How much does it cost to develop a City Service App like DubaiNow?

With the endless bustle of both working and private life, people view technology as a tool that helps with tasks. This area’s key contributor is mobile applications. Nowadays, we have applications for every request, from ordering food to booking a car or using city services. 

You thought I was joking, you’re wrong, today we’ll be discussing the city service app. Among all the applications within this category, the most recognized one is DubaiNow. Many of us may have come across this application I guess. 

Otherwise, allow me to introduce this to your notice. 

DubaiNow- What is it?

Well, It’s an app, which helps residents in Dubai coordinate more than 248 services. In its simplest definition, it is an app providing access to local services that can otherwise prove to be inconvenient for the residents of a city to get on their own. Such services may range from making payments for utilities to renewing car registrations and even making permit applications.

Easy peasy, right? 

But what does it take to develop such an app and what is the cost implication? You definitely may have this question in your mind right away if you are planning to develop something like this. 

Do not fret because this blog will address the answers to these questions. Read through this, you will have an idea of how much it will cost to build a city service app like DubaiNow. Besides, you will also learn how such an app is developed at the same time that you are reading the guide.

Starting this off we must know the market figure.

Market Overview of City Service Apps like DubaiNow

Mobile applications are on the rise and city service applications have become trendy. Statista reports that the mobile app market will drive more than US$420.80bn in total revenue in the year 2022, whereas, its projected market volume is of US$673.80bn by 2027.

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However, the need for applications that make our daily lives easier can never cease, and the same goes for city service applications. These applications provide social satisfaction, no-hassle service, and time utility or saved time superiority to their users globally.

For example, DubaiNow, a popular app, has now been downloaded by over 1 million people. This shows that people trust the app and are excited about Dubai’s digital future.

Now, why invest in a city service app like DubaiNow? You might be wondering if this investment is worth it or not. Well, consider this:

Benefits of Investing in a City Service App

1. High Demand

The need for services to enhance the flows in cities becomes even higher with growth, increase in population and density. With the current increase in demand for city services, an investment in the application will put you ready for this challenge ahead. Moreover, the market size is directly proportional to the population. Dubai has a population of over 3.4 million people as of 2021. If a similar app were to be introduced in a city of comparable size, it would have a similar potential user base.

2. Cost Efficiency

Which brings us to another question; you expect that creating a city service application means spending a lot of cash right? It actually saves on costs in the long run. The great circulation of digitized services leads to a city requiring much less infrastructure and less manpower. Reduced operating costs equals greater returns for the investors. You would think it’s some sort of win-win situation.

3. Data Collection

The next, more tangible kind of advantage of developing a city service app like DubaiNow would be the unparalleled data that these applications gather. In this manner, using one city service application, you will get information about users’ behavior, preferences, and requirements. These are key factors, that may be so useful in improving all the services being rendered and therefore guarantee satisfaction. Also, the decisions that are undertaken on an analytical basis generally are better.

4. Stronger User Interaction

Applications for city services are more engaging for a user: notifications, reminders, and individualized dashboards, all these features make it possible to communicate with the application provided more often. And, the more often this application is used – the more often it is needed and helpful – the better it proves its right to be running in the owner’s telephone.

Key Features of the City Service App

Next comes the cost, but it will make sense to consider the feature set that a city service app should comprise. So, a list is presented here,

Admin Features

User Features

AI Features You Can Think of Adding

These are some features that form the backbone for a city service app, but surely not the only elements. For integrating AI features, make sure you partner with an AI App development company that specializes in developing innovative AI solutions for mobile applications.

Now, let’s come to the point:

City Service Apps like DubaiNow Development Costs: The Basics

Regarding the development of city service apps like DubaiNow, there is no identifiable fixed cost. However, one can easily pay anywhere from $50,000 to $200,000 on average depending on so many factors. What affects these costs? Let’s go into the details.

Factors Affecting The Development Costs of City Service Apps Such As DubaiNow

What, therefore, are the key cost drivers in building an app like DubaiNow for delivering city services? Well, here is the breakdown of what you have to consider:

1. Features and Functionality

Among those major cost factors, features and functionality are ones that you would like to put in. The more basic the app, the lower its development cost; the more features and complex it becomes, the higher the development cost.

The basic city service app might include user profiles, payment options, and notification features. However, if you need real-time data or some integrated services this, of course, will take more time, expertise, and hence, money.

