Demystifying Dating App Development Costs: What to Expect

We’ve been witnessing a transformation in the world regarding digitization for decades now. We witnessed how shopping for clothes and groceries made its way through the internet and has now reached a point that a person standing at a physical store looking at some product picks out his phone and checks its price online and then makes a decision.

From clothes to groceries to even fresh commodities, mobile applications have got us covered, and dating is no exception today. But make sure you hire remote developers team from the best service providers which can help you not only to make an innovative and efficient dating app but also help you save on development costs.

Why is the dating app business worth it today?

While everyone has applauded the social media platforms to connect with people and their friends online, there is another thing that people seem really grateful for- dating apps. Gone are the days when someone would bump into a person of interest in a library or a conventional store and go on a date and find out if they are the one.

In this era of digital connections, a vast variety of businesses have emerged with some of the best app ideas for startups, offering immense potential for growth and success. Today, everything has shifted online and so has the dating culture. It is highly preferred by a huge populace. So to say, there were as many as 336 million online dating app users as of 2022.

Dating apps took a hike in their usage and preference by the target audience. The revenue generated by these dating apps went up to 2.86 billion US dollars in the year 2022. By 2027, the estimated number of people seeking love online is 440 million, and research evidence shows there’s no slowing down in this sector even after that.

So, if you’re thinking of building a dating app, now is your chance when people have become habitual of texting and using online mediums to get the conventional things done.

Though a dating app is usually favored but to cater to a wider range of audiences with your dating business brand across multiple devices having a website is mandatory. So keep an eye on the cost to start a dating website, this will put you in a better position to plan your dating business with a 360 degree approach when needed. Regarding the expenses, we are here to help you with the dating app development cost.

How much does it cost to build a dating app?

There are various features that can affect the cost to build a dating app. These costs are inferred at each stage of the development process. In other words, the cost of making a dating app can vary based on the type of app being developed, the developers chosen, the location of the developer or development company, the complexity of the app, and many other factors.

Here, we are going to talk about the cost to develop a dating app deriving from the complexity of the app and its features. As an estimate, when you hire developers, the overall cost to create a dating app starts from $ 20000.

• Simple- A simple dating app caters to the preferential needs of the customers, has a separate dashboard for profiles, and allows the user to mention his/her interests. The simple dating app development cost starts from $ 20000.
• Medium- Dating apps with social media integration, and other APIs, is basically the one ranging in the medium level of complexity. The cost to build a medium dating app starts from $ 30000
• Complex- This kind of app has various advanced features that help the user make specific preferences, pick up the particular choices of people, has social media integration, gamification, and other advanced features to keep the user engaged with the app and get them the best results. The cost to build a dating app like this start from $ 60000.

For better clarification, we have bifurcated the budget based on app development complexity.

• Cost for simple dating app with basic features starts from $ 20,000
• Cost for mid-size dating app with some latest features starts from $ 30,000
• Cost for complex dating app with advanced features starts from $ 60,000

Factors that influence the cost to build a Dating App

At this point, since you already know how much does it cost to develop a dating app, you will be interested in knowing how the dating app development budget is estimated.

We will look at the most important factors that have a major impact on the dating app development cost for both – Android and iOS platforms. The device fragmentation issue associated with Android and high-quality requirements with the iOS platform brings variation in the cost. Here’s the overview:

• Dating App Type & Features
• Mobile Dating App Functionalities
• Dating App UI/UX Design Complexity
• Mobile Dating App Testing and QA
• Dating App Security
• Dating Mobile App Complexity & tech stack
• Location of hired Developer or Development Company
• Dating App maintenance, support, and updates

Cost based on clone vs fresh from scratch

While there are so many dating apps floating around in the market, it becomes a headache for the owner to decide what is it that the audience now demands that they can include in their dating application. You can go through a brief cost comparison for the two options.

There are several dating apps floating around in the market and are doing exceptionally well. But there is one name that comes to mind whenever there’s a mention of dating apps-Tinder. This app has changed the face of online dating apps. Thus, if you are to build a dating app, you need to compare the Tinder app development cost with yours.

Look at how the costs differ if you’re building a fresh dating app from scratch and the Tinder clone app development cost.

• Tinder clone app development costs start from $15000
• Cost to make a Custom dating app from scratch starts from $ 20000

Note- A custom dating app is considered as the basic app with only the most essential dating app features and functionalities.

How does geographic location affect the Cost of building a dating app?

The more complex the dating app you want to build, the more costly it is going to be. The app development budget estimation depends a lot on the geographical region. It is one of the important factors based on which the cost range varies a lot depending on the location of the service provider hired. To provide you with a better idea about how the cost to build a dating app varies based on location let’s check the budget at some of the popular locations for mobile app development in the world.

• If your development team is based in U.S.A or Canada, the cost of making a dating app can range from $125-$220 per hour.
• In Eastern Europe, the cost will range from $70-$150 per hour.
• In India, the cost will range from $20-$60 per hour.

How long does it take to build a dating app?

Stating how long a dating app would take to build is entirely dependent on the complexity and the developers working on the application. The time and costs of developing an app are typically conditional on various factors and can only be apprised by a company like ours which has years of experience building apps. The development time of a dating app can be somewhere around 333 to 533 hours.

Although a dating app development can be done and dusted in around 200 hours only, there are certain factors that seem to stretch it a little further. As a said rule, the more complex the app, the more time it will take to take shape. Thus, though the numbers provided above are derived from the previous experience of developing dating apps, these can change based on the complexity of features that you wish to put into your app.

Why Prismetric to build you a robust dating app?

Dating apps are gaining the popularity they deserve, especially at this time when people are in a rat race every day and need an escape. The prevalence of dating apps has been known to increase in the past few years because of the results that the audience is receiving. At this point, you can contact an experienced and professional mobile app development company to build a dating app as a win-win. The costs inferred by the development procedure have been mentioned above while discreetly mentioning the cost in different cases of development.

Ketan Chavda

With in-depth knowledge in International Business Management and Information Technology, he can effectively craft business enhancement strategies and can skillfully untangle technical complexities. This has laid the path for him as the Co-Founder and MD of Prismetric . Writing about the new age technology and sharing his thoughts on the continuously evolving business trends keep him content.