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The Pros and Cons of Hybrid Mobile App Development
Ravi Sharma
April 25, 2024

The Pros and Cons of Hybrid Mobile App Development

Mobile apps have become an integral part of our daily lives, catering to various needs, from communication to entertainment and business transactions to productivity. According to a report, the global development market size of mobile applications is anticipated to reach $777.4 billion by 2032 with a CAGR of 20.4%.

Within this market, with an increasing number of businesses choosing this approach in building their mobile applications, hybrid mobile apps are gaining prominence.

Hybrid mobile application development maintains an excellent balance between native and web applications. It leverages web technologies such as HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript, etc., which can be used for developing cross-platform codebases for apps capable of running on multiple OSs.

Nevertheless, like any other development methodology, there are advantages and disadvantages of using hybrid mobile app development that should be considered before starting a project.

In this blog post, we will give you a detailed overview of the pros and cons of hybrid mobile app development. So, without any further ado, let’s get started. 

Table of Contents:

Understanding Hybrid Mobile App Development

There has been a considerable rise in the popularity of hybrid mobile app development during the past years as it provides an affordable way of building applications that work across different operating systems at the same time. One of the reasons why there is a growing trend towards hybrid development is its low cost.

According to a study, businesses can save up to 60% on app development costs by choosing hybrid over native development. This potential for cost savings comes from allowing a single codebase to be used across various platforms, hence reducing the development time and resources needed.

Also Read: The Ultimate Guide to Choosing the Right Platform for Your Mobile App Development

Pros of Hybrid Mobile App Development

Here are some pros of hybrid mobile application development. 

  1. Cost-Effective: Developers can build hybrid applications like Androids, iOS, and others using a single codebase as opposed to separate applications for each platform. This saves time and other resources in the process. Further, as the hybrid app framework requires less budget, startups prefer using it.
  2. Quicker Development: Frameworks such as Ionic, React Native, or Xamarin are some of the tools that developers can rely on during hybrid development. This makes it possible for developers to have an app within a short period, helping companies to stay ahead in terms of competition.
  3. Cross-Platform Compatibility: The moment you develop an app, it should work efficiently across all networks with different operating systems. Hybrid mobile apps can run on both Android and iOS phones without making any major adjustments. This substantially increases the apps’ coverage across different devices.
  4. Easier Maintenance: As there is one codebase used in hybrid apps, updating and maintaining them is much easier than native ones. For instance, changes made within the codebase would be updated simultaneously on all platforms, hence reducing maintenance costs by minimizing the effort and time consumed by updates.
  5. Device Features Access: A hybrid app framework offers access to native device features like cameras, GPS, accelerometers, and many more through various plugins. Consequently, it creates an opportunity for app developers who desire feature-rich apps that utilize a set of available capabilities within the device, thereby enhancing user experience.

Cons of Hybrid Mobile App Development 

While hybrid mobile app development offers numerous benefits, it is not free from limitations. Some drawbacks are as follows: 

  1. Performance Limitations: One of the major limitations of hybrid applications is their poor performance as compared to native apps. Hybrid mobile apps run within a native container and, therefore, cannot be as fast or responsive as the ones built natively. As such, there are possible problems, such as slow loading times, stuttering animations, and reduced overall user satisfaction.
  2. Limited Native Functionality: While hybrid frameworks can provide access to some native capabilities using plugins, they may not be able to match the functionality or performance offered by natively developed solutions. In simpler words, certain complicated features or hardware-related intensive tasks may take a lot of work to accomplish in a hybrid application, thus limiting its functionality.
  3. Dependency on Third-Party Tools: Hybrid development usually depends on third-party tools and frameworks, thereby introducing dependencies and compatibility issues that come with them. Consequently, if there are any changes or updates for these tools, it will directly affect the way the app works itself, and developers should always keep a watchful eye over these changes to adapt accordingly.
  4. User Experience Variability: Hybrid apps, that are nothing but web apps in native wrappers, may not always have the same user experience across various devices and OS. The size of the screen, resolution, and version of OS can determine what an app will look like and how it will behave, hence leading to disparities and challenges in usability. 
  5. Security Concerns: Hybrid apps are subject to more security threats than native apps because they depend on web technologies that are vulnerable to common internet-based attacks. This includes XSS (Cross-Site Scripting) and CSRF (Cross-Site Request Forgery). For hybrid apps to be secure, developers must stick to good coding practices and make regular security updates.

Also Read: The Ultimate Guide to Choosing the Right Hybrid Mobile App Framework for Your Project!

Final Thoughts 

In a nutshell, hybrid mobile apps offer a solution convincing to companies looking forward to having affordable applications that can be used on different platforms at the same time, reducing costs of development and time.

However, you must also bear in mind that hybrid app development has limitations, such as performance problems and security concerns. Therefore, evaluating the specific business requirements, target clientele, and long-term goals will help you better leverage hybrid app development based on your objectives and budget.

Moreover, whether you’re looking to develop immersive mobile applications or improve your eLearning platforms, Hurix Digital has the expertise and dedication to bring your vision to life.

With a focus on state-of-the-art technology, user-centric design, and exceptional client support, Hurix Digital strives to exceed your expectations at every step. To learn more about Hurix Digital’s innovative automation solutions, contact us.