Small business5 min read

Website or mobile app: how to choose

“We need an app” is one of the most common wishes of small companies, and one of the most expensive when it is not thought through. Often a website does the same job for less, and sometimes an app really is the only good choice. Here is how to decide.

The core difference

A website opens with one tap from a search engine, social network or message, with nothing to install. It works on any device with a browser and updates instantly for everyone. A mobile app has to be found in a store, downloaded and kept on the phone, but after that it is one icon away and has fuller access to the device’s capabilities.

So the question is not “which is more modern” but how often your customer will use it. People install apps for things they do regularly: banking, ordering from a favourite restaurant, workouts. For something that happens once or twice a year, few will download an app.

There is a second difference: the website is yours, while the app lives in someone else’s store. Apple and Google decide whether to accept it, how its listing may look and which rules it must follow. That is no reason to give up on an app, but it is something to know in advance.

When a website is enough

  • Your customers come mainly from search engines and maps and want quick information: prices, address, opening hours.
  • Visits are rare: an appointment once a year, a holiday, a one-off purchase.
  • You want new customers to find you: website content is indexed by search engines, while content inside an app is not.
  • The budget is limited and you do not want to maintain two or three separate versions.

A modern website built well for phones can have online bookings, payments, a customer account and email notifications. For most small companies that covers the need. We explain what “built well for phones” means in the article on mobile-first design.

PWA: the middle way

A Progressive Web App (PWA) is a website that can be “installed” on the home screen, open full-screen like an app, work partly offline and in many cases send notifications. It does not go through the stores, pays them no fees and has one codebase for all devices.

The limits: what it can do depends on the browser and operating system. On the iPhone, web push notifications work from iOS 16.4 onwards and only if the user has added the site to the home screen. Some phone features (certain sensors, background work, deep system integration) remain available only to real apps. And not least, many people do not know a website can be installed, so you have to show them.

Our game Construction Empire is an example of a PWA: it plays straight in the browser, and anyone who wants can add it to the home screen.

When a real app makes sense

  • Your customers use it often: every day or every week.
  • You need serious access to the device: real-time camera processing, Bluetooth, background work, precise location, augmented reality.
  • The app must work fully offline, for example in the field, in a warehouse or in the mountains.
  • Notifications are at the heart of the service and must reliably reach all users.
  • You already have loyal customers who want the app, not just you.

Even then it is often sensible to start with a website, check that the service gets used, and only then invest in an app.

Store fees

To publish an app you need a developer account:

  • Apple App Store — the Apple Developer Program costs 99 US dollars a year. If you do not renew it, the app stops being offered in the store.
  • Google Play — a one-time fee of 25 US dollars for the developer account.
  • Commission — when you sell digital content or subscriptions inside the app, the stores usually keep between 15 and 30%, depending on the programme and revenue. Physical goods and services (food, a table booking, a taxi) are normally paid through outside payment systems and are not subject to this commission.

The rules change, for example under pressure from European legislation, so check the current terms of both stores before you plan.

Maintenance: the hidden cost

A website is updated in one place and the change is visible at once. An app must be updated, pass store review, and then users must download it; some never do, so you also have to support older versions.

On top of that, new versions of iOS and Android come out every year and sometimes require code changes. The stores also introduce new requirements on privacy, minimum system versions and listings. An app that is not maintained sooner or later gets removed or stops working properly.

So when comparing quotes, ask not only what the build costs but also what maintenance will cost over a year or two, who will publish the updates and whose name the store accounts will be in. The accounts must belong to your company, the same rule as for your website domain.

A quick decision test

  1. How often will one customer use the service? Rarely: a website. Every day or week: you may consider an app.
  2. Do you need phone hardware the browser does not provide? No: a website or PWA.
  3. Where do new customers come from? From search engines: a website is a must, whatever you decide about the app.
  4. Do you have the budget and a person for maintenance for at least two years? No: start with a website.
  5. Do your customers want it? Ask them before you invest.

If the answers point in different directions, the safest path is usually: first a good website, then a PWA, and an app when there is proven demand. If you would like a second opinion on your specific case, write to us.