How Much Does App Maintenance Cost?
App maintenance is not just an afterthought; it’s a crucial factor in an app’s long-term success. Even the most well-developed applications encounter bugs, performance issues, and evolving user expectations post-launch.
Without proper upkeep, these challenges can degrade user experience, lead to negative reviews, and ultimately decrease active users. That’s why ongoing application maintenance is not just beneficial but essential.
But what exactly does app maintenance involve, and more importantly, how much should you budget for it in 2025?
Today’s article explores the importance, types, what app support and maintenance covers, and its costs. After reading, you’ll also unlock insight into the best application maintenance practices and continue delivering value to your customers.
Why Maintaining and Updating An App Matter
As a business owner, prioritizing maintenance is crucial to prevent your app from becoming outdated and losing its user base. Without regular updates, apps risk falling behind evolving user expectations, industry standards, and platform requirements.
Keeping Apps Updated and Reducing Uninstalls
User preferences change rapidly, and failing to adapt can lead to high uninstall rates. Research shows that sending more than six push notifications can lead 46% of users to disable notifications, while 32% may uninstall the app entirely. Moreover, sending between two to five notifications per week can already push some users to mute alerts, reducing engagement. These statistics have highlighted the importance of maintaining a seamless, user-friendly experience.
Additionally, app stores enforce strict quality guidelines. If your app fails to meet these standards, it could face rejection or removal. By proactively updating features, fixing bugs, and integrating the latest APIs, you ensure compliance and maintain your app’s visibility.
Delivering a Superior User Experience
A well-maintained app directly impacts user retention, engagement, and overall success. Key benefits for app maintenance include:
- Enhanced User Retention: Smooth navigation, fast loading times, and intuitive design encourage long-term usage.
- Increased Revenue: A polished user experience boosts in-app purchases and ad revenue.
- Better Ratings and Reviews: Satisfied users are more likely to leave positive feedback, improving app store rankings.
Maximizing ROI with Regular Updates
Investing in routine application maintenance can significantly improve your return on investment. Regular updates allow businesses to introduce new monetization strategies, optimize app performance, and ensure users remain engaged over time.
It’s best to address bugs early and roll out enhancements gradually. That way, you spread costs over time while ensuring your app remains competitive and valuable to users.
Minimizing Downtime and Revenue Losses
Unexpected downtime can lead to substantial financial losses, as seen with major companies like Amazon Web Services and Bank of America. Regular monitoring and app maintenance help prevent system failures, ensuring uninterrupted service and a better user experience. Moreover, implementing proactive performance monitoring tools can help identify potential failures before they escalate into costly downtimes.
As a matter of fact, scheduled app maintenance will help reduce your application’s downtime, ultimately reducing revenue decrease.
Strengthening Security and Compliance
As cyber threats evolve, so do security requirements, especially since AI is leveraged everywhere. Frequent updates help protect user data, address vulnerabilities, and ensure compliance with regulations and platform-specific privacy policies from Google and Apple.
Therefore, implementing cybersecurity best practices can significantly reduce security risks. Additionally, businesses must stay vigilant about emerging threats. We suggest you do zero-day exploits and phishing attacks to safeguard user data and app integrity.
Staying Competitive in a Fast-Changing Market
The app landscape is constantly evolving, with new technologies and trends shaping user expectations. App maintenance activities like UI improvements, new feature integrations, or enhanced performance will help your app stay relevant and competitive. Leveraging AI-driven personalization, integrating cutting-edge APIs, and adopting the latest design trends can make your app more appealing to users.
Furthermore, staying ahead of competitors by implementing emerging technologies can give your app a distinct advantage in the market. There are several appealing technologies nowadays, such as augmented reality (AR), voice assistants, and blockchain,… Plan strategically and choose what’s the best technology to integrate into your business workflow.
What is Covered in the Scope of App Support & Maintenance?
Effective app maintenance ensures that all critical components function optimally and stay aligned with evolving technology standards. This includes:
- Mobile Applications: Maintaining both iOS and Android apps, whether built using native or cross-platform technologies.
- Web Infrastructure: Managing front-end, back-end, and web-based versions of mobile applications.
- APIs and Integrations: Keeping native and third-party APIs updated to ensure seamless functionality.
- Database and Design Assets: Optimizing database performance and refining UI/UX elements for a smooth user experience.
- Feature Enhancements: Implementing new functionalities to improve user engagement and app performance.
- Beyond-the-App Elements: Managing external assets such as app install ad creatives, alternative onboarding methods (e.g., QR codes or third-party integrations), marketing automation, analytics, and compatibility with external applications.
Types of App Maintenance
Ensuring an app remains functional, user-friendly, and up-to-date requires various application maintenance strategies. Each type serves a distinct purpose in maintaining performance and preventing disruptions.
Emergency Maintenance
Unforeseen technical issues can arise at any time, potentially affecting the app’s functionality. When critical failures occur, immediate action is necessary to restore operations and minimize downtime, that’s when emergency app maintenance is needed. As you can guess, it helps developers to make sure of a seamless user experience.
Perfective Maintenance
As user preferences evolve and new mobile trends emerge, apps must continuously improve to stay competitive. This type of application maintenance involves modifying the source code and enhancing features. Furthermore, it also responds to user feedback to provide an optimized experience.
Further Reading: Best Practices for User Acceptance Testing.
Adaptive Maintenance
The digital landscape is constantly shifting with operating system updates, hardware advancements, and software changes. Hence, adaptive maintenance ensures compatibility with these evolving technologies, preventing performance issues caused by outdated systems.
