Laundry chains and franchises have been facing rising utility costs. Energy and water costs for laundromat operations increase by 10-15% annually. Equipment downtime is another major challenge that most laundromats face. A higher laundry rush is a significant cause of higher utility bills and equipment downtime.
Laundry apps are a viable solution to address the above challenges. Independent laundromat owners and chains can develop mobile apps to streamline laundry operations. However, a significant concern for most businesses is laundry app development cost.
Developing a laundry app can cost anywhere from $18,000 to $150,000 and beyond. To accurately calculate the development cost, you need to consider different aspects like app complexity, development stages, and resources needed.
This article focuses on the cost of developing a laundry app and its features. But first, let’s understand why investing in laundry app development is crucial for your laundromat business.
Why Invest in a Laundry App?
On-demand laundry app development will help you reduce the operational overhead. So, you can scale your business without worrying about peak rush, equipment downtime, and customer satisfaction. A laundry app will help you structure the operation to accommodate more customers within the existing resources without massive downtime.
This will help you reduce the cost of operations. However, you need to consider the laundry app development costs while planning for the project. You need to consider operational costs plus the cost of designing, developing, and deploying the app.
How to Calculate Laundry App Development Costs?
Calculating the cost of laundry app development requires scrutinizing different aspects. For example, you need to determine how much it costs to develop an app feature, whether it is complex, and what the cost will be at different stages of development.
Here is a comprehensive breakdown of the development costs.
1. Costs Based On The App Complexity
Building a highly performing laundry app service needs robust features. Many laundry app services offer both advanced and basic features. Advanced features require more time to develop an app, and expertise in laundry application development can cost more. For example, if you are an independent laundromat owner, AI-based chatbot integration can simplify order bookings on the app.
| App Feature Complexity | Types of Features | Costs |
|---|---|---|
| Basic |
|
$18,000 – $30,000+ |
| Medium |
|
$35,000 – $60,000+ |
| Advanced |
|
$65,000 – $150,000+ |
However, building such a feature requires expertise in AI development and integration. On the other hand, a simple feature like a signup, customer profile setup, or scheduling pickup for laundry orders requires less effort.
Deciding which app features to develop depends on your project needs. However, you can minimize costs by creating a minimum viable product (MVP) application. An MVP is a shippable version of your laundry app with core features that offer instant customer feedback. You can integrate feedback with each iteration.
2. Costs Based On Development Team Size
The laundry app development process involves different phases: designing, developing, testing, and deploying. This means you will need other teams for each task. For example, there will be a development, testing, and deployment team.
| Development Team Size | Estimated Cost Range | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Small Team (2-3 members) | $18,000 – $30,000 | Basic app with core features like user registration, laundry request, and payment options. |
| Medium Team (4-6 members) | $30,000 – $60,000 | Medium complexity app, including real-time order tracking, push notifications, and multiple payment gateways. |
| Large Team (7+ members) | $60,000 – $100,000+ | Advanced app with extensive features such as machine learning for order optimization, integration with service providers, and loyalty programs. |
You also need to consider team scaling needs based on business growth. For example, if you are modernizing the laundry app service by adding new features, you may need to scale teams. This can increase the cost of development.
3. Costs Based On The Development Stages
The stage of your laundry app development determines the cost. You must consider the different processes and teams involved to estimate the development costs. For example, the cost of the development stage is higher than the initial research phase. Development involves a larger team and requires more time and resources.
| Development Stage | Estimated Cost Range | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Planning stage | $1,200 – $21,000 | Initial research and defining app features typically account for 10% of the total development cost. |
| Designing | $3,500 – $40,000 | UI/UX design phase where the app’s look and feel are created; usually 10-15% of total costs. |
| Development stage | $25,500 – $150,000+ | The core development phase, where coding occurs, can last 2 to 6 months, depending on complexity. |
| Testing & QA | Varies | Quality assurance phase to ensure the app functions correctly and is user-friendly; typically lasts 4 weeks. |
| Deployment | Based on the OS platform | Final preparations for the app launch, including marketing strategies; costs can vary widely based on approach. |
| Maintenance | Continuous costs | After launch, regular updates and bug fixes are estimated to be 10-20% of the initial development cost annually. |
This is why the development stage can contribute up to 60% of the total laundry app development costs. Depending on specific business needs, the designing, deployment, and maintenance stages contribute 10-20%.
So, minimizing expenses at the development stage becomes crucial if you estimate the cost of developing a laundry app.
4. Costs Based On Developer’s Location And Deployment Platform
The engagement models you choose determine the cost, but at its core is the location of the laundry app development company or developers you hire. For example, the cost of hiring an app developer in the US ranges from $30 to $80 per hour.
At the same time, the cost of hiring an app developer in India ranges from $15 to $30 per hour. Similarly, laundry app development costs also differ according to the platform on which you deploy your app.
