Many organisations depend on mobile applications to expand their business operations and maximise overall customer engagement. With global mobile app revenue reaching approximately $935 billion in 2024 (Netguru), businesses must make strategic decisions while developing apps.
The first step for mobile application development is choosing the right platform, and businesses mainly select from two main development platforms, i.e., native and cross-platform app development.
In this blog, we will explore the differences between native and cross-platform mobile app development, the benefits and limitations of each, and the best practices for cross-platform development. With detailed tips related to selecting the correct platform for the different requirements of your businesses, you can choose the best mobile application development software for your company without any confusion.
Moreover, you’ll also see how app development consultants from Patternbots can support your mobile app development journey.
Understanding native and cross-platform development
Before choosing any one platform for your mobile app development, it is necessary to know more about native and cross-platform development:
Native development
In native development, mobile applications are basically created for a particular operating system, i.e., either for Android or iOS. Developers use different platform-specific tools and languages for each operating system:
- For Android: Kotlin or Java is used while working on Android Studio.
- For iOS: Swift or Objective-C is used along with Xcode.
These are commonly used languages and frameworks but can be altered as per your current requirements. Since native app development focuses on a specific platform, OS-specific features are also leveraged in it, making the user experience smoother and allowing high-end performance.
Cross-platform development
In cross-platform development, applications that can easily run on multiple operating systems are created. A single codebase is used for such apps, using frameworks like:
- React Native by Meta, which uses JavaScript.
- Flutter by Google, which uses Dart.
- .NET MAUI by Microsoft (previously known as Xamarin), which uses C# and XAML.
Since there is a single codebase, cross-platform application development saves time and development costs.
Pros and cons of native and cross-platform development
Here’s a quick comparison of the advantages and disadvantages of both the mobile app development platforms:
Pros and cons of native app development
| Pros | Cons |
| Since native apps are built specifically for one OS, the functionality and speed of the application are optimised. | Since separate codebases are required for iOS and Android, development costs increase. |
| The user experience of native apps is better since platform-specific UI/UX guidelines are followed. | Developing two different versions of the same app on other platforms can increase the time-to-market launch. |
| Native mobile apps can be published quickly and rank higher on the specific platform’s app store because of better performance and speed. | Hiring separate iOS and Android developers can be challenging and pose extra business expenses. |
Pros and cons of cross-platform app development
| Pros | Cons |
| A single codebase for both iOS and Android reduces the overall development costs significantly. | Cross-platform apps may not perform as fast and efficiently as native apps, especially in the case of high-performance applications. |
| Since code is written once and deployed across different platforms, time-to-market is reduced. | Some of the OS-specific features may require custom native modules, causing complexity in development. |
| Bug fixes and app updates can be made easily across all the platforms because of the single codebase. | The apps might face a UI/UX experience issue, as each OS has different design guidelines. |
Best practices for cross-platform app development
Cross-platform app development has become a popular choice among developers because it lets them create applications that run smoothly across different operating systems without writing separate code for each platform. To use this mobile application development platform in a better way, these best practices can be followed:
1. Choose the right framework
Always select the right framework for your application as per the project requirements. React Native goes well with business apps and application development software; Flutter is proven best for UI flexibility and performance, while Xamarin works well for enterprise applications.
2. Optimise app performance
Focus on the app performance, as cross-platform apps sometimes have performance issues. You can optimise it by leveraging profiling tools to identify and resolve bottlenecks, reducing unnecessary dependencies, and using native modules.
3. Ensure UI consistency across all platforms
Make sure that there is UI/UX consistency in your mobile application development software. Adapting to platform-specific design guidelines will also help in ensuring a smooth user experience.
4. Test on real devices
Test the mobile application on different devices, screen sizes, and OS versions to identify the compatibility issues and address them promptly. You can also use automated testing tools to streamline the testing process.
5. Focus on security and updates
Implement a secure authentication mechanism to encrypt sensitive information. You should also regularly update the app to ensure compatibility with the latest OS versions. This way, you can easily leverage new features and improvements.
Making the right choice: native vs. cross-platform
The selection of a mobile application development platform significantly affects the cost, time, and UI of the app. With all the above-mentioned tips, you can easily select the right development platform. If you’re still confused, here are some additional tips:
How can PatternBots help?
If you are finding it difficult to choose between native and cross-platform development, PatternBots can help you with that. Our app development consultants specialise in guiding companies in selecting the right mobile application development platform for their business.
We will help analyse your business needs, budget, and performance expectations. As an app development consultancy, we have expertise in both native and cross-platform solutions. As per the latest industry standards and trends, we will help you choose the best platform for your app.
Conclusion
Both native and cross-platform development have their own set of advantages and drawbacks. The decision of choosing one depends completely on your project requirements, budget, timeline, and performance expectations. If you want to have the best performance, security, and user experience, native development will be the right choice.
However, if cost efficiency and faster deployment are your priorities, you should consider cross-platform development. By understanding these differences and following best practices for cross-platform app development, businesses can create high-quality mobile applications. For more advanced and high-end mobile app development, Patternbots can help you with its expert app development consultants.
Frequently Asked Questions
Cross-platform mobile app development is the process of building applications that can run on multiple operating systems, like iOS and Android, using a single codebase.
Cross-platform apps can perform as fast and smoothly as native apps with optimised code and proper development. However, native apps may still work better in performance-intensive tasks.
Native apps are designed for a specific platform (iOS or Android) using platform-orientated languages. On the other hand, cross-platform apps use the same or shared codebase for multiple platforms.
Developers face different difficulties while creating cross-platform apps, like restricted access to features depending upon specific platforms, UI inconsistency across various platforms, and debugging and maintenance challenges.
For developing cross-platform mobile apps, there are certain best practices, like following the right framework as per project requirements, optimising the performance as per the native modules, using UI components that are platform-specific, and regularly testing the app on real devices. This way, a consistent user experience can be ensured.
Cross-platform development affects the user experience because of platform differences and the same codebase. However, the same functionality and interface improve overall user engagement.