Preventive Maintenance
Proactive measures help reduce complexity and enhance long-term maintainability. This includes refining the code structure, optimizing performance, and updating documentation to minimize future issues and ensure smoother operation.
Corrective Maintenance
Bugs, coding errors, and system glitches can impact an app’s usability. This is where corrective app maintenance shines. It focuses on identifying and fixing these defects, addressing design inconsistencies, and resolving functionality-related issues. Owing to this, this type of maintenance keeps the app running as intended.
How Much Does it Cost to Maintain an App?
The cost of maintaining an app depends on several factors, including server management, push notifications, and payment gateway integrations. These elements contribute to the ongoing expenses required to keep an app running efficiently.
Once an app is available on platforms like Google Play and Apple App Store, tracking key engagement metrics becomes crucial. There are Daily Active Users (DAU) to reflect the number of installations and active users. Meanwhile, Monthly Active Users (MAU) offer insights into broader engagement trends. Simple explaining, higher DAU and MAU figures often indicate a well-performing app.
An Average Number
In the software lifecycle, maintenance begins after development and deployment. During the first year, app maintenance costs can account for up to 50% of the initial development cost. Gradually, it will decrease to 15-25% in subsequent years. For apps running on multiple operating systems, such as Android and iOS, these costs may be slightly higher.
On average, app owners should allocate $2,000 to $2,500 per month to ensure smooth performance. A general budgeting rule is to set aside 20% of the initial development cost for application maintenance. For instance, if an app costs $200,000 to develop, the estimated maintenance expenses would be around $40,000 annually.
Below are the key recurring expenses associated with maintaining an app:
| Expense Head | Cost per month ($) |
|---|---|
| Servers | $100-$200 per month |
| Push Notifications | $10-$50 per month |
| Payment Gateways | Up to $149 (or more), which also includes a certain percentage of each transaction |
| Emergency Maintenance | Depends on the nature of the Emergency |
| App Stores Developer Fee | One-time Register fee of $25 at Google Play, Annual developer fee of $99 at Apple App |
While we’re at this, here are some key factors to consider when estimating app maintenance costs:
Hosting Costs
One of the biggest ongoing expenses in application maintenance is hosting. The type of server you choose and the amount of data your app handles will determine your costs. If your app primarily deals with text-based content, hosting costs will be lower. However, apps that process large amounts of audio, video, or high-resolution images require more CPU, memory, and storage, leading to higher expenses.
The hosting prices typically range between $70 and $320 per month, depending on user activity and content volume. Many app owners opt for cloud-based solutions, which offer flexible pricing based on actual usage. Ultimately, it helps to reduce unnecessary infrastructure costs.
Analytics Tools
Tracking app performance, monitoring user behavior, and analyzing potential issues are essential for ensuring smooth functionality. Free tools like Google Analytics provide basic insights, but more advanced tools come with additional costs. Plus, investing in detailed analytics helps businesses make data-driven decisions, optimize user experience, and proactively manage app maintenance.
Bug Fixing and Performance Enhancements
No app is perfect, and fixing issues is an inevitable part of application maintenance. A minor bug fix may only cost $50. However, addressing a more complex functionality issue can take weeks and cost between $1,000 and $2,000.
The larger and more feature-rich the app, the higher the maintenance costs. Thus, keeping a budget for troubleshooting and enhancements ensures smooth performance and user satisfaction.
Third-Party Services
Many apps integrate third-party solutions such as payment gateways, external APIs, and automation tools, all of which require ongoing fees. Any service that isn’t built in-house comes with recurring costs, which should be considered when planning application maintenance expenses.
Customer Support
User experience doesn’t end at app performance. It also includes how efficiently users receive help when needed. Investing in customer support through chat, email, or automated AI agents ensures users have a smooth experience.
Though it’s an added expense, good support improves retention and encourages positive reviews. That’s why it becomes a valuable part of long-term app maintenance.
Best Practices for Maintaining an Application
Following best practices ensures that users have a smooth and engaging experience with your app. Here are key areas to focus on:
Introducing New Features
Continuously identifying areas for improvement and adding new features keeps your app relevant and valuable to users. So, regularly gathering feedback and analyzing market trends helps determine which enhancements will improve engagement and usability.
Enhancing the User Interface (UI)
Keeping the UI visually appealing and intuitive is crucial for user retention. As design trends evolve, updating the interface ensures your app remains modern and easy to navigate. After all, a refreshed, well-structured UI enhances user satisfaction and keeps them coming back.
Monitoring Performance Metrics
Tracking system performance helps identify loading delays, responsiveness issues, and system lags. By leveraging analytics tools, app owners can track essential metrics such as retention rates, churn rates, and conversion metrics. With these insights, they can make data-driven improvements, refine user engagement strategies, and ultimately optimize the overall app experience.
Scheduling Maintenance Checks
Planning app maintenance in advance helps prevent unexpected failures and ensures smooth operation. Informing users ahead of time about scheduled downtime minimizes frustration and builds trust. Routine maintenance keeps your app running efficiently and reduces the likelihood of major disruptions.
Your Trusted Tech Partner for App Maintenance
HDWEBSOFT is a leading software development company specializing in building and maintaining high-performance applications across various industries. With a team of experienced developers, we provide end-to-end solutions, ensuring your app stays secure, efficient, and aligned with evolving user expectations. Our expertise spans web development and mobile development, allowing us to deliver seamless experiences across platforms.
Beyond development, our app maintenance services cover everything from performance optimization and security updates to feature enhancements and third-party integrations. Whether you’re looking to fix bugs, scale your application, or improve user engagement, HDWEBSOFT offers reliable, cost-effective solutions to keep your app running at its best.
