Phases of Application Development Life Cycle

Introduction

With the rise of the digital age, companies are transcending old software development to adopt customized, user-focused application development. A departure from general software offerings, application development emphasizes developing targeted, effective applications to address specific user requirements. The Application Development Life Cycle maximizes quality, efficiency, and business alignment. As the worldwide market for application development software is projected to reach an astounding US$195.77 billion in 2025, the need for successful app strategies is rising than ever before.

Interested in learning how businesses build impactful apps? This blog delves into the stages of the ADLC, various models of development, and how it can take your business to the next level. Read to explore how the right strategy enhances scalability and ROI.

What is Application Development?

Application development is the process of designing, developing, testing, and deploying applications to perform defined business functions or user needs. It involves everything from simple projects handled by one developer to complicated systems requiring large development teams. Application development, typically adopting a prescribed approach, considers timelines, client needs, team size, project scope, and requirements to ensure a successful launch.

How is Application Development Different from Software Development?

These are the major differences that differentiate software development from application development.

What is the Application Development Life Cycle?

A structured approach to develop an application development is the App Development Life Cycle. Its main stages include Planning, Design, Development, Testing, Deployment, and Maintenance. The process ensures all functional requirements are met, errors are reduced, and the software is developed methodically. ADLC enables proper delivery of quality-oriented and user-focused apps.

What are the Phases of Application Development Life Cycle?

The Application Development Life Cycle consists of six essential phases:

• Discovery Phase: The stage collects user requirements, outline goals, and determines the business objectives. This process provides clarity on requirements, which minimizes the risk of potential confusion in developing projects and allows the project to begin from a much stronger foundation compatible with user expectations.
• Design Phase: UX/UI designers produce wireframes and mock-ups to develop the navigation flows, visual design, layout of the information architecture of the app, and overall user interaction experience. This phase allows for the discovery of the visual design of the user experience but is also focused on discovering risks associated with technical capacity as early in the process as possible.
• Development Phase: Developers will code all of the features of the application based on the expectations set in the design phase. Developers will build the ideas into a fully functional product that will include performance capabilities, a framework for system integrations, and usability requirements for a great user experience.
• Quality Assurance Phase: QA testers will test the app thoroughly for bugs, performance issues, and to identify potential security issues. This phase is critical to confirm all application features are available as expected and perform up to a standard before the app is launched.
• Release Phase: The completed app is ready to be published for end users to access and start using. This involves launching the app on the app store or suitable system versions and previews and notifying users that the app is publicly available.
• Maintenance Phase: This is an ongoing phase to regularly update, monitor bugs, and test and fix security issues. This phase will also adapt to application features, changes in technology, and user feedback to keep it appealing, functional, and secure.

What are different Application Development Models?

• Waterfall Model: A sequential process in which each phase is completed before another can be started. This model works best when requirements are unlikely to change but does present limitations when trying to adapt to changing requirements as the project develops.
• Agile Model: A multi-functional method of application development that allows for phases of the project to overlap while maintaining continuous feedback. This model enables product adjustments based on changing requirements but requires exceptional collaboration from the team and can create varying scopes depending on the analysis of the results.
• V-Shaped Model: An extension of the Waterfall model that involves testing after each phase of the project. This model allows for early error detection but is even less flexible once a phase of the document is completed.
• Iterative Model: It involves building the first iteration of the application based on a minimal set of requirements and developing the application from there. This model is best used with large projects that expect to have many changes but aren’t as effective with smaller project deliverables because it can be somewhat cost-prohibitive to implement.
• Spiral Model: A model that combines iterations of development with a focus on analyzing risks with each iteration. This model adds value to product quality but adds complexity for newbie members in a team to effectively work on risk management.
• DevOps Model: A development method that incorporates development staff and IT operations. This model emphasizes collaboration, speed, and quality, which results in automation and continuous delivery. It may require a large investment in new resources and infrastructure to implement.

How Application Development is Beneficial to Businesses?

• Better Control Over Development: ADLC provides a structured approach to application development to offer full control over each stage. This method ensures systematic planning, tracking, and execution, minimizing errors and aligning the project with business goals.
• Cost and Resource Efficiency: ADLC allows businesses to break projects down into smaller, more manageable phases and allocate resources more efficiently. This avoids unnecessary project costs, ensures time, budget, and workforce are expended appropriately throughout the development process.
• A Clear Roadmap for Teams: The ADLC framework provides the development team with a clarity of internal expectation with respect to tasks, timelines, and outcomes. This clarity is essential for managing tasks and provides the team with a systematic way to achieve a successful project outcome, step by step.
• Improved Team Collaboration: ADLC promotes cooperation through regular updates, meetings, and concise documentation. It helps develop buy-in from all key stakeholders internally (development team members and designers) and externally (clients) with active engagement and an understanding of project development.
• Less Wasted Resources: ADLC helps to define clear boundaries and expectations for the project and assists in controlling scope creep. As a result, ADLC minimizes wasted time and resources while development stays focused on delivering core functionalities within the range of budget and time.
• Improved ROI and Long-Term Profitability: ADLC reduces risks to ensure a high-quality delivery to the client, which may improve customer satisfaction and loyalty. Applying ADLC will result in better meeting client expectations, more valuable experience for users, and better ROI.

