CPOT

There are 7 crucial stages of the construction app development process from a business point of view:

1. Clarifying the vision
2. Choosing a partner
3. Wireframes & Design
4. Project Kick-off & Setup
5. App development
6. Release Preparation
7. App Maintenance

Read more about every stage in our guide through the mobile app development process.

In short, according to our 10 years of experience and market knowledge:

• A basic mobile app for 1 platform costs $25,000 – $50,000
• A medium-complexity app for 1 platform costs around $50,000 – $100,000
• A complex app for 1 platform costs more than $100,000

Read this article to understand where these numbers come from, what they mean in practice, and how to reduce your construction app development cost with our battle-tested practices. If you want to know your app development cost more precisely, we can estimate it within 72 hours – fill a short form here.

Building a custom construction app comes with several key advantages:

• You get exactly the features you need. Out-of-the-box solutions are made to match the requirements of as many potential users as possible. That’s why you often end up paying for a ton of features you’ll never use. When investing in a custom construction app, you get a piece of proprietary software that does exactly what you need it to do – and helps you to solve problems or achieve key business goals.
• A custom app grows with your business. The team that delivers your tailored app can add new features or change the existing ones based on the evolving needs of your business. You’ll never get stuck with a solution that doesn’t match your requirements anymore. A custom app will always support your business needs.
• Lower long-term costs. The initial cost of developing a custom solution is usually higher than investing in an off-the-shelf software license. But the long-term cost of implementation is often lower because you get a perfectly matching solution that optimizes your operations and you don’t risk depending on a single provider (that might increase license pricing anytime).

A mobile app for the construction industry takes advantage of many features enabled by mobile devices such as:

• GPS locations, maps, and tracking
• Automatic dates and times
• Updated weather conditions
• Digital signatures
• Photos, videos, and audio files support
• QR and bar codes
• Text notes
• Communication features
• Ability to send data via email, text message, in-app messaging features, or automatically to backend systems
• Data storage in the cloud for border access

You’ve decided to make an app with a professional construction app development company. The process of choosing the right partner may seem challenging for businesses or entrepreneurs, especially if you are doing it for the first time.

If you want to pick the best mobile app development company for your contractor app development, you’re probably wondering how to do that. We recommend you verify a few factors. Here’s a checklist:

• Check out their portfolio. Have they built products similar to yours? Do they have experience in working with companies from your industry?
• Check their profile and clients’ reviews on Clutch.co
• Ask for detailed information about the code. Will you have full ownership of the code created by the company? Will the code be hosted in code repositories like Bitbucket or Github? Make sure the code will be written in English.
• Learn how they organize the process of construction app development. What tools do they use? Do they work in Scrum or other Agile frameworks?
• Consult the Independent Contractor Agreement with a lawyer before signing it.
• Compare the estimation you get with the estimation from another company.

If you want to learn more about each of the above points, read our guide for businesses on how to choose the best mobile app development company.

These are a few examples of the best construction apps that improve productivity within the construction industry:

Building Calculator

A free construction calculator app for Android, Building Calculator helps contractors to calculate the amount of materials required by their projects. The calculator works offline and includes a wide range of material options, from bricks and lumber to flooring and paint. Contractors can also use it to calculate armatures weight, concrete volume, and the required wall blocks.

PlanGrid

One of the most popular free construction apps, PlanGrid works on both Android and iOS. This collaborative tool renders paper blueprints a thing of the past by synchronizing all the key data in the cloud. Construction business owners can use it to view and share many materials: blueprints, notes, and drawings but also issue tracking, field markups, and progress photos. The application includes a version control function to keep everything in order.

CPOT

This innovative app aims to digitally transform road maintenance in the Nordic countries. Offered by NCC – one of the leading construction companies in Europe – the application changes the entire process of reporting and repairing road damages. Users can take a picture of road damage, indicate its position on a map, use a label, and order the required materials directly from their smartphone. The entire ordering process now takes just a few clicks. App users also get an overview of their orders and can easily keep track of their budgets.

Fieldwire

Fieldwire is a free task management construction app available for both Android and iOS. Thanks to this app, field workers can check up-to-date files, blueprints, and tasks on their mobile devices while on site. And contractors can use it to add tasks, link them to locations and blueprints, set specific deadlines for assigned workers, and add various priority levels for clarity. You can create a punch list, share drawings with other workers, add attachments, and create comprehensive reports.

The process of ordering repairs for damaged curb or road surface or curb may be very ineffective. Most of the time, a road inspector needs to take notes, return to the office, describe the damage once more, and finally make an order using an ERP system. Reporting and describing the damage immediately on-site is now possible with construction software solutions. Thanks to a specialized mobile app, the inspector can determine damage location precisely, send a picture of road damage, add custom labels to organize work, and order the needed materials directly from their smartphone.