In today’s evolving technology world, where every individual uses a mobile phone, having a mobile app has become crucial for businesses to establish their presence and growth. With an extensive domain of mobile app development, it also becomes essential to choose the right development strategy for tangible success.
When it comes to building the perfect app for business, deciding between a native app vs cross platform is the foundational choice that affects the overall performance of the application. In this guide, we have covered the benefits and drawbacks of native vs cross platform mobile app development and will help you find the best for your business. Let’s dive into the details!
Understanding Native Mobile App Development
A native mobile application is made to target a single operating system, either iOS or Android. A single app gains access to the device’s full capabilities using native programming languages, such as:
- Swift/Objective-C for iOS
- Java/Kotlin for Android
This allows them to deliver fast, smooth, and super performance.
Benefits of Native Mobile App Development
Native mobile applications offer a wide range of advantages:
Super Performance
With direct access to the device’s software and hardware, native apps perform fast with full responsiveness.
User Experience
Native apps adhere to the specific UI/UX guidelines of the platform to create an intuitive interface that enhances user experience.
Full Access to Device Features
Native apps gain full access to all features and functionalities of the device — like GPS, camera, and contacts.
Enhanced Security
Using a robust security framework, native apps prioritize users’ privacy and keep their data protected.
App Store Visibility
Native apps gain high visibility in app store searches as they comply with the platform standard.
Drawbacks of Native Mobile App Development
Despite the pros, there are a few disadvantages to the native applications.
Development Cost and Time
Building a separate native app for each platform needs a dedicated team, substantial effort, and resources, increasing cost and time required for development.
No Code Reusability
Creating a native app for 2 operating systems requires 2 separate coding efforts. One operating system's code can not be used for another app.
Limited Audience Reach
Native apps are dedicated to a particular platform. It limits your audience compared to cross platform apps.
Understanding Cross Platform Mobile App Development
A cross platform mobile application is created using a single codebase that performs on multiple platforms such as Android & iOS. These compatible platforms use app development frameworks to deliver speed and a native like experience. The popular frameworks are:
- React Native (JavaScript programming language)
- Flutter (Dart language)
- Xamarin (C# and XAML)
Pros of Cross Platform Mobile App Development
Cross platform applications offer several benefits:
Core Reusability
Developed using a single codebase, cross platform applications can be deployed across multiple platforms, saving development time.
Lowers Costs
Cross platform development eliminates the need for a separate team and resource utilization for each platform. It contributes to cut down development costs.
Faster Time to Market
Using a single codebase development cycle, cross platform applications deploy faster to the market.
Wider Audience Reach
Building a cross platform app allows brands to expand their presence. With broad expansion, they connect with a large audience.
Easy Maintenance & Updates
Managing a single codebase platform offers easy maintenance and updates compared to multiple platform-specific adjustments.
Cons of Cross Platform Mobile App Development
Despite the advantages, there are a few drawbacks to the cross platform applications.
Limited Access to Native Features
Like a native application, cross platform framework may not provide full access to platform-specific features and limit the user experience.
Lower Performance
The performance of cross platform can be slower, especially in graphically intensive applications.
Dependency on Framework
Cross-platform development relies on third-party frameworks, which can create dependencies & potential issues.
Native App vs Cross Platform – Key Differences
Having a clear vision between native app vs cross platform development approach helps you make the right choice. Here is a concise chart about cross platform app development vs native, with their key difference:
| Differences | Native Platform | Cross Platform |
|---|---|---|
| Codebase | Separate for each OS | Single shared codebase |
| Performance | High & optimized | Moderate to good |
| User Experience | Seamless & native | Near-native |
| Device Feature Access | Full & direct | Limited or indirect |
| Development Time & Cost | Longer & costly | Faster & cost-effective |
| Maintenance & Updates | OS-specific | Unified |
| Security | Stronger & robust | Moderate |
The growing mobile app development trends showcase that selecting the right development approach has become more important than ever. In native vs cross platform mobile development, each approach offers unique strengths, from high performance to faster market time, enabling future-ready decisions.
How to Choose Between Native and Cross Platform
When it comes to choosing between native app development vs cross platform, you need to set your priorities, project requirements, & budget.
Considering the following aspects in cross platform app development vs native can help you choose the right platform.
App Complexity
One of the crucial elements to consider between native app vs cross platform is the complexity of your application. For building a simple one with essential features cross platform work well, whereas native development is ideal for feature-rich applications.
App Complexity
Access to Device Features
If you want to access the full features of the device, like camera, location, contact, sensor, etc., then choose the native platform between native vs cross platform mobile app development. Cross-platform face limitation, or may require third-party integration to achieve a similar experience.
Budget and Timeline
When comparing cross platform app development vs native, cross platform application clearly leads in development. Built with a single codebase, it takes less time to develop, requires less budget, and is ready for the market quickly, unlike creatarison-table thead, .comparison-table tbody, .comparison-table th, .comparison-table td, .comparison-table tr { display: block; } .comparison-table tr { margin-bottom: 15px; border: 1px solid #ddd; border-radius: 6px; overflow: hidden; } .comparison-table td { border: none; border-bottom: 1px solid #eee; position: relative; padding-left: 45%; } .comparison-table td:first-child { background: #f8f8f8; font-weight: bold; padding-left: 16px; } .comparison-table td::before { position: absolute; top: 12px; left: 16px; width: 40%; white-space: nowrap; font-weight: 600; color: #333; } .comparison-table td:nth-child(2)::before { content: "Custom LMS"; } .comparison-table td:nth-child(3)::before { content: "Off the Shelf LMS"; } }
In today’s evolving technology world, where every individual uses a mobile phone, having a mobile app has become crucial for businesses to establish their presence and growth. With an extensive domain of mobile app development, it also becomes essential to choose the right development strategy for tangible success.
