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The success of Mark Zuckerberg’s Facebook is a strong motivation for aspiring young entrepreneurs across the globe. While many think it’s a dream only a few can achieve, trust me, it is not impossible either. Possibly, things are a lot easier today than what it would have been for the founder of Facebook. If you are wondering how much does it cost to develop an app like Facebook? Here’s the answer to all your questions. In this blog, I’ve tried to provide a cost analysis of having a similar app build. The analysis is based on the features currently available with Facebook. Read on to learn how much investment you would require should you seek to develop such an app.

Cost of Developing Social Media App

Mobile app development cost is measured by the average hourly rate a developer would normally charge or the salary you would pay to a typical resource with proven expertise in the domain. But, it is not practically viable for a single app developer to do it singlehandedly. Product development, whether it is a social media app or any other app or website development, is teamwork. 

Cost of Creating a Facebook-Like App

Number of Hours Needed for Facebook-Like App Development 

• Registration Process – anywhere from 80 to 90 hours 

  • Name & Email ID

  • Name & Phone Number

  • Name, DOB, email ID

• Access Control – above 100 hours

  • Through email ID

  • Through phone number

• App Interaction – Above 450 hours

  • Chat/messaging

  • Social Sharing

  • Video calling

  •  Universal linking

• Basic Features – at least 450 hours

  • Help forum

  • Newsfeed/activity feed

  • User profile

  • Help center

  • Refer a friend

• Advanced Features – about 200+ hours

  • Data sync

  • Push notifications

  • Geolocation

  • Image filtering

• External Features – about 200+ hours

  • In-app calling

  • OTP reading

  • Secure data travel

  • Connection to 3rd party API

• Admin Panel – about 300+ hours

  • Reporting

  • Usage analytics

  • Crash report 

  • User data control

If we sum up the total hours that are required to create different features of any social media app, we get approximately 1800-2000 hours. And it might take around 10-12 months to create a social media app like Facebook. A developer may need at least 450 hours for building features, as mentioned above. Are you not sure wondering why the time is extended? Well, it all depends on the freedom of customization. Think of a Facebook post on your wall/feed. Now, count how many options for customization you get? A whole world of capabilities and information is unleashed for you and that includes who posted the feed and when was it posted, how many people viewed, liked, shared, commented on the post. If you like a post on your feed, you have the option to turn your notifications on and/or save it for future viewing. If you don’t like it, you may hide and even unfollow it, which means you would not see the message whenever it is published by the person/organization/group that owns it. 

One news feed combines countless tasks. Similar complexities and intricacies are involved when working with other features as well. Often, multiple functionalities combine to offer the great UX (as Facebook does.)

Cost of Developing Social Media App for iOS - based on the iOS developer’s average hourly rate.

Please note the rates are subject to change and vary depending on the years of experience and the domain expertise the developer has. The lowest rate to expect is $26,900, whereas the highest rate is $1,96,000. 

Cost of Developing Social Media App for iOS - based on the iOS developer’s average salary 

As per the estimate, the minimum cost of hiring a salaried iOS developer falls in the range of $648 per month whereas the maximum range is around $95 per month. 

This cost will increase depending on the cost of UI-UX design and the number of screens required. In short, the cost may go up and come down as you keep adding or removing features and functionalities from your social media app. 

Cost for Social Media App Development for Android – based on the developer’s average hourly rate

The cost may vary depending on the location of your app developer. While it is somewhere around %60 in the USA, you should expect to pay around $40 to a Canadian developer, the developer in Germany may cost you around $30, whereas for a developer based out in Australia you may have to shell out $28 and the cost may fall around $25 for the developers located in India. 

Cost for Social Media App Development for Android – based on the developer’s average salary

The average monthly salary of Android developers in the USA is around $6,600, and $4100 for Canadian developers, Germany based developer would ideally charge you around $4,700 per month, while Australian and off-shore developer may be available at $5,000 and $410, respectively, per month. 

Please note this range and the hours mentioned above are just an estimate of the common features and functionalities. Also, it does not include the cost of UI and UX designing. We obtained this rate from our survey of different developers – both independent freelancers and teams, and that the actual rates may vary. Hope this information was useful for you. If you are planning to launch a social media app/website, we are here to make your idea a pleasant reality. Call appbiz360 to discuss your requirement for developing a social media app like Facebook. 

Disclaimer: The content above is just for informational purpose so you get a rough estimate of the budget you will have to set aside if building a website/app like Facebook is on your mind. We nowhere claim that this is the exact cost you will have to incur – it may go down if you choose to remove some features and functionalities and it may go higher if you add some. It all depends on your specifications and the developer you hire.