Top App Development Companies

Best Mobile App Development Companies. For startups, B2B, SMB, enterprise, SaaS project. In San Francisco (SF), New York, Los Angeles (LA)

Last updated: February 21, 2024

App development agencies are essential for turning app concepts into reality.

They specialize in building mobile applications that meet diverse business and personal needs.

Their role is critical in designing, developing, and maintaining apps across various platforms, ensuring they meet user expectations and business objectives.

1. WillowTree®

Team of award-winning mobile strategists, UI/UX designers, and software engineers have delivered over 1000 mobile and digital solutions to the world’s leading enterprise and consumer-facing companies

• Location: Charlottesville, VA, United States
• Clients: Synchrony Financial, 21st Century Fox, National Geographic, CBC
• Hourly Rate: $150 — $199 / hr
• Team Size: 1000+ employees
• Founded: 2007
• Services: Generative AI, AI Development, Marketing Strategy, Mobile App Development, UX/UI Design, Web Development
• Industries: Financial services, Telecommunications, Media, Consumer products & services, Hospitality & leisure, Medical, Retail, Information technology
• Best for: Tech Companies
• Clutch rating: 4.9 out of 5.0 (20+ reviews)

2. hedgehog lab

Global App Developer based in UK, USA & Europe. Company architects, designs, develops, and markets apps & digital solutions for phones, tablets, TV, kiosks & and other post-PC devices.

• Location: Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
• Clients: Aviva, AJ Bell, LaserShip, Santander, Davidson Kempner, Royal Pharmaceutical Society, Edwards Lifesciences
• Hourly Rate: $100 — $149 / hr
• Team Size: 150+ employees
• Founded: 2007
• Services: Mobile App Development, Web Development, AI Development, UX/UI Design
• Industries: Financial services, Medical, Consumer products & services, Energy & natural resources, Retail, Supply Chain, Logistics, and Transport
• Best for: Tech Companies
• Clutch rating: 4.8 out of 5.0 (75+ reviews)

3. ArcTouch

Company designs and develops apps for iOS, Android, and Xamarin, and bots for conversational platforms like Amazon Alexa and Facebook Messenger and also help forward-looking companies with blockchain, smart products for the Internet of Things (IoT), and augmented reality (AR) technology solutions.

• Location: San Francisco, CA, United States
• Clients: 3M, Hawaiian Airlines, HP
• Hourly Rate: $50 — $99 / hr
• Team Size: 500+ employees
• Founded: 2009
• Services: IoT Development, Mobile App Development, UX/UI Design, Web Development, Custom Software Development
• Industries: Consumer products & services, Supply Chain, Logistics, and Transport, Financial services, Hospitality & leisure, Medical, Retail
• Best for: Tech Companies
• Clutch rating: 4.9 out of 5.0 (30+ reviews)

4. Sidebench

A strategy, design, and development consultancy based in Los Angeles.

• Location: Santa Monica, CA, United States
• Clients: Microsoft Corporation, Facebook, Instagram, Red Bull, Sony, NBCUniversal, Andreessen Horowitz, Accel
• Hourly Rate: $50 — $99 / hr
• Team Size: 100+ employees
• Founded: 2012
• Services: Custom Software Development, Mobile App Development, AI Development, CRM Consulting and SI, UX/UI Design, Web Development
• Industries: Medical, Consumer products & services, Financial services, Information technology
• Best for: Tech Companies
• Clutch rating: 4.9 out of 5.0 (45+ reviews)

How Do We Review These App Development Agencies?

Our review is based on a specific set of criteria to evaluate each agency:

• Location: The agency’s geographic location, affecting its market understanding and accessibility.
• Clients: Types of clients the agency typically works with, indicating its area of expertise.
• Hourly Rate: The agency’s pricing structure, providing an insight into its market positioning.
• Team Size: The number of professionals in the agency, reflecting its capacity for handling projects.
• Founded: The year the agency was established, indicating its industry experience.
• Services: The range of services offered, from app design to development and post-launch support.
• Industries: The variety of industries the agency serves.
• Best for: The type of projects or clients the agency is most suited for.
• Clutch Rating: The agency’s rating on Clutch, offering an independent assessment of its reputation and performance.

How to Choose a Proper App Development Agency?

To select an appropriate app development agency from a list, consider the following steps:

1. Identify Your App Requirements: Understand the type of app you need, including features and platform (iOS, Android, or cross-platform).
2. Review Agency Portfolios: Look at previous projects to assess the agency’s design and development skills.
3. Consider Client Feedback: Check testimonials and reviews to gauge client satisfaction.
4. Evaluate Technical Expertise: Ensure the agency has experience in the technology relevant to your app.
5. Discuss Your Budget: Be clear about your financial limits and understand what the agency can deliver within that budget.
6. Assess Communication and Support: Good communication is crucial. Also, post-launch support is important for app maintenance.

