How Much it Costs to Develop an App Like Uber?

The success of Uber has disrupted the taxi market and at the time of writing this article, the company is valued at 50 billion USD. The success of Uber is not just a success of a single app. It’s the success of a whole new type of app. Uber is a platform that has disrupted the taxi market.

Since the success of Uber, there have been a lot of other success stories in the demanding industry. There have been apps like:

• @Hotel Tonight which is Uber for Last Minute Hotels,
• @Nimbl – Uber for cash delivery
• @InstaCart – Uber for Grocery Shopping

And dozens of other Uber types apps such as pharmacy delivery apps and food delivery apps that are disrupting different markets

Uber for X

In this article, I will go through the different components that make up an app like uber and the costs for making a minimum viable product for an app like Uber. Please note that I am covering not just Uber but also “Uber for X” which means estimates for any Uber-like app.

Why Minimum Viable Product?

We believe in lean methodology and believe that an app should only be developed to the point where it can start generating feedback from users. Uber now has advanced infrastructure, and smart algorithms, and has even experimented with things like helicopter rides, and ride-sharing. However, it took it a while to get there.

To be successful in another segment like cash delivery or grocery shopping, only a minimum viable product or the most desired set of features is needed. More development can be done once there is some traction.

Uber App Components

• There will be two apps. One for the driver and one for the user.
• Let’s list down the components required for each.

Driver App

The driver app is considered a separate app because it only has features related to drivers. It can be either only on android or iPhone or both as mostly in some cases the company can control what platform to support for drivers.

1. Driver Signup – Optional
2. Driver Login
3. Driver Car Addition
4. Driver Jobs List
5. Driver Job Display on Map
6. Driver Job History
7. Driver Account Details (for payment) – Optional
8. Accept Jobs
9. Navigate to Destination – Optional (Can use the third party or google navigation in MVP)
10. Order Cancellation
11. Rate User – Optional

Some Notes

Some apps have pre-approved drivers and don’t need signup features. Similarly, with a small number of pre-approved drivers, it may be a better idea to skip the payment options to drivers. This will save costs.

The “pre-approved” or “admin-added drivers” version will also need an admin panel so that the admin can add drivers.

Job Assignment

The job assignment system can either be algorithmic like Uber or can be admin driven where  the admin is manually assigning jobs to users. It is advisable in minimum viable product to keep the algorithm as minimum as required to keep the costs low.

User App

The most important part of the user app is to provide the location and time the service is required. Depending on the kind of service requested, user may need to provide more information as part of the ordering process. For example, if a user is requesting urgent car repair assistance. The user will need to provide his car information so that the driver with expertise on that car can be sent.

Here is the list of features required for the user app.

1. Signup/Login
2. Payment Options – Credit Card, Google Pay, Paypal etc
3. Map View to pick the location
4. Search Location
5. Drop-off location (Optional depending on the service app is providing)
6. Quote for service like Fare in the case of Uber.
7. Promo Code – Optional
8. Driver Information
9. Cancel the order
10. Rate Driver and Feedback
11. Profile.
12. Push Notifications

Approx Costing and Timeline

The cost will vary depending on if the optional things in the app are included or not. I am giving a rough cost excluding the optional features given above and both the Android and iOS platforms.

Price also depends on factors like where you are getting the app developed. In the US or Western Europe, the minimum viable product would cost at least 4 times more than our costs.

Price to Develop Uber User App on iPhone or Android (MVP)

The price to develop an Uber user app for iPhone and Android is around $8,000 per platform. That is around $16,000 for both iPhone and Android platforms.

The price to develop a driver app will be around $6000 per platform. Around $12000 if you develop for both the iPhone and Android Platforms.

The price to develop the backend Content management system and services for this app are estimated to be around $4000.

Total Price and Time

The total price to develop an app from scratch like uber would be approximately $32,000 and the delivery time is about 3 to 4 months.

However, with our on-demand platform, we can help you build your on-demand app for less than $16000. checkout ondemandstartup.com

The components like in-app navigation, driver payments, and driver signups are not included in the above costs.

For detailed estimates, it’s best that you contact us so we can give you the cost of developing your app.