Mobile app development is no longer a simple task!! To reach out to a global user base of 8.98 billion mobile users, companies must design apps that serve most of them, if not each. This gave rise to the increasing demand for cross-platform app development services as the world of mobile users is primarily divided into Android users and iOS lovers.
Categorically speaking, Google’s Android dominates the global mobile market with 75.55% of users, while iOS has a 22.4% user base. In the USA, iOS has a loyal fan base of 54.74% of users, and Android falls second in position with 44.89% of users. As far as developers are concerned, iOS development offers a more significant money-making opportunity, but no one can neglect the power of Android when they want to make their app reach a larger user base.
Making an app for a single platform is time-consuming and expensive, but developing it once and using it on multiple platforms creates a win-win situation for developers and users. It saves time and proves cost-effective, making it the in-demand thing in mobile app development.
According to statistics, the number of apps in the Apple store will surpass 5 million by 2020, while those on Android will reach 2.6 million by the end of 2018. This gigantic figure shows the importance of both platforms individually. It also suggests the importance of apps that can run on both platforms, as companies must take advantage of the crowd that uses any of the two platforms. Therefore, cross-platform development is essential for all businesses.
Developers can assure the app's look and feel as it remains almost identical on both platforms. They don’t need to hire UI/UX developers separately for each forum.
Mobile app developers don’t need to learn a specific language. Instead, they can do with core technologies like HTML, JavaScript, and CSS.
One of the most preferred hybrid app development frameworks, Xamarin, was launched in 2011 and was acquired by Microsoft in 2016. This open-source platform uses C# for coding and is most successful in routing out the limitations of cross-platform development.
As per Datanyze, Xamarin occupied 31% of the US hybrid app development market in 2019 and was chosen by companies like The World Bank, Storyo, and Olo. It offers 40+ cross-platform layouts to make stunning-looking mobile apps. It can be the best platform for developing iOS, Android, Mac, and Windows apps. Most of the code can be reused, making it the most preferred platform for mobile app solutions.
The flip side is that this framework's libraries make the app bulky, which takes almost twice as long to download. In addition, it is not a free platform, pushing the development cost to the higher end.
This popular platform was launched by Facebook in 2015 and uses JavaScript for coding. This makes it a favorite of developers, with 62% interested in choosing it. Its popularity is due to its ability to make faster apps by cutting down long development cycles. 90% of its code can be reused, making it an in-demand cross-platform app development framework.
In a short period, it has carved a niche for itself as top companies like Airbnb, Bloomberg, and UberEats bet on it for their apps. According to Datanyze reports, React Native has a 4.3% market share in the US and is considered highly competitive as a newcomer. Its modular architecture makes it highly efficient for rapid app development.
The downside is that React Native is not regularly updated, requiring developers to do a lot of unnecessary rework. Moreover, the load time is longer than that of other platforms.
“According to Datanyze reports, React Native occupies 4.3% of the US mobile app development market as of 2019, a good score for a newcomer. It is used by top companies like AirBnB, Bloomberg, and UberEats.”
Currently, Flutter is considered top-notch for minimum viable product development. It is ideal for designing good-looking UI layouts with its design-centric widgets, futuristic APIs, and techno-savvy development tools. It also offers a quick debugging facility with the Dart language. It has a massive fan following, with 68,000 stars on Github, and is preferred by leading companies like Alibaba eCommerce, Hamilton Music, etc.
The disadvantage of this framework is its limited set of libraries, which may offer only some functionality. Developers need to code for the functions unavailable in the library.
“Flutter framework, released in December 2018, has a huge customer base with 68,000 stars on Github as of June 2019. Companies like Hamilton Music and Alibaba eCommerce use it for mobile apps.”
Another promising platform Adobe PhoneGap offers uses HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Its best features are access to third-party tools, massive plug-ins, and the quality of showing previews while coding. This helps to monitor the changes made and minimizes development time. With PhoneGap, developers can share the app with their team, which can give feedback, which results in the development of a flawless app. With all these benefits, PhoneGap occupies 22.29% of the app development market and is preferred over native frameworks.
PhoneGap does not support native functionality, which results in slow app performance. It shows low compatibility for plug-ins with hooks.
“As per data labs, PhoneGap occupies 22.29% of the mobile app development market and is a popular choice for cross-platform apps. 36.7% developers choose it over other frameworks.”
Ionic
This one uses CSS, HTML5, SaaS, and JavaScript for app development. Due to reduced code and code reusability, it demands low maintenance and gives high performance. It has many customizable tools, gestures, and JS features to create a competitive app. It can be easily integrated with Angular JS and offers quick prototyping. The development cost is much lower than that of native apps. It has thousands of apps to its credit and is climbing the ladders of popularity quickly.
The drawback is that Ionic lacks security, making the app susceptible to threats. It is not effective when it comes to in-app navigation due to its complex UI router.
“According to SimilarTech's research, 25,993 apps were developed in Ionic as of 2019. It is one of the most preferred hybrid app development platforms of 2023.”
These are the top-rated hybrid app development frameworks of 2019. Each has pros and cons, so consider them before choosing one. Mobile app developers can use any of these, depending on the user requirements, time frame, and development cost.
“Check out the top five cross-platform app development frameworks that ruled the 2023 mobile development market. Weigh their advantages and disadvantages to choose the best out of the lot.”
Categorically speaking, Google’s Android dominates the global mobile market with 75.55% of users, while iOS has a 22.4% user base. In the USA, iOS has a loyal fan base of 54.74% of users, and Android falls second in position with 44.89% of users. As far as developers are concerned, iOS development offers a more significant money-making opportunity, but no one can neglect the power of Android when they want to make their app reach a larger user base.
