Best App Building Platforms for 2024 - Top Picks Reviewed
With the mobile app market expanding rapidly, you need to select the right platform to build your app efficiently and effectively. This article reviews the leading options for app development in 2024, providing an in-depth analysis of the top picks based on features, capabilities, and ease of use. Discover which platforms allow you to develop cross-platform apps or specialize in iOS or Android development. Learn which tools offer drag-and-drop interfaces versus coding environments. Compare plans and pricing to fit your budget. Use our guide to choose the best app builder to meet your needs and launch your app successfully this year. With the right platform, you can turn your app idea into reality.
Overview of the Top App Building Platforms for 2024
Appian
Appian is a low-code automation platform that accelerates the creation of high-impact business applications. With Appian, organizations can build web and mobile apps faster, run them on-premises or in the cloud, and manage complex processes end-to-end. Appian’s low-code platform speeds development and delivery of both custom and out-of-the-box apps that are robust, secure, and scalable.
OutSystems
OutSystems is a high-performance low-code platform for rapidly developing and deploying enterprise web and mobile applications. OutSystems visual development environment and reusable components help organizations build and iterate applications faster while maintaining high quality. OutSystems seamlessly integrates with existing systems and databases, enabling rapid innovation that augments rather than replaces existing IT investments.
Mendix
Mendix is a high productivity app platform as a service (aPaaS) that enables enterprises to build and continuously improve mobile and web applications at scale. The Mendix platform abstracts and accelerates application delivery by combining visual modeling, reusable components, and robust governance tools. With the Mendix aPaaS, enterprises gain the speed and agility to delight customers and empower employees.
Microsoft PowerApps
Microsoft PowerApps is a service for building and using custom business apps that connect to your data and work across the web and mobile - without the time and expense of custom software development. Easily build apps to manage data, processes, and workflows. Then instantly publish and share with team members on any device.
With PowerApps, you can use a visual designer to build apps from scratch, start with a template, or use a sample app. When you build an app from a template or sample, you get a pre-built app that you can quickly customize to suit your needs. Apps connect to more than 200 data sources, including Microsoft Excel, Office 365, Dynamics 365, SQL Server, and Google Drive.
Keel
The backend for your apps, the tools for your teams
A Unified Backend
Keel is the complete backend toolkit for your engineers with ready-to-go internal tools for your operators. You can define your data model, APIs and permissions, then extend with TypeScript functions, events and jobs. Git push to deploy a production-ready backend with internal tools for your whole company.
A Modular System
Keel's architecture is made up of small, single-purpose modules that can be composed in many ways. Choose just the parts you need. Scale up by adding more modules over time.
Built for Teams
Keel comes with an admin UI, permissions system, audit logs, and more — everything you need to securely manage a backend with a team.
Open Source
Keel is free, open source software. Use it for commercial or noncommercial purposes at no cost. Contribute to the codebase or build your own modules. The Keel community welcomes all.
A Productive Developer Experience
Keel is written in TypeScript, so your backend code is type-safe. A full suite of CLI tools, hot reloading, and Git-based deployment helps you build and ship features fast.
Enterprise-Ready
Keel includes enterprise features like role-based access control, audit logs, database migrations, and cluster support. Run Keel on your own infrastructure or choose a managed cloud service.
Keel makes it simple to build a customized backend for your application. For developers, it leads to a more productive experience. For companies, it results in a secure, scalable architecture to support your business. In 2024, Keel is poised to become a leader among app building platforms.
toddle
Ship powerful web apps 10x faster.
Intuitive Visual Builder
toddle features an intuitive drag-and-drop visual builder that allows you to construct web applications without writing a single line of code. Simply drag UI elements like forms, buttons, and tabs onto the canvas and connect them with a few clicks. The toddle builder automatically generates clean, semantic HTML and CSS so you can build complex layouts in a fraction of the time.
Blazing Fast Performance
Under the hood, toddle leverages a high-performance runtime to ensure your web apps are lightning fast. The toddle runtime compiles your visual designs into optimized JavaScript functions that update the DOM efficiently. This allows toddle web apps to rival the performance of handwritten JavaScript frameworks.
Open Ecosystem
Although toddle includes a robust set of built-in UI elements and components, we also provide a package manager where you can access thousands of community-built packages. These packages contain everything from data visualizations to eCommerce functionality. The toddle ecosystem has a package for just about any use case, allowing you to build full-stack web applications without relying on additional frameworks.
Scalable Hosting
Once you’ve built your toddle web app, you need a place to host it. toddle provides a serverless hosting platform that scales automatically based on traffic. Simply deploy your toddle project to our hosting service and we’ll provision resources as needed to ensure maximum uptime and performance. toddle hosting also provides features like custom domains, SSL certificates, and continuous deployment from Git repositories.
In summary, toddle is the next-generation platform for building and hosting high-performance web applications. By combining an intuitive visual builder with a blazing fast runtime and scalable hosting, toddle allows you to ship full-stack web apps faster than ever before. The toddle ecosystem provides all the building blocks you need so you can focus on creating amazing experiences for your users.
What is the best app builder for 2024?
With the boom in mobile devices and increasing reliance on apps, having an efficient app development platform is crucial for businesses and entrepreneurs in 2024. When determining the optimal platform for your needs, several factors should be considered:
Functionality
The platform should provide a robust set of features to build fully-functional apps. Look for options that offer in-app purchases, social media integrations, GPS and geolocation services, push notifications, and analytics. For most use cases, a “no-code” or “low-code” platform that does not require advanced programming skills is ideal.
Ease of Use
An intuitive, user-friendly interface is important for getting your app built quickly. Seek out a platform with simple drag-and-drop tools, pre-made templates, and built-in design elements that do not necessitate artistic skill. Some platforms provide step-by-step walkthroughs and 24/7 customer support to guide you through the process.
Flexibility
The best app builders offer flexibility and customization. They should have options to change layouts, colors, fonts, and add your own graphics or media. You should be able to easily make updates to the app after launching and have full control over the content. Some platforms also allow you to create different versions of the app for various mobile devices.
Affordability
App development platforms are available at a range of price points. For small businesses and those creating an app for the first time, low-cost or free options are good for getting started. However, for large, complex apps, you may need an enterprise-level solution, which typically charges higher fees. Compare the features and capabilities of different platforms based on your budget.
In summary, the ideal app building platform for 2024 should be functional yet easy to use, provide flexibility and customization, and fit within your budget. With many great options now available, you can find an app builder tailored to your specific needs and launch your mobile app with confidence.
Which platform is best for app development?
###Native app development platforms
Native app development platforms allow developers to build apps for a specific mobile operating system, either iOS or Android. If targeting both operating systems, developers must build two separate apps. Some of the leading native app development platforms are Xcode (for iOS) and Android Studio (for Android). These platforms provide software development kits (SDKs) with tools and APIs to build, test, and deploy apps. ###Cross-platform app development tools
For developers looking to build apps for both iOS and Android simultaneously, cross-platform app development tools are a better option. These tools allow developers to build a single codebase that then compiles into native iOS and Android apps. Some of the most popular cross-platform tools are React Native, Flutter, and Xamarin. ###React Native
React Native is an open-source framework from Facebook that allows developers to build native iOS and Android apps using JavaScript and React. It renders to native components, so the end result looks and feels like a native app. Many popular apps like Instagram, UberEATS, and Bloomberg are built with React Native. ###Flutter
Flutter is an open-source framework from Google for building beautiful native iOS and Android apps using a single codebase. Flutter uses Google’s Dart programming language and a reactive framework. It has a steep learning curve but is a robust platform for developing complex apps. Popular apps built with Flutter include Google Ads, Google Trends, and Alibaba.
In summary, for most developers targeting both iOS and Android, a cross-platform tool like React Native or Flutter will be the most efficient and cost-effective option. They require learning a new framework but allow building for both platforms simultaneously. For simple or highly customized apps, native development may still be preferable. The choice ultimately comes down to priorities around time to market, required features, and budget.
Integrations and Extensions for Enhanced Functionality
To maximize the functionality of your app, explore the integrations and extensions offered by various platforms. Integrations connect your app to third-party services, allowing you to incorporate their features. Extensions are add-ons that provide additional capabilities.
APIs and SDKs
Most platforms offer integration with common third-party services through APIs and SDKs. APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) allow your app to access another service’s data and functionality. SDKs (Software Development Kits) are pre-built components that simplify integrating with a service’s API. For example, platforms typically provide SDKs for services like analytics, payments, messaging, and storage.
Visual integrations
Some platforms also provide visual integrations that can be enabled with a click. These might include single sign-on using Google or Facebook login, embedding Google Maps or a YouTube video, accepting PayPal payments, sending SMS notifications, or integrating with Zapier for workflow automation. Visual integrations are a quick way to add useful features without code.
App extensions
Extensions are add-ons built on top of a platform that provide new capabilities. For example, there are extensions for image recognition, natural language processing, importing and exporting data, and much more. Extensions expand the functionality of a platform and allow you to enhance your app without having to build complex features from scratch. Some platforms have large extension marketplaces with options from third-party developers as well as the platform provider.
Custom integrations
If the integrations and extensions you need aren’t available out of the box, most platforms allow you to build your own custom integrations. You can create custom APIs, SDKs, and plugins to connect with any third-party service or system. Building custom integrations requires technical skills, but gives you the flexibility to tailor the platform to your needs. Some platforms provide tools and resources to simplify the development of custom integrations.
In summary, integrations and extensions enable you to easily incorporate third-party services and enhance the capabilities of your app building platform. Take advantage of the options provided to add functionality, simplify development, and build more powerful apps. Choosing a platform with a wide range of integrations and an active ecosystem of developers will allow your apps to do more.
How Much Does It Cost to Build an App in 2024?
Image from Strapi Lizard Global
Building a mobile app in 2024 can vary greatly in cost depending on the complexity and features of your app. However, you can expect to pay between $25,000 to $500,000 or more for a professionally developed app. ###Native vs. Hybrid Apps Native apps are built specifically for one platform (either iOS or Android) and tend to cost more, ranging from $30,000 to $700,000 or more for a complex app. Hybrid apps work on multiple platforms and are more affordable, costing $25,000 to $50,000 for a basic to mid-level app.
App Complexity
The more complex your app, the higher the cost. A basic app with standard features may cost $25,000 to $50,000. A mid-level app with database integration and moderate features may cost $50,000 to $100,000. A complex app with advanced capabilities like geolocation, payment integration or 3D gaming can cost $100,000 to $500,000 or more.
Developer Experience
Developer experience significantly impacts cost. Junior developers charge $30 to $60 per hour, mid-level developers charge $60 to $120 per hour, and senior developers charge $120 to $180 per hour. Large development firms charge $100 to $300 per hour. For a basic app, expect 100 to 400 hours of development. For a complex app, expect 500 to 2,500+ hours.
Post-Launch Costs
The initial build is only part of the total cost. You'll also need to budget for ongoing maintenance, support, hosting, and updates which can cost $5,000 to $30,000 per year or more. Marketing and advertising costs also need to be considered to drive downloads and gain users.
In summary, building an mobile app in 2024 is an investment, but with some research on features and development options, you can build an engaging app for your business within your budget. The key is starting with a minimum viable product to launch, then adding advanced features over time through updates. This approach will allow you to get user feedback, improve the app, and keep costs manageable. With the right developer and platform choice, you can build an impactful app for your business.
FAQs About the Best App Building Platforms
As you research platforms to build your mobile app, you likely have many questions about the options available and how to choose the right tool for your needs. Here are some of the most frequently asked questions we receive about app development platforms.
What are the most popular app building platforms? Some of the most well-known app development platforms are Appian, Mendix, OutSystems, and Microsoft PowerApps. These leaders provide robust, low-code tools to build apps for iOS, Android, and web. They have a strong focus on enterprise users but can also work for small to midsize businesses.
Are app building platforms easy to use? Yes, app development platforms are designed to be easy to use for non-technical users. They provide intuitive drag-and-drop interfaces and pre-built components so you can build apps without coding. Some platforms do allow more advanced customization and coding for developers. The level of difficulty will depend on how much flexibility and customization you need.
How much does an app building platform cost? Pricing for app development platforms varies significantly based on the features and complexity. Some platforms offer free trials and basic plans for small apps, while enterprise-level plans can cost tens of thousands of dollars per month. In general, you can expect to pay between $30 to $300 per user per month. The total cost will depend on the number of users and apps you need to build.
Can I build iOS and Android apps? Most major app development platforms allow you to build apps for both iOS and Android, as well as web apps. Some platforms build truly native apps, while others use hybrid approaches. Make sure the platform you choose explicitly supports building for iOS and Android if you need to release apps in both app stores.
Does the platform offer pre-built app templates? Using pre-built app templates is a great way to accelerate development. Look for a platform that offers templates for common apps like employee onboarding, customer service, and business dashboards. Templates provide a starting point so you can get your app off the ground quickly. You can then customize the templates to match your specific needs.
In summary, app development platforms provide powerful yet easy to use tools for building mobile and web apps. With many options available at a range of price points, you can find an app building platform to suit your unique requirements and budget. Let us know if you have any other questions!
Conclusion
In summary, app builders and developers have a growing range of platforms to choose from in 2024. While Appy Pie, BuildFire, and AppSheet remain strong choices, keep an eye on emerging tools like Thunkable, which brings powerful no-code options to the table. Evaluate your app goals, budget, timeline, and technical skills as you narrow down the platform that's the best fit. Leverage free trials to test options hands-on before fully committing. With the right platform, you can bring your app vision to life and reach users on iOS, Android, and the web. The future of app development is bright, especially if you select one of the top platforms covered here.