PatelThe designer is a thoughtful host that anticipates the guest’s requirements to craft the UI design that works. However, the digital design performs like a refrigerator- when it works, no one notice, but when it doesn’t, its surely stinks.
MySpace, Google Wave, and Foursquare are the best instances of the apps that failed due to poor UI/UX design. The reason behind the failure is they put more stress on creating aesthetically pleasing designs but forgot to keep simplicity in the essence while keeping up with cutting-edge design and trends.
What to do? How to make designers understand what matters?
To get creative juices flowing and get exceptional UI/UX engineered, the designers need to coach for best UI/UX design practices and design process improvements.
Here’s the designing process you should follow:
- Research
A problem well stated is a problem half-solved.” — Charles Kettering
It starts with conceptualization where the design team virtually meets and understands the project concept and whereabouts such as target userbase, business goals, and competition. The detailed analysis helps in comprehending the client’s preferences and the gaps that the app fill. The detailed information assists the team gets on the right track.
- Wireframe creation
The rough sketch is the blueprint of the app that showcase the elements kept on every screen and the interlinking between those screens and UI elements. The team starts designing the wireframe based on the details collected during the research and analysis process.
Multiple wireframes are created to ensure the future app’s UI exactly resembles the client’s expectations for UI design. It’s a cost-effective and time-inexpensive approach for concept visualization. Till the wireframe is approved by the client; the team can’t jump to the next step- that’s prototyping.
- Prototyping
“If a picture is worth 1000 words, a prototype is worth 1000 meetings.” — David & Tom Kelley
The enhanced version of the wireframe is more visually appealing and gives a look and feel of a real mobile app’s UI and UX design with complex animations and advanced graphic elements. Even the companies build and launch prototype to beta test the app idea before getting into full-fledged version development. It comes in both types- static and clickable, which is built according to the client’s requirements.
Now, you get a better idea of how the best designs are crafted by the maestros. However, when the designing cost is considered, a large variation is witnessed in the app designing cost. Why is it so?
What are the factors that influence the app design cost?
- Location
Different regions’ designers charge a distinct amount for the UI/UX design due to varied hourly rates.
- For instance, Indian designers work at $20-$40 per hour
- Eastern Europe designers charge $30-$50 per hour
- Europe, USA, and UK designers charge $50-$100 per hour.
So, the cost will depend on the geographical location of the development partner. Choose the one that fits best with your budget.
- Ranking
The professional, creative, and innovative designers perform the work to precision. The specialization and experience automatically surge the designing cost accordingly. Based on your pockets’ depth, choose the local designer or outsource the work to a specialized designer.
- Platforms
The app designing cost for the Android platform is much higher as opposed to the iOS platform because the device fragmentation issue exists with the Android platform. On the other hand, iOS supports the limited number of devices.
My two cents: The cheapest option is not necessarily cheap, and sometimes, the expensive option becomes an expensive mistake. You should not rely on the companies just by looking at the specialization, high price per hour, and wealth of experience.
Delve into the depth of the companies’ services, portfolio, previous client’s experience, and project idea integrity maintained through NDA signing. It helps you choose the right and reliable outsourcing partner.
Cut to the chase: Let’s understand the app designing cost through real-world examples:
Uber
The world’s biggest transportation network that gave birth to the on-demand model scored high popularity due to its easy accessibility and usability. The app has made the taxi booking a work of an average Joe where the taxi becomes available at the push of a button. The easy-to-understand and easy-to-use interfaces for both drivers and customers have made the game of taxi booking simple.
The app designing cost for the iOS version consumes nearly 126 hours for each interface and Android eats up 88 hours for each interface. Depending on the location of the development partner, the app designing cost for the uber-like app range between $10,00- $20,000. However, if the design complexity increases, then cost will surge accordingly.
The app’s UI is the best combination of art and science wherein the designers crafted the well-thought-out design wearing the user lens. In the outcome, the visual appeal of the app has worked wonder in building a long army of loyal fans. Despite having a couple of bugs and needs for improvements, the app still rocks among the users.
The app designing for the iOS version consumes nearly 200 hours and the Android version requires 150 hours to design the app. accordingly, the app designing cost range between $8000- $20,000.
Takeaway
The app crafted wearing a creative hat will help you create waves in the market. But it doesn’t happen overnight. The best design doesn’t take time, talent, and tools; it requires dedication, passion, and professionalism to hit the sweet spot.
However, it requires you to spend from bucks to bundles. At first, set aside your app designing budget, then set the design goals, and then team up with the app designing company that can help you design the app without budget overruns and scope creep issues.
If you have any doubts, our business consultants would love to help you as the company has more than 11 years of experience in engineering the high-end applications with best-in-class UI/UX design services. Let’s get connected!
Himanshu Patel
