Hybrid Apps vs Native Apps: What’s the Difference?

Mobile app development is becoming an industry norm. Every thriving business has taken it as the proven formula to becoming a recognizable brand.

Do you know! The quarterly number of mobile apps downloaded in 2022 from the Apple app store was 8.5 billion, and 28.3 billion from the Google Play store (According to Statista)

The figures are significant. But, do you notice the vast difference between the downloads?

Even though iOS has a market share of 53.66 percent, Android app downloads are more than iOS app downloads, which may seem odd.

Both Android and iOS systems are in demand. So why not hire a hybrid app developer and build an app that works on both operating systems?

Why do hybrid apps (iOS & Android) clash with native apps? Let’s discuss

Developing a mobