According to Bon Appetite, many people think jelly and jam are synonymous when they apply to toast, but these fruity spreads are actually different in the way they are made. The same misconception entrepreneurs have regarding the mobile apps and web apps that are a digital solutions for businesses to go online, but the way they are built and deployed is completely different.
These two digital solutions- mobile app and web app are distinct in terms of the way they are built, capabilities they have, technology stack used, and much more. Knowing the differences between the two is essential for rolling out the digital transformation ball successfully. Otherwise, similar to jam and jelly confusion, you would end up getting fruit pieces in your spread with jam when you like to have jelly.
Before understanding the mobile app and web app difference, we will first understand the mobile app and web app separately. Let’s dive in!
What is a Mobile App?
The mobile apps are built and designed to make them work on smartphones, tablets, and other touch devices glitch-free. The apps are built for specific operating systems such as Android, iOS, Windows, and others that are installed from respective app stores to the devices. The mobile apps are made to work on various screen sizes without any resolution issues.
What is a Web App?
The web apps are created to run in browsers and made mobile-friendly so that they are accessible on mobile devices as well. In a nutshell, they are internet-enabled applications that don’t require users to download and install on their mobile devices, unlike mobile applications. No dependency on operating systems improves their accessibility globally.
What’s the difference between a Mobile app and a Web app?
The way they are built
The mobile apps are built for specific platforms using particular languages, IDEs (Integrated development environments), SDKs, tools, interface elements, and other resources. For instance, the Android platform requires expert app developers to use Java or Kotlin as a programming language, the Android Studio or Eclipse IDE as IDE, and other tools. On the other hand, Apple requires companies to build iOS apps using Objective C or Swift programming language, the Xcode IDE, and other graphical elements according to Apple guidelines. Also, mobile apps can make use of device-specific features such as GPS, Bluetooth, Cameras, and more.
As the web apps are not built for the specific operating systems, no standard SDKs are used for their development. Instead, JavaScript, CSS, HTML, and Python technologies are used for web app development. The huge community, video tutorials, and extensive documentation help developers build the web app effortlessly.
Internet connection availability
The mobile apps are downloaded on mobile devices and enable users to access some features even in the absence of an internet connection. For instance, when users update data in a mobile application when they are offline, it gets uploaded when they enter an internet zone. The online and offline accessibility makes the mobile app favorable to the users.
On the other hand, web apps cannot be accessed without an active internet connection as they are accessed through the browser. However, the in-built servers enable accessing saved and cached information during poor connection.
Time and money investment
Mobile app development is an expensive affair. It involves hiring expert app developers for the development and designing to deployment and marketing of the app for each platform. It means when the app is developed for multiple OSs, the time and cost get increase accordingly.
The web apps are built once and they work on all devices through browsers, which eliminates the need to develop and deploy the app repetitively. It makes the web app development cost and time-savvy approach.
Performance level
The native mobile apps perform at speed as they are built for specific operating systems and leverage device-specific features. The native-like performance improves the user experience too.
The web apps also perform at par efficiently due to caching of text, images, and other content that the user has accessed once before. Every time, the high-performance goes in conjunction with internet speed.
Maintenance and updates
The consistent maintenance of mobile applications is important to keep them updated with market trends and make them work on the latest OS that users are using. Releasing the updates and making the users download the updates is a little time-consuming, costly, and tedious endeavor.
The web apps release the updates automatically when the users use the app next time without requiring users’ permission to download the updates. Mostly, the web app updates get downloaded silently, but sometimes, a push notification is sent to notify the users about the upcoming update.
App store submission
The mobile apps submitted on the Play Store or App store require developers to follow all the guidelines and meet the requirements to get approval for app submission. The app stores take time to review, approve, and upload the application.
On the flip side, the web apps are published on distribution platforms effortlessly from where the users can download them. The distribution platform won’t take time and charge a fee for web app publishing.
Security
The mobile apps are built using the best technologies and need to approve by the app stores where the app is completely scanned by the IT engineers to ensure there are no security glitches and dents that can put user data at stake.
Web apps are more susceptible to security risks as no app store screening is involved. Plus, the updates are installed automatically without user permission required which increases the chances of getting the device or other information hacked or becoming vulnerable.
Which is better- mobile app or web app development?
Who wins the battle- mobile app vs web app? It’s critical to declare the winner, but a clear understanding of both types of applications, the differences between the two, and a couple of tips would help in finding the best digital alternative for your business.
Both types of applications have their pros and cons that make them a perfect fit for the business project matching the app requirements. Still, if you are not clear, it’s better to reach out to a development specialist that can help you make the right decision and with the development journey ahead.