2. Design and User Experience

No one enjoys using an application that is bad to use or too painful to master. On the other hand, it advocates that a user-friendly design captures the customer, but good design does not always have to be affordable. 

Typically it happens a company has to keep an extra budget for UX/UI designers. They have to invest more in design. Thus, there are opportunities for success a little higher in this case, therefore it is worth making the deal.

3. Choice of Platform

Which one, iOS, Android, or both are you designing for? Again here the choice influences the cost of developing a city service app. For one platform, however, it may be cheaper to develop. However, getting your app onto both the iOS and Android platforms is beneficial. It will reach as many users as possible due to the high usage rate of smartphones. There are some frameworks for cross-platform application development, like, for example, Flutter, and React Native which for some reason can be more economical. 

4. Back-end Development

A powerful backend helps in manipulating data and taking care of user requests with smoothness, especially in sensitive apps like a city service app. Well-designed backend architecture can feature data encryption and user authentication. Depending on the need for and complexity of back-end integration, this also accounts for the total development cost.

5. Security Measures

Security has nowadays become a big issue with applications handling the personal information of clients. High-level security requires the implementation of additional codes, and this process can be pretty costly for businesses. Strong security integration averages out at 10% above the normal development estimate; however, given a breach can cost millions of dollars, it is rather worth every penny.

6. Maintenance and Updates

It does not mean that after the launch of the city service app, expenses will be over. The regular updates and maintenance will be necessary to keep the app relevant and bug-free. Most of the companies use their initial budget for yearly maintenance. It ensures the functionality and usability of the application for a longer period.

Cost Breakdown: A Hypothetical Example

Let’s say you’re developing a city service app similar to DubaiNow. Here’s a simplified cost estimate based on average figures:

• Basic Features: $50,000 – $100,000
• Advanced Features: $30,000 – $50,000
• UX/UI Design: $20,000 – $40,000
• Platform Development: $50,000 – $80,000 (for both iOS and Android)
• Backend Development: $30,000 – $60,000
• Security Measures: $10,000 – $20,000
• Maintenance: $15,000 – $30,000 per year

How to Develop a City Service App Like DubaiNow

The most entertaining one for creating a city service application such as DubaiNow is a very long process that includes many planning and implementation stages. The following simple steps will take you through the process, be it you are an entrepreneur who possesses good knowledge in the technology, or an individual with a bright idea only. Let’s dive into it!

Step 1: Research and Planning

Pre-work: Therefore, let us first carry out a similar analysis for other city service applications like DubaiNow, identifying the underlying purpose for using such applications, basic features that are incorporated, the layout of the application, feedback or complaints made to know what aspects are appreciated and what is not. Gather data, and move towards developing a plan for the app.

As you said I have depicted a perfect city service app, it should be able to fulfill your target consumers. Who is it for: are the targets; residents, businesses, or tourists? This will ensure that specific audiences are seen as valuable for design and functional purposes in creating allied kinds of applications.

Step 2: Decide on Features of App

What features will your city service mobile application have? Although DubaiNow addresses almost every type of current possible service, you will have stakeholders only for certain audiences. 

Consider these features:

1. Bill Payments: Electricity expenses, water expenses, gas expenses; fines; charges.
2. Service Requests: Concerning specific services concerning, but not limited to, the maintenance or collection of garbage.
3. Transportation: Information on the vehicles are available to the public in terms of areas to find transport systems and parking spaces.
4. Emergency Services: Phone number in case of an emergency An accident, or other three types of information.

Step 3: Select the Right Technology

Selecting the appropriate technology architecture is of paramount importance for your city service app including DubaiNow. The options are native app development which simply means that you hire app developers in India to develop an application for one platform, for the best budget you can get. 

Next is- cross-application development which simply means that you engage mobile app developers for the development of a single or multiple application that will work on several platforms if you are a little tight on your budget. 

Finally, the use of No-Code App Templates which is the least effort used in building an app a little more than the mentioned above. While native applications have great performance, this type of application is fairly expensive; on the other hand, cross-platform applications are substantially cost-effective.

Step 4: Design the User Interface

This is where creativity meets functionality: designing the UI. The feature being focused on should allow the purpose of the application to be brought in and the UI design should be compelling. It is recommended to use buttons, fonts, and colors of the same hue throughout the text of the city service app. Note that if the app interface is done correctly by a designer, the audience’s retention increases to 200%.

