App or web app
Ask me before you build an app.
Building an app feels like proof that the product is serious. But for most early products, a mobile website is faster, cheaper and more flexible than a native app. A short check looks at which form fits what you want to learn in this phase, and when an app does become the right choice.
Check this before you commit
What I check first.
- 01
Does the first version actually need native functionality (camera, BLE, offline)?
- 02
How often per day does the target audience use the product?
- 03
Can a mobile-friendly web version ship in weeks?
- 04
Which test cycles do you lose to an app release process?
- 05
What wins for distribution, a link or an app store?
Common patterns
What I see happen most often.
- An app is planned before the problem is validated.
- Two codebases (iOS + Android) double maintenance and cost.
- App store reviews delay critical updates.
- An installed base on old versions makes change more expensive.
What the conversation produces
What you leave with.
- 01
Clarity on native, hybrid, web app or simpler first version.
- 02
A plan that fits what you want to learn in the first months.
- 03
A timeline for when a native app does become the right call.
Further reading
Articles on this challenge.
- 6 min read
Why a Mobile Website Often Beats an App
For many early products a mobile website is faster, cheaper, easier to test and easier to change than a native app. When a native app does become the right choice.
- 7 min read
When Should You Not Build an App?
An app is often the most expensive answer to a problem that can be validated more simply first. When a mobile website fits better, and when an app does become the right call.
- 8 min read
What Should Be in Your MVP and What Should Wait
A decision framework for keeping the first release complete, credible and much smaller.