When it comes to business-critical software, businesses essentially have two options to choose from: web apps and native apps. Each one has its pros and cons, so it can be difficult to figure out what might be the best option, and ultimately, this is a decision that is groomed through the experience and expertise of your IT software development provider and your organization’s unique requirements.

Cosmetically and Functionally Similar

To be sure, a web app and a native app can both look and function in an almost identical way. And don’t let the term, “app” confuse you. While that term may automatically connote a mobile phone or tablet app, that isn’t necessarily the case. It can, but both a native and a web app also refer to software that runs on a desktop or laptop and both are considered cloud-based software applications.

Native Apps

Native apps are standalone, which means there’s no need to open the browser. The software application is written for a specific platform (iOS, MacOS, Android). These software products are usually downloaded from the Apple App or Google Play stores and they run on the specific devices operating system.

Web Apps

Web apps are so called because they run via a web browser on any device (desktop, laptop, tablet, phone). They are not programmed for a specific operating system.  There’s no need to download anything and updates to the software appear automatically. Because web apps are device agnostic, they don’t require a separate codebase for different operating systems and therefore, they are less expensive to develop and maintain.

Deciding Which One to Pick

In most cases, a web app is going to be the better choice when deciding on the technology for your organization’s custom software application. Technology has advanced to the point where a web app and a native app are nearly indistinguishable from each other and in time, the perceived benefits of a native app are continuing to disappear. For example, until recently, one of the benefits of a native app over a web app was that a native app was available when a user was offline whereas a web app required a constant internet connection. However, now, progressive web apps allow even web apps to be fully available when the user is offline. Further, the trend continues to move in favor of web apps over native apps. For example, Intuit recently decided to phase out their native desktop app for QuickBooks in favor of moving all of their users to their browser-based web app version.

Ultimately, perhaps the most convincing reason to consider a web app over a native app is the drastic cost difference. As mentioned previously, web apps don’t need to be written in multiple operating system languages, and they don’t need to go through the app/google play store approval process, both of which can be costly. If your business needs a business critical back-end or customer-facing portal, it likely can be achieved with considerable cost savings as a browser-based web app.