Step 5: Develop and Test

Once the concept is finalized, it is time to build your city service app like DubaiNow. If you are not a developer then it’s best to hire the best mobile app development company in India. Development is the process of transforming your design into a working product, so there must always be cooperation with both designers and app developers.

Moreover, testing is one of an equally or even more significant stage of development. Check your application compatibility with the help of testing on various devices and operating systems. Then, you can perform beta testing where you get feedback from actual users and make necessary alterations. Well well-integrated user experience will take a long way in enhancing the success of an application.

Step 6: Launch and Market Your App

Well, your city service app is ready to be in the market or to be publicly available to the users. Well, how are those involved going to be informed about this? Development is not less important than marketing. 

You can advertise your application on social networks, application stores and local fairs and exhibitions, and describing its functions will enrich people’s lives by minimizing the role of personal efforts. 

This puts into perspective the fact that 70%, of the users of apps, find a new app through app store searches. Use keywords in the description that are connected to your solution when creating the description of your app.

Step 7: Gather Feedback and Update

Then the real work begins the path that needs to be followed after the launch. Frequency and, in particular, the specified update according to the users’ feedback are very useful for staying topical. 

Get in touch to ask for feedback from users or to get recommendations and recommendations. An update to your city service app isn’t just fixing a bug; an updated app is always engaging and keeps the users on their toes.

Final Thought

As we know developing a city service application like ‘DubaiNow’ is not a cup of tea; it is quite satisfying instead. City life can be made so easy if an app is well developed and implemented, therefore one should plan and implement it well to get a variety of users.

The nature and cost of developing such an app depend on many factors. But everything can be done with appropriate planning of the financial flows and rather wise decisions it is possible to build the given vision.

Therefore, developing a city service application is a good investment given the rising use of smart technology in our everyday lives. Moving further, if you are planning to invest in this market, now is probably the best time to look for the right technology partner like iWebservices. 

Here you will find a complete set of custom mobile application services to satisfy your various needs and allow our dedicated teams to design state Functional city service applications that would contribute to the creation of better living conditions in cities and efficient organizational functions.

Frequently Asked Questions 

Q1. What is a city service app?  

An example of a city service app is single-point access to various governmental and/or utility services, such as bill payments, car registrations, and permits.

Q2. How much does it cost to develop a city service application?  

The cost of developing a city service app lies between $50,000 – $200,000. However, additional functionality may bring the price up to $ 300,000 and above.

Q3. How long does it takes to develop a city service app?  

Development time is not fixed, usually ranges for 6 to 12 months, for developing feature rich application, time could increase for testing, modifying and deployment.

Q4. Which technologies are applied to a city service application?  

Some of the choices you have are Flutter, React Native, Xamarin, etc to engage in native development for both iOS and Android. Back-end systems in many cases employ Node.js, Python or Java.

Q5. Is it possible to use artificial intelligence and chatbots in my city service application?  

Indeed, the AI chatbot and voice assistant can be synchronous in real-time usage for user’s assistance, service suggestions, and other aspects such as predictive maintenance.

Q6. If I were to design my city service app, should I have to include a multiple-language support feature?

Yes, multilingual support is important as there can be multiple language speaking audience and, in large metropolitan areas such as Dubai.

Q7. What kind of revenue model does city service apps?

Sources of income can be through –

Commission-based fees: Charging a percentage on transactions facilitated through the app, such as payments for permits or licenses.

Subscription fees: Offering premium features or exclusive services to users for a monthly or annual subscription fee.

Advertising revenue: Displaying ads from local businesses or government agencies within the app.

Data monetization: Analyzing user data to derive insights and selling these insights to businesses or government agencies.

Direct partnerships: Collaborating with city agencies to provide specific services, charging fees for these services.

Q8. Is having a government partnership necessary to develop an app for city services?  

Even though it is not obligatory to partner with local government agencies, they offer official data, additional services, and a larger audience.

Arpana K

Arpana is an integral member of the iWebServices team, bringing her expertise and dedication to our content marketing and insights efforts. With a talent for creating engaging and informative content, Arpana plays a vital role in ensuring our messaging resonates with our audience. Her keen understanding of market trends and her ability to translate data into actionable strategies make her a valuable asset to our team. Arpana’s contributions to our blog are filled with insightful perspectives and practical advice, helping our readers navigate the dynamic landscape of digital marketing.