Two major platforms on which you can deploy laundry apps are Android and iOS. The cost of developing a laundry app will differ based on which platform you aim to deploy. For example, an iOS developer in the US will cost you an average of $99,711 annually. On the other hand, Android developers can cost an average of $90,052 annually.
You must consider the cost of developing apps for both platforms. However, building a cross-platform application can reduce the cost. The platform you select for deploying affects the cost, and other factors can also contribute to the total expenses of building a laundry app.
Factors That Affect Laundry App Development Costs
Apart from the development stages, app complexity and the developer’s location are factors that affect the total cost of developing a laundry app. Here are some factors you need to consider while calculating the cost of developing a laundry app.
1. Time Needed To Develop A Laundry App
The time you need to develop a laundry application can vary based on the features you want to build. For example, the time required will be longer if you create a complex feature like an AI-integrated intelligent search. You need to consider the time required for,
On the contrary, if you consider a simple app with essential laundry functions, developing the app will be significantly shorter.
But how does development time translate into costs?
Higher development time means you need to engage developers for a longer period. So, the accrual of costs over time is higher. Plus, you also need to consider the resources used for that period. If you use cloud computing resources for app development, higher time-to-market can lead to increased costs.
2. Engagement Model’s Impact On Development Costs
How you engage with a laundry app development company determines the project cost. However, you can engage individual developers as well. Which engagement model you choose will impact the cost and terms in which the developers are engaged.
For example, if you hire app developers hourly, the cost determination needs consideration of the total hours you engage them. You can also hire developers on a monthly and annual basis.
You can add developers or reduce the team size to meet business needs. A dedicated team model offers complete flexibility in changing the project scope or adding new features.
Most importantly, you can reduce the laundry app development costs with a dedicated team model.
3. Data Security
Another key factor that can impact laundry app development costs is data security expenses. Any on-demand service app that stores, processes, or analyzes users’ financial information must comply with major data regulation standards like PCI DSS.
Ensuring data security and compliance with data regulations requires implementing different mechanisms. For example, you can implement multi-factor authentication for your customers and ensure data protection. Implementing such mechanisms requires investment, which adds to the cost of developing a laundry app.
4. Backend Infrastructure
Backend infrastructure of your application can add to the development cost. As your application’s user base grows, the data you need to store and process will increase. This can increase the cost of developing a laundry service application.
However, you can optimize the cost of backend infrastructure using cloud computing resources. It allows you to scale on demand and pay only for the resources you use. All the above factors and different costs contributing to the expense of building a laundry app have one common aspect- “Features!”
What features you develop for the laundry app does affect your application’s cost and user experience.
Features To Add In Your Laundry App!
A laundry application solution can have dedicated apps for each stakeholder. For example, there will be an app for customers, drivers, laundry admins, and service providers. Each dedicated app will have different features depending on the user base.
Here are key laundry service application features based on who uses it,
1. Customer App
A dedicated app for customers provides features for creating, managing, and editing their profiles. The app will contain all user information, including names, locations, and financial information. It lets customers estimate the laundry service cost, schedule pickup, and track their orders in real-time.
2. Service Provider App
This app helps you manage operations better and with better visibility. For example, the laundry service provider can track order history and understand gaps. Similarly, there are many other features, like
3. Driver’s App
Drivers who pick up and drop off laundry orders have dedicated applications to manage delivery. It allows delivery persons to process pickup or drop-off requests with features like route optimization.
Other crucial features are,
4. Admin Panel
This panel offers a centralized dashboard for the business admins to manage the entire operation. This is a crucial panel for laundry service aggregators. It contains features like,
The choice of features depends on customer needs, competition, and market demand. Many laundry service apps offer complex but advanced features. So, to stay ahead of the competition, you need to build advanced features. However, the complexity of such features impacts the cost of laundry service applications. Though this is not the only factor, many other aspects must be considered.
How Excellent Webworld Can Optimize Laundry App Development Cost?
Optimizing the development cost is crucial for many independent laundromat owners looking to digitize their operations. Cost optimization can help them build user-centric features within the desired budget. We hope this article will help laundromat chains and independent owners calculate the laundry app development costs.
Optimizing the costs requires laundry app development expertise. This is where Excellent Webworld can help.
Being a leader in the on-demand mobile app development market, we offer,
If you own a laundromat service chain or are an independent service provider, we can help you build feature-rich apps at optimal costs. With more than 13 years of experience in offering holistic on-demand solutions and over 900 successful projects, our teams have the expertise to help you with cost-efficient laundry app development. Contact us to create the next laundry service unicorn.
Article By
Mahil Jasani began his career as a developer and progressed to become the COO of Excellent Webworld. He uses his technical experience to tackle any challenge that arises in any department, be it development, management, operations, or finance.
