Web app vs mobile app: which should your business build first?

"Should we build an app or a website?" is usually the wrong question. Most businesses that ask it really want to know where their customers will use the product, which phone features they need, and how much they can spend before the idea proves itself. Answer those three and the choice between a web app and a mobile app mostly makes itself.

This guide explains the difference in plain language, compares cost, reach and features, and ends with a short checklist. It is general information for businesses in the USA, UK, Canada and Australia; your own answer depends on your users and your budget.

What is the difference between a web app and a mobile app?

A web app runs in a browser. Customers open a link, sign in and use it on a laptop, tablet or phone, with nothing to install. Customer portals, booking systems, dashboards and online tools are usually web apps.

A mobile app is installed from Apple's App Store or Google Play. It can be native (written separately for iOS and Android, in Swift and Kotlin) or cross-platform (one codebase, usually Flutter or React Native, that produces both apps).

In between sits the progressive web app (PWA): a web app with a web app manifest and offline support that people can add to their home screen, where it opens in its own window like an app. It is still a website, so there is no store listing and no store review.

Which is cheaper to build and run?

For the same features, a web app is usually cheaper than a mobile app, for three reasons:

• One codebase for every device. A responsive web app works on desktop and mobile. A mobile app needs either two native apps or one cross-platform app, plus testing on both platforms.
• No store process. There are no store listings, screenshots, privacy forms or review cycles, and you can release fixes the moment they are ready.
• No store fees. Publishing on the App Store needs an Apple Developer Program membership (99 US dollars a year) and Google Play needs a one-time 25 US dollar registration. If you sell digital content or subscriptions inside a mobile app, the stores also take a commission. A web app takes payments through your own payment provider.

Most mobile apps still need a backend and an admin panel, which are web software anyway. That shared backend is why many businesses start with the web app and add a mobile app on top of it later. Our guide to mobile app development cost breaks down what a mobile app costs to build and run.

Which reaches more customers?

It depends on how customers find you and how often they come back.

• Web apps win for first visits. Anyone with a link or a search result can use a web app immediately. There is no install step to lose people at, and every page can be found in Google.
• Mobile apps win for frequent use. Customers who use a service every week (ordering, banking, fitness, field work) often prefer an icon on their home screen, saved sign-in and notifications. An installed app is also a constant reminder of your brand.

A useful rule: if most customers will use the product a few times a year, build for the web. If they will use it several times a week, a mobile app starts to earn its extra cost.

Can a web app send notifications and work offline?

More than many people think. Since iOS and iPadOS 16.4, web apps that a user adds to the Home Screen can send push notifications on iPhone and iPad, as they already could on Android and desktop browsers. On iOS this only works once the site is added to the Home Screen with a web app manifest, and the permission request must follow a tap or click by the user. Service workers let a web app cache pages and data so parts of it keep working offline.

So for reminders, order updates and simple offline access, a PWA may be enough. The catch on iPhone is the extra step: customers have to add the app to their Home Screen first, and many never do.

Which phone features need a mobile app?

Browsers can use the camera, location, microphone and file uploads. Some device features are still limited or uneven on the web, especially on iPhone, where every browser uses Apple's WebKit engine. For example, the Web Bluetooth API works in Chrome and Edge but not in Safari or Firefox.

Choose a mobile app when the product depends on things like:

• connecting to Bluetooth devices, wearables or other hardware;
• reliable background location (delivery drivers, field staff);
• heavy offline use with large amounts of data;
• deep integration with Apple Health, Google Health Connect, widgets or wallet passes;
• smooth, game-like graphics or complex gestures.

Note that wrapping a website in an app shell is not a shortcut. Apple's App Review Guidelines (section 4.2, Minimum Functionality) expect apps to offer features, content and interface that go beyond a repackaged website, so a thin wrapper risks rejection.

When should you build a web app first?

• Your customers mostly arrive from search, email or ads.
• They use the product occasionally, or at work on a computer.
• You want to test demand before spending on two platforms.
• Your team needs to change features often and release quickly.
• The product is mainly forms, dashboards, bookings or content.

When should you build a mobile app first?

• Customers will use it several times a week and expect an icon on their phone.
• The core feature needs Bluetooth, background location or other device features listed above.
• Push notifications are central and you can't rely on customers adding a web app to their Home Screen.
• Your competitors' customers already expect an app in the store.

Can you do both?

Yes, and many businesses end up there. The common path is: build the backend and a web app first, learn what customers actually use, then build a cross-platform mobile app (Flutter or React Native) on the same backend for the frequent users. Because the business logic lives in the backend, the second product costs less than the first.

Quick checklist

1. How often will a typical customer use it: yearly, monthly or weekly?
2. Where do new customers come from: search and links, or app store browsing?
3. Which device features are essential on day one?
4. How important are notifications, and on which devices?
5. What is the budget for version one, including yearly store and hosting costs?
6. Who will release updates, and how often?

If you answered "weekly", "Bluetooth or background location" or "notifications are essential", look seriously at a mobile app. Otherwise, start with the web and keep the mobile app for later. Our mobile app development team can help you scope either path and give you a written estimate.

Sources

• WebKit: Web Push for Web Apps on iOS and iPadOS (16 February 2023)
• MDN: Progressive web apps
• MDN: Web app manifest
• MDN: Web Bluetooth API (browser compatibility)
• Apple: App Review Guidelines, 4.2 Minimum Functionality
• Apple: Enroll in the Apple Developer Program
• Google Play Console Help: Registration fee