What are the Types of Application Development?

Businesses typically prefer two main types of applications. Explore them below.

Web Application Development

Web application development involves designing a web-based app that is bigger and more dynamic than a normal static web page. Web applications are defined as apps that can be used within a web browser not installed on the user’s computer, which allows the user to have a flexible experience running on any server they have by connecting to the internet. Web apps can be developed using standard technologies such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, as well as frameworks such as React, Angular, and Vue.js.

Advantages:

• Unlimited Reach: Web apps can be accessed via the internet, as they are an appeal for businesses wishing to reach global customers.
• Low Maintenance: Web apps are hosted on a server, so the user doesn’t have to update their application. Businesses can simply update and manage their application from their server when necessary.
• Multi-Platform: Users can use web apps on any device whether it be a desktop, tablet, or smartphone using a web browser.

Use Cases: E-commerce websites, social media platforms, online banking, and SaaS applications.

Mobile Application Development

The mobile app development is concentrated on the app code written specifically for mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. There are three categories of mobile applications:

• Native Apps: These apps are designed for one operating system and use programming languages created specifically for that platform (Swift for iOS and Kotlin for Android). Native apps are designed for a specific operating system and are the best experience and performance with access to each of the operating system’s native characteristics. But the developer has to create a separate app for each operating system.
• Web Apps: Mobile web apps are applications that are optimized for mobile, which means the user will reach the application through their mobile device simply with their web browser and the user will never have to install app. Web application software is mobile responsive as it functions and acts like a native app, but you don’t have to install the application.
• Hybrid Apps: Hybrid apps are realized with all the positive attributes of both a native app and a mobile web app. Hybrid apps are coded using the web programming standards of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Once the web app is completed coding it is placed in a native container so that it can be distributed and available in app stores.

Use Cases: Gaming apps, social networking apps, mobile banking, and e-commerce apps.

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What is the Costing of Application Development?

The cost of Application development, regardless of its platform, will be determined by its complexity and features. The costs for a simple app designed for mobile or web with basic functionality such as login pages and dashboards will range from about $16,000-$32,000. A medium-complexity app running on mobile or web with features such as social media integration or payment gateways that engage the user may cost approximately $32,000 – $48,000. A more complex app running on mobile or web with advanced technology, such as AR/VR, artificial intelligence, machine learning, or using more advanced data, can start at $72,000.

It is important to understand the costs of application development to consider or actively engage in apps in your business’s digital strategy. Understanding the costs of application development can better assist businesses in making decisions for app and app development while also remaining on budget and developing well-built, high-quality apps that will be better for user experience and more beneficial for business goals.

Conclusion

The Application Development Life Cycle (ADLC) provides a structured approach to developing apps with users in mind while delivering high-quality results, efficiency, and business alignment. Development projects can be effectively managed, and higher-quality apps produced, by using clearly defined phases. It is key to maximize the return on investment (ROI) by selecting the appropriate development model and understanding any associated costs of your app. Driven approach development strategies can enhance business growth, enable scalability, and help motivate customer engagement, leading to potential success in today’s competitive digital landscape.

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FAQs

What is the Application Development Life Cycle (ADLC)?
The ADLC is a structured process that includes planning, designing, developing, testing, deploying, and maintaining applications to ensure quality, efficiency, and business alignment.

How is application development different from software development?
Application development focuses on platform-specific and user-friendly apps, while software development includes broader solutions for various operating systems with different functionality and scalability.

What are the key phases of the application development life cycle?
The six phases involved in app development are Discovery, Design, Development, Quality Assurance, Release, and Maintenance. These steps ensure a streamlined approach to building high-performance applications.

Which application development model is best for businesses?
Agile is ideal for flexibility, while Waterfall suits well-defined projects. DevOps enhances speed and collaboration, and Spiral manages risks effectively. Choose based on business needs.

How does application development benefit businesses?
It ensures better project control, cost efficiency, enhanced collaboration, minimized resource wastage, and higher ROI by delivering high-quality, user-focused applications.

What are the types of application development?
The two main types are web applications, accessible via browsers, and mobile applications, including native, hybrid, and cross apps designed for different devices.

How much does application development cost?
Costs range from $16,000 for basic apps to $72,000+ for complex apps with advanced features like AI, AR/VR, and high-end security integrations.

How can CodeStore help with application development?
CodeStore offers custom web, mobile, and cloud app development, that offers scalability, better ROI, and quality-driven solutions tailored to business needs.