When it comes to building the perfect app for business, deciding between a native app vs cross platform is the foundational choice that affects the overall performance of the application. In this guide, we have covered the benefits and drawbacks of native vs cross platform mobile app development and will help you find the best for your business. Let’s dive into the details!
Understanding Native Mobile App Development
A native mobile application is made to target a single operating system, either iOS or Android. A single app gains access to the device’s full capabilities using native programming languages, such as:
- Swift/Objective-C for iOS
- Java/Kotlin for Android
This allows them to deliver fast, smooth, and super performance.
Benefits of Native Mobile App Development
Native mobile applications offer a wide range of advantages:
Super Performance
With direct access to the device’s software and hardware, native apps perform fast with full responsiveness.
User Experience
Native apps adhere to the specific UI/UX guidelines of the platform to create an intuitive interface that enhances user experience.
Full Access to Device Features
Native apps gain full access to all features and functionalities of the device — like GPS, camera, and contacts.
Enhanced Security
Using a robust security framework, native apps prioritize users’ privacy and keep their data protected.
App Store Visibility
Native apps gain high visibility in app store searches as they comply with the platform standard.
Drawbacks of Native Mobile App Development
Despite the pros, there are a few disadvantages to the native applications.
Development Cost and Time
Building a separate native app for each platform needs a dedicated team, substantial effort, and resources, increasing cost and time required for development.
No Code Reusability
Creating a native app for 2 operating systems requires 2 separate coding efforts. One operating system's code can not be used for another app.
Limited Audience Reach
Native apps are dedicated to a particular platform. It limits your audience compared to cross platform apps.
Understanding Cross Platform Mobile App Development
A cross platform mobile application is created using a single codebase that performs on multiple platforms such as Android & iOS. These compatible platforms use app development frameworks to deliver speed and a native like experience. The popular frameworks are:
- React Native (JavaScript programming language)
- Flutter (Dart language)
- Xamarin (C# and XAML)
Pros of Cross Platform Mobile App Development
Cross platform applications offer several benefits:
Core Reusability
Developed using a single codebase, cross platform applications can be deployed across multiple platforms, saving development time.
Lowers Costs
Cross platform development eliminates the need for a separate team and resource utilization for each platform. It contributes to cut down development costs.
Faster Time to Market
Using a single codebase development cycle, cross platform applications deploy faster to the market.
Wider Audience Reach
Building a cross platform app allows brands to expand their presence. With broad expansion, they connect with a large audience.
Easy Maintenance & Updates
Managing a single codebase platform offers easy maintenance and updates compared to multiple platform-specific adjustments.
Cons of Cross Platform Mobile App Development
Despite the advantages, there are a few drawbacks to the cross platform applications.
Limited Access to Native Features
Like a native application, cross platform framework may not provide full access to platform-specific features and limit the user experience.
Lower Performance
The performance of cross platform can be slower, especially in graphically intensive applications.
Dependency on Framework
Cross-platform development relies on third-party frameworks, which can create dependencies & potential issues.
Native App vs Cross Platform – Key Differences
Having a clear vision between native app vs cross platform development approach helps you make the right choice. Here is a concise chart about cross platform app development vs native, with their key difference:
| Differences | Native Platform | Cross Platform |
|---|---|---|
| Codebase | Separate for each OS | Single shared codebase |
| Performance | High & optimized | Moderate to good |
| User Experience | Seamless & native | Near-native |
| Device Feature Access | Full & direct | Limited or indirect |
| Development Time & Cost | Longer & costly | Faster & cost-effective |
| Maintenance & Updates | OS-specific | Unified |
| Security | Stronger & robust | Moderate |
The growing mobile app development trends showcase that selecting the right development approach has become more important than ever. In native vs cross platform mobile development, each approach offers unique strengths, from high performance to faster market time, enabling future-ready decisions.
How to Choose Between Native and Cross Platform
When it comes to choosing between native app development vs cross platform, you need to set your priorities, project requirements, & budget.
Considering the following aspects in cross platform app development vs native can help you choose the right platform.
App Complexity
One of the crucial elements to consider between native app vs cross platform is the complexity of your application. For building a simple one with essential features cross platform work well, whereas native development is ideal for feature-rich applications.
App Complexity
Access to Device Features
If you want to access the full features of the device, like camera, location, contact, sensor, etc., then choose the native platform between native vs cross platform mobile app development. Cross-platform face limitation, or may require third-party integration to achieve a similar experience.
Budget and Timeline
When comparing cross platform app development vs native, cross platform application clearly leads in development. Built with a single codebase, it takes less time to develop, requires less budget, and is ready for the market quickly, unlike creatintenance
When comparing native vs cross platform mobile development, the native platform is suitable for highly complex applications and maintenance required for each separate one. This can be time consuming. Unlike this, cross platform is a less complex application that simplifies maintenance with a unified codebase.
Conclusion
To build a high performing, scalable, and result driven application, it is indispensable for you to decide between native vs cross platform mobile app development with key consideration on differences, benefits and drawbacks.
If you are still confused or need advice? Consult with a trusted app development company to ensure your app reaches the right audience within your financial scope. You can also connect with us for guidance and support — we are here to help you launch a customized mobile application.