FAQ on finding the right mobile app development agency

Some of the common questions people ask while looking for an agency

Q: How much does an app development cost?

A: Well, it depends on the number of features. Simple features like push notifications, reviews, and login, tend to be cheaper. Complex features, such as payment systems, web portals, and integration with native features, increase the final cost. Based on different sources, app development may cost from 20'000 USD and up to 200'000 USD and more.

Q: How does the app development process usually go? What’s the right approach?

A: Nowadays, having a mobile application proves to be a necessity even for businesses mostly considered to operate “offline”. When I see an ad for a service like local food delivery or cleaning, for example, I habitually go to the App Store or Google Play without even checking to see if the company has a website.

Having an app creates the perception of a more user-centric service; one that provides helpful features like in-app chat support. These features add speed and convenience to the overall customer experience. Apps also provide a platform for real reviews from user reviews which helps potential users decipher whether or not the service is worthy and validated.

For those just considering creating the first app for their business, it’s worth understanding what the steps are for the development process. At my current app development agency, we’ve followed this process many times and I can testify that it is essential to adhere to it if you want to avoid expending tons of resources only to end up with a product that doesn’t match your end goals.

Here are the steps to follow:

1. Figure out business goals for the app

First and foremost, it’s crucial to understand why you need the app and what users will be able to do with it. For example, a satellite app for an offline business can serve as a tool to deliver the latest news, be a platform for your users to communicate with each other or your employees, an online shop to make orders or something entirely different and new. You have to set the goals correctly and make sure your users actually need the app so that your app helps your business and doesn’t’ hinder it in any way.
It might be a good idea to involve potential users even at the earliest stage to pitch your app idea and see if they have an interest. After all, you don’t want to waste time developing something people won’t use. You can read more about this process in the articles regarding lean startup methodology.

2. Create the app design

This one is straightforward, although it’s worth noting that design also includes working on user experience (UX). This means you need to find a specialist capable of thoroughly thinking through the way people are going to use the app to make sure that the user interface (UI) is easy to navigate and user-friendly. This designer should be familiar with iOS or Android Human Interface Guidelines.

3. Implement the app

This step is what most people consider to be the “app development”. Careful not to rush into this phase in an effort to ‘just get it done’. Without defined goals and a strong, user-friendly design, the end-result might be underwhelming.

It’s not enough to just hire a good developer (unless he or she is also a great business analyst capable of going through the entire process themselves). An app needs to be well integrated into the business processes. Earlier in my career as a freelance developer, I encountered several customers who had been developing an app independently of the goals of the business as a whole. As a result, they developed an inferior product that was not widely adopted.

Once business owners realize the importance of a mobile app development process, they will most likely agree to go through the entire ideation & design process from scratch just to make sure that the final product is something customers actually use.

Are you looking for ways to expand your business to the mobile audience? And need app developers to do that? Then you are in the right place because we’ve surfed through a few hundred app development companies to help you find the best app developer for your project.

Take your time, scroll through them, check their websites, online portfolios and social networks and decide which team might be the right fit for your project. They all are different, some focused on small businesses, others on middle sized ones or enterprise. Below you will also find answers on some common questions that you might have while choosing the right vendor.

We hope you will find this list of agencies helpful for your next mobile app development project. Please feel free to comment and link to more companies that might be a good fit for this list.

Q: How to choose an app development company?

A: Since mobile app development is a very big investment, make sure the agency size, location and expertise fits you. And what’s even more important, the understanding of your business goal is very clear. Once you did your due diligence, next step is to have a discovery phase with the chosen company. Usually it is a couple of weeks project that includes requirements gathering, creating the project plan, resource allocation plan and other preparatory work that shows the roadmap of the future development work along with an estimate. Based on that you can decide if the final project will meet your business goals and expectations.

Q: What are the main geographical locations of the best agencies?

A: The tech world today is getting more and more globalized, and lots of key players are becoming remote-friendly. It is related to both their employees, contractors and external agencies they hire. Location makes a much smaller difference now. However, lots of mobile app development agencies gathered in the main tech hubs and big developed cities of North America (San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, Austin, Portland, Boston), UK (London, Manchester), Canada (Vancouver, Toronto), Australia (Sydney, Melbourne) and Western European cities like Berlin, Amsterdam, and Paris.

Disclaimer

This review serves an informative purpose and is based on specific, objective criteria.

It is not an exhaustive list or endorsement of any app development agencies.

Readers are advised to conduct their own research to select an agency that best meets their unique app development needs.

The review aims to provide a general understanding of what to look for in an app development agency, but it does not promote any particular agency or service.

Conclusion

We hope you find this article helpful for your next app development project. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us if you have any questions or suggestions. Thank you!

Originally published at https://www.ramotion.com on November 18, 2019.