“While Android envelops 75.55% of global mobile market, iOS stands second at 22.4% of the user base. In US market ranks iOS higher with 54.74% users and Android a close second with 44.89% users.”
Making an app for a single platform is time-consuming and expensive, but developing it once and using it on multiple platforms creates a win-win situation for developers and users. It saves time and proves cost-effective, making it the in-demand thing in mobile app development.
According to statistics, the number of apps in the Apple store will surpass 5 million by 2020, while those on Android will reach 2.6 million by the end of 2018. This gigantic figure shows the importance of both platforms individually. It also suggests the importance of apps that can run on both platforms, as companies must take advantage of the crowd that uses any of the two platforms. Therefore, cross-platform development is essential for all businesses.
“Statistics suggest that iOS apps will cross a figure of 5 million by 2020 while Android has 2.6 million apps to its credit. By choosing cross platform app development companies gain millions of users.”
Advantages of cross platform app development:
Write once; use it many times.
The idea of code reusability makes hybrid apps the go-to thing in the mobile app world. It reduces the coding effort to half while still giving a competitive performance to native apps.Cost-effective solution
Code reusability makes way for a reduced budget compared to native app development. The money spent on mobile app developers and infrastructure is reduced by almost half.
UI remains consistent
Developers can assure the app's look and feel as it remains almost identical on both platforms. They don’t need to hire UI/UX developers separately for each forum. Ease of cloud integration
Hybrid apps can easily leverage the cloud storage platform without any hassle. Plug-ins can be added to ensure compatibility on all platforms.
Few technical glitches
Mobile app developers don’t need to learn a specific language. Instead, they can do with core technologies like HTML, JavaScript, and CSS. Quick marketing solution
Cross-platform apps are accessible to the market owing to the enormous demand. They reach out to a broader customer base while maintaining their competence.Top five ranking Cross-platform app development frameworks of 2019:
Xamarin
As per Datanyze, Xamarin occupied 31% of the US hybrid app development market in 2019 and was chosen by companies like The World Bank, Storyo, and Olo. It offers 40+ cross-platform layouts to make stunning-looking mobile apps. It can be the best platform for developing iOS, Android, Mac, and Windows apps. Most of the code can be reused, making it the most preferred platform for mobile app solutions.
The flip side is that this framework's libraries make the app bulky, which takes almost twice as long to download. In addition, it is not a free platform, pushing the development cost to the higher end.
“According to Datanyze, Xamarin envelops 31% of US mobile app development market and is the most preferred platform for cross platform app development. 48.3% developers vote for Xamarin.”
React Native
In a short period, it has carved a niche for itself as top companies like Airbnb, Bloomberg, and UberEats bet on it for their apps. According to Datanyze reports, React Native has a 4.3% market share in the US and is considered highly competitive as a newcomer. Its modular architecture makes it highly efficient for rapid app development.
The downside is that React Native is not regularly updated, requiring developers to do a lot of unnecessary rework. Moreover, the load time is longer than that of other platforms.
“According to Datanyze reports, React Native occupies 4.3% of the US mobile app development market as of 2019, a good score for a newcomer. It is used by top companies like AirBnB, Bloomberg, and UberEats.”
Flutter
Another new entrant, Flutter, ranks high in cross-platform app development with its open-source nature and free available status. This framework, based on Dart, which follows OOP concepts, allows quick app design and development. The Google SDK cuts down development time by offering a single codebase for iOS and Android. The ‘Hot reloading’ feature lets the developer view the development preview within seconds, making it easy to edit and test without delay.Currently, Flutter is considered top-notch for minimum viable product development. It is ideal for designing good-looking UI layouts with its design-centric widgets, futuristic APIs, and techno-savvy development tools. It also offers a quick debugging facility with the Dart language. It has a massive fan following, with 68,000 stars on Github, and is preferred by leading companies like Alibaba eCommerce, Hamilton Music, etc.
The disadvantage of this framework is its limited set of libraries, which may offer only some functionality. Developers need to code for the functions unavailable in the library.
“Flutter framework, released in December 2018, has a huge customer base with 68,000 stars on Github as of June 2019. Companies like Hamilton Music and Alibaba eCommerce use it for mobile apps.”
PhoneGap or Cordova
PhoneGap does not support native functionality, which results in slow app performance. It shows low compatibility for plug-ins with hooks.
“As per data labs, PhoneGap occupies 22.29% of the mobile app development market and is a popular choice for cross-platform apps. 36.7% developers choose it over other frameworks.”
Ionic
This one uses CSS, HTML5, SaaS, and JavaScript for app development. Due to reduced code and code reusability, it demands low maintenance and gives high performance. It has many customizable tools, gestures, and JS features to create a competitive app. It can be easily integrated with Angular JS and offers quick prototyping. The development cost is much lower than that of native apps. It has thousands of apps to its credit and is climbing the ladders of popularity quickly.
The drawback is that Ionic lacks security, making the app susceptible to threats. It is not effective when it comes to in-app navigation due to its complex UI router.
“According to SimilarTech's research, 25,993 apps were developed in Ionic as of 2019. It is one of the most preferred hybrid app development platforms of 2023.”
These are the top-rated hybrid app development frameworks of 2019. Each has pros and cons, so consider them before choosing one. Mobile app developers can use any of these, depending on the user requirements, time frame, and development cost.
“Check out the top five cross-platform app development frameworks that ruled the 2023 mobile development market. Weigh their advantages and disadvantages to choose the best out of the lot.”
