As a company that has successfully delivered over 100+ applications worldwide, we've seen the evolution of offshore mobile development. Initially, it started as a simple cost-saving strategy but has become a strategic business advantage.
Whether you’re a startup founder looking to build your first MVP or an enterprise seeking to accelerate your digital transformation, understanding the nuances of offshore mobile app development is crucial in today’s competitive market.
In this blog, you’ll get our tested insights on navigating offshore development and maximizing your investment in mobile development. This guide is not based on theoretical knowledge but on real experiences, challenges we’ve overcome, and success stories we’ve helped create.
So let’s get started.
Offshore mobile app development is the practice of building mobile applications by partnering with development teams in a different country. It combines technical expertise with cost-effectiveness, allowing businesses to leverage global talent while maintaining project control from their local office.
Mobile development costs vary based on different factors, and understanding these is crucial for effective budgeting and decision-making. From our experience working with diverse clients, here are major cost factors:
Factors like local economic conditions, market maturity, and available talent pool influence the rate across regions. Here are typical hourly rates:
Nepal: $20 – $40
India: $25 – $50
Philippines: $25 – $50
Vietnam: $20 – $40
Poland: $35 – $55
Ukraine: $30 – $55
Romania: $25 – $45
Hungary: $40 – $50
Belarus: $35 – $50
Brazil: $30 – $55
Argentina: $30 – $55
Peru: $30 – $50
Colombia: $30 – $50
To learn more, visit our article on offshore development rates by country.
Mobile app projects consist of multiple components that contribute to the overall development cost. The key elements are:
The more complex the design, the higher the cost. It includes,
Contributing the majority of the app development cost, it includes,
Similarly, depending on the need, you can opt for integrations like payment gateways, social media, and analytics tools that directly influence the cost.
Apart from those mentioned above, other cost-inducing components include,
It’s important to consider operational costs beyond the core development. While often overlooked, these costs can significantly impact your budget.
You’ll need video conferencing tools and real-time collaboration platforms.
This includes initial training sessions, creating detailed documentation, and proper handovers.
These additional overhead costs typically take up 10-15% of your total project budget, but investing them properly often leads to smoother project execution and better results.
You need careful planning and the right approach before starting an offshore project – select the model that best suits your business. At Proshore, we offer three proven models:
Best for long-term projects with evolving requirements.
A dedicated team works exclusively on your project. You get better control and flexibility while maintaining consistent team knowledge about your project.
Best for projects with clear requirements and fixed scope.
Your offshore partner manages everything from development to delivery within agreed timelines and budgets. You can completely focus on your business goal.
Best when you need to quickly scale your existing team.
You can hire specific expertise while maintaining direct control over the development process.
Once you finalize your choice of development model, you can move ahead with the development process. Here’s our tested process.
Document everything about your app – from features and technical requirements to business goals and target audience. This clarity helps avoid costly changes later.
Tip: Start and grow with an MVP. Don’t waste time building unnecessary functionality. Decide what’s most important and start with that.
Based on your requirements, you can choose different technologies. For example,
Tip: If you want high-performing apps with platform-specific features, go with native development.
While choosing a partner, look beyond the cost. Evaluate their portfolio, technical expertise, and, most importantly, how well they communicate.
We’ll dive deeper into this topic later on in the blog: How to choose the right development company.
Typically, a timeline can vary from 3 to 6 months, depending on the complexity of your requirements. Here’s a breakdown of the timeline.
Phase 1: Planning and design
2-4 weeks
Phase 2: Development
5-10 weeks
Phase 3: Testing
4-8 weeks
Phase 4: App Store Submission
1-2 weeks
This includes developers, designers, QA engineers, and project managers. We recommend interviewing key team members to ensure they fit your project needs.
This includes communication tools, development environment, and reporting structure.
The potential cost savings are the marquee benefit of outsourcing mobile app development, but that’s not all. Here are some of the major benefits why you should choose offshore mobile development:
Cost optimization
We have seen companies save 40-60% on development costs compared to hiring local teams. This isn’t just lower hourly rates – you also save on infrastructure, requirements, and employee benefits.
Global talent access
You can find the exact expertise your project needs. Need a React native expert? Or perhaps a flutter specialist? The global talent pool has you covered.
Round-the-clock development
With teams working across different time zones, development progresses round-the-clock.
Our clients usually see their projects completed 30-40% faster than traditional approaches.
Scale as you grow
The offshore team offers flexibility. You can expand your team for major feature push and scale down after the launch without any HR complexities.
Focus on growing your business
The most strategic benefit is that you can concentrate on business strategy, marketing, and building customer relationships. Your offshore team handles technical development.
Offshore development often comes with some challenges, however their impact varies based on your offshore partner.
Communication
Can be tricky across time zones and cultures. We’ve found that setting clear communication protocols, using the right collaboration tools, and maintaining regular video meetings helps bridge this gap.
Time zone differences
Can delay critical decisions. Setting clear overlap hours and having emergency communication channels helps maintain smooth operations.
Cultural differences
Can impact project execution. The key is to foster cultural awareness and establish clear work expectations from the start.
Quality concerns
Often comes up when discussing offshore development. You can avoid this by implementing robust quality assurance processes and choosing partners with proven track records.
At Proshore, we maintain strict coding standards and regular code reviews to ensure consistent quality.
App store compliance
Can be challenging with offshore teams. Different regions may have varying familiarity with platform guidelines.
We ensure compliance through:
Device fragmentation
Especially in Android development, which requires extensive testing.
We manage this through:
Offshore development often comes with some challenges, and their impact can be severe, depending on your offshore partner.
It’s important to consider factors beyond costs while selecting a destination for your development. Each region offers unique advantages and challenges.
To help you narrow down your search, we have compiled a list of top countries:
Known for its massive tech talent pool and mature IT industry.
Advantages
Challenges
Emerging as a reliable development hub with strong technical talent.
Advantages
Challenges
Preferred for complex technical projects and European collaboration
Advantages
Challenges
Ideal for US-based companies seeking nearshore options
Advantages
Challenges
Want to learn more about choosing the right destination? Check out our detailed guide on the best offshore development countries.
You now have all the information you need about offshore mobile development. The next clear step is to choose the right development partner, as they can make or break your project.
During the selection process, you need to focus on these key areas:
Track record and portfolio
Review their past work, particularly projects similar to yours. At Proshore, we encourage clients to examine our case studies and speak with previous clients.
You can look for:
Communication standards
As we already discussed, effective communication is important for offshore success. You need to evaluate
Technical expertise
You need to verify the team’s technical capabilities. Ask for
Contract and pricing structure
Make sure your contract includes
At Proshore, we have onboarded clients who have tried different offshore partners before coming to us. According to them, here are a few red flags you should avoid:
With 15 years of experience, multiple clients, and app and feature releases we combine technical excellence with reliable delivery. Our dual presence in the Netherlands and Nepal offers you:
We can help you get started in 15 minutes.