When developing a mobile app, one of the first decisions you need to make is which platform you wish to launch your app on. Android and iOS apps are created using different programming languages, though there are tools like React Native that allow you to develop apps for both platforms using a shared codebase.
Globally, Android devices have a massive lead over iOS, claiming over 70% of the market. In certain countries, however, this split is reversed. In the USA and Japan, for example, Apple holds around 60% of the market share.
Even if you plan to launch on both, each platform’s audience is quite different and a clear understanding of your target market is vital for the success of your app.
Differences between audiences on each platform
- Number of apps – Since there are more users on Android, gobally, there are more apps on the app store compared to iOS. This means that you may need to do more marketing to help your app stand out from the competition.
- Source of income – Your source of revenue may be different depending on which platform you launch on. Income from apps in Apple’s App Store tends to come from app purchases and in-app purchases, while apps in Google’s Play Store are often free to download and use but generate income through in-app advertisements.
- Spending power – One of the main differences between Android and iOS users is disposable income. Apple’s target audience tends to be more affluent, whereas Android phones can be found across a wide price range, from budget phones to premium models.
- Tech savviness – Android tends to attract users who are interested in tinkering with their devices as it is more customisable than iOS, which is purposefully designed to be a closed ecosystem. There is also a large selection of Android devices to choose from, allowing users to pick a phone based on the features they find most important, and in the size that they prefer. The choice is much narrower for iOS devices but, because of this, the software is very well optimised for the hardware it’s running on.
Get the experts in Android and iOS
Netgen uses React Native so that we can develop apps for both Android and iOS. If you’re looking to develop an app for either platform or for both, contact Netgen today.