Top UK App Developers [2020]

If you’re searching for a UK app developer then you’ve come to the right place. The UK has been referred to as a “powerhouse” of the global app development market, and for iOS, Android and Cross Platform, the data backs it all up.

In 2019, 79% of adults in UK owned a smartphone. On average brits spent 2 hours and 34 minutes interacting with their smartphones on a daily basis, spending 1 out of 5 minutes on social media. 72% of mobile connections in UK were 4G.

The app development market naturally follows, with plenty of app developers both in London and beyond, another hub being Manchester. This guide looks at the UK app development scene in detail, counting up the cost of having a mobile application developed in the country. It covers what you should think about when choosing an app developer in the UK and then lists some of the best companies who operate in the country.

We have put this list of UK app developers together based on our own research, suggestions from our network and based on rankings and data from other third party sources and sites. The list is in no particular order, rather we have tried to aggregate and curate a range of useful suggestions for UK app development shops. Whether you choose to work with them or not is up to you to decide. This guide is divided into four sections, providing background on the market, typical app development costs and the best way to make your selection before providing some more details on specific app development companies operating in the UK market.

Top UK App Developers

iTechArt GroupCustom software development company

Tapptitudemobile apps with attitude

RantmediaThink. Make. Innovate.

You can jump to the start of each section using the section headings below:

• The app developer market in the UK
• UK app development costs and statistics
• How to choose app developers in the UK
• Best UK App Developers

We begin with an overview of the app developer market in the UK.

The app developer market in the UK

It’s a strong one.

Revenues in the UK app developer market are forecast to be more than £31 billion by 2025, and according to a report by Vision Mobile, the economy will be worth more than £30 billion by 2030.

App developers can be found all over the United Kingdom, but the majority is clustered around London. Of its 8000 app-development-related companies (around a fifth of all European app development agencies), 31% are located in the capital, and about 25% of those in the south-east part of the city.

Location of app development companies in UK

Source: SlashData

It’s estimated that these together employ 380,000 people (though not all of them are developers – this includes designers, admin and marketing people involved in the app industry.)

With all signs that the industry is growing, what kind of prices can you expect to develop a mobile application in the UK?

UK app development costs

How do UK app development costs measure up globally?

Globally, an iOS mobile app development price tag is in a ballpark of $28,000, for Android its $23,000 and $18,000 for a Window Phone OS.

The UK has some of the best app developers in the world, and thus costs can be close to the global average. According to this app development price calculator, a single platform app could cost £ 38,000, while a two-platform app can reach £42,000. These costs are calculated for developing an app from scratch, with a multi-lingual interface, a user account, in-app purchases and custom UI design.

The amount a developer charges per hour also comes close to global highs. Below you can find a graph for the estimated minimum and maximum you can expect to pay hourly for an app developer to work on your iOS or Android app.

Median cost of mobile app development in select regions worldwide, by platform

Data source: Statista

The reason for the high price is quality: not only are some of the best app developers in the world found here, but many US firms have offices here – while not technically from the UK, they operate on the territory and raise the average.

Having had a glimpse of the cost and skill of the developers in the UK, how do you go about choosing one?

How to choose app developers in the UK

There’s a few things you should know:

Two major sections: the research you can do on your own, and the interview phase with the app developer, where you’ll explore their skills and expertise while they try to understand your business and your app. The research you can do at home is as follows:

• Review their portfolio: not only to see how many apps they’ve made and how successful they’ve been, but also to see which industries they’ve worked for. A niche social network app has vastly different characteristics and challenges to a mobile enterprise app for industry. Experience in your specific field of business is just as important as development skills.
• Recommendations: ask others in your industry who have launched successful apps to recommend a developer, or find out who made the most successful apps if there’s an industry benchmark.
• Check out our Market Place: You’ll find a wealth of information and app developer profiles in Business of App’s Marketplace.

 Top 5 UK App Development Companies, by Twitter Followers

Source: Twitter

Best UK App Developers

These the top app development companies with offices in the UK. They’re not ranked in any order, they’re just “the best.” We’ve gone for a mix of budgets, skills and expertise as well as made sure to choose companies from all over the UK, not just in London.

• Netsells
• iTechArt Group
• The Distance
• Rantmedia
• Borne
• Tapptitude
• 3 Sided Cube
• Eleks
• GeekyAnts
• 3 Edge Technologies
• Juego Studios
• Apadmi
• Chelsea Apps
• Pocket App
• Glance

List of mobile app development companies in the UK