The arrival of the coronavirus pandemic has indeed created havoc in the world, but it has also forced business owners to figure out a better and faster way of providing services without much human interaction. Thus, both small and large enterprises are engaged in harnessing the potential of technology. 

In such circumstances, the Internet & Mobile devices are major tools that are helping businesses to achieve seamless, faster, autonomous, and innovative communication with consumers from all around the world. 

With the only instinct of survival, organizations are embracing mobile apps, websites, chatbots, and many different software solutions that can keep their customers engaged. But! For most businesses, it is hard to make a choice from Native, Hybrid, and Web apps on a limited budget. 

Why Do Businesses Need Mobile Apps?

Actually, the mobile application is the most used tool among people of every age in this age. And! The following statistics show how critical it is to develop a mobile app for organizations to boost revenue generation & survive the shaking grounds. 

• The annual mobile app downloads were 218 billion in the year 2020, and every year it has gained 75% increase. 
• In 2020, 4 hours 10 mins was the average daily time spent on mobile devices, indicating a 20% increase year over year. 
• 92% of time spent on mobile phones is dedicated to using apps such as social media. At the same time, 44% of the time has been spent on social media & communication apps. 

Apart from these, millennial, and Gen-Z have their own share of time spent on mobile apps. So, clearly, this is the time of consumer acquisition on the internet and mobile. And! Mobile apps can turn out really effective in this endeavor. 

But! Mobile users are scattered over Android, iOS, and many other different platforms. Ensuring consumer acquisition over all these platforms can be a bit tricky. Thus, the question arises which one is best to develop: Native App, Hybrid App, Or Web App. Let’s find the answer. 

Native Vs. Hybrid Vs. Web App: Which One Is Best For Customer Acquisition?

When it comes to acquiring a large customer base and creating an app that can lure the heart of your target audience with a flawless experience, it is hard to decide which can be the best from native, hybrid, and web apps. 

And! While you are thinking out loud to pick one of these to develop a mobile app for your business, it can be hectic if you don’t know the science behind them. And when you go forward in your endeavor, you may not be told the exact difference by a native app development company. Thus, you need to understand it beforehand. So, let’s break down the concept of native vs. hybrid vs. web apps. 

What Is A Native Mobile App?

Native apps are the most frequent and primitive choice when it comes to mobile app development. Don’t you think of creating an Android app or iOS app? Do you know that in tech, we call them native apps?

Actually, native apps are software programs written to be run on a single platform, either iOS or Android. While creating native software, developers create a codebase specific to the platform, such as Android apps written in Java Or Kotlin. 

But, iOS app codes used to be written in Objective C or Swift programming language. In short, programming languages are different for both of the platforms. It means the code of the Android app (Written in Java) cannot run on the iOS phone, vise versa. 

What Is A Hybrid Mobile App?

The hybrid application concept is in infancy and less popular than native app development. While it includes the attribute of both native and web applications, businesses aren’t aware that they can adopt hybrid apps to achieve two goals with a single application. 

Actually, hybrid apps are software solutions that can run on multiple platforms, viz: Windows, iOS, and Android. In hybrid apps development, developers write a single code base that runs on almost every platform. 

In hybrid app development, technologies like React Native, Flutter, and Ionic are used, which allows developers to code the app in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. It means the application can be deployed on the web, Android, and iOS. 

What Is A Web App?

Web apps are not like either hybrid or native apps at all. They are basically websites that provide an experience like a mobile app. You write these websites in HTML and JavaScript, and they run on the browser. 

So, that was the basic concept of native, hybrid, and web apps. Now, let’s look at major aspects that make them different from each other. 

Native Vs. Hybrid Vs. Web App: An In-Depth Comparison 

1. Native Vs. Hybrid Vs. Web Apps: How Do Users Interact?

Native Apps 

• Users have to download from Google Play Store or App Store on Android and iOS, respectively. 
• Native apps get installed on the mobile phone. 
• Native apps are efficient in interacting with the device’s OS features such as camera, microphones, contact list, and storage. 

Hybrid Apps

• It can be uploaded on Google Play Store or App Store for sale. 
• They run on the embedded browser of the platform and get installed on mobile devices. 
• Hybrid apps seamlessly interact with mobile features viz: microphones, camera, contact list, and more. 

Web Apps 

• Web apps run on a web browser and are accessible through a web browser. 
• Users no need to download or install the web application 
• Web apps effortlessly interact with the device’s all features. 

2. Native Vs. Hybrid Vs. Web Apps: Application User Experience & Efficiency 

Native Apps: 

• The use of native components makes the app faster and reliable. 
• Sleek & unhindered user experience 
• With faster loading time and being able to stream data flawlessly, most of the video streaming apps are native. 
• Suitable to create apps that handle huge data sets such as enterprise apps, banking apps, and more. 
• Native Apps can work offline.

Hybrid Apps:

• The speed of a hybrid app depends on the speed of the browser (devices’ embedded browser). 
• Developing a hybrid app is easier and faster than native apps. 
• A single code base for all platforms makes it easy to integrate a new feature at any point. 
• Effective and efficient in streaming a huge bundle of data. 
• Promising to develop apps like video streaming, games, and social media. 
• Hybrid apps can work offline, but data can’t be updated. 

Web Apps: 

• Web apps are considered less intuitive and slow than native & hybrid apps. 
• The use of HTML and JavaScript hinders the seamless UX experience. 
• With web apps, higher quality and security standards can’t be met. 
• Web apps can’t work offline.

3. Native Vs. Hybrid Vs. Web Apps: Development 

Native Apps:

• Developers with specialized skills in iOS and Android development are required. 
• App development is costly due to separate development efforts.  
• Required maintenance and releasing updates are expensive. 

Hybrid Apps:

• Developers with hands-on experience in React, Flutter, and Ionic required can also use web developers. 
• Less expensive and faster app development due to the use of a single code base. 
• Maintenance and app updates are swift & less expensive, but the app can face compatibility issues when the native platform makes changes in features of the platform. 
• Developers have to wait till the cross-platform (hybrid ) app development framework adapts to updates of the native platform.

Web Apps:

• Developers with expertise in HTML, CSS, JavaScript are essential. 
• If you partner with the best web application development company, it is Very Easy To Maintain the app.
• It is very fast and cost-effective to develop a web app.

4. Native Vs. Hybrid Vs. Web App: Customer Acquisition 

Native Apps: 

• Enable you to acquire customers of either Android or iOS at a time. It means you would have to create two apps for both Android and iOS. 

Hybrid App:

• Enables You to acquire customers on Android, iOS, and web through a single code base. 

Web App:

• You can acquire enormous treasures of potential customers, but incompatible app experiences can cause an aversion in users. 

5. Native Vs. Hybrid Vs. Web App: Which One Is Best?

The battle of native vs. hybrid vs. web app is never-ending as every day new enhancements are being made. But! For now, Hybrid apps are leading the game. 

While it completely depends on what your purpose is to create an app. If your business is simple and the app doesn’t need to have complex features, going with a web app is best and cost-effective. With a little more features and a large data set, you can pick up hybrid app development. 

But for higher security and complex features, native app development is a must. So, pick wisely. 

Final Text 

Native, web, and hybrid app development have their own set of perks and demerits. While choosing any of these practices, you need to retain your focus on business needs. While choosing, you can consider the following aspects. 

• When do you want your app to be launched?
• What are the features your application needs to incorporate?
• What are your budget borderlines?
• What development resources are you considering- hiring an in-house team, or outsource the project?
• What is the goal of app development?

If you are in a great hurry to launch a solution that can help your brand to reach out to a target audience on the web, hire remote web app developers from an outsourcing company, as they ensure to achieve the best quality app development. 

Or, if you are considering a great length of time and need to infuse extensive features & security in-app, go along with native app development. For mid-way rulers, hybrid is best to pursue swift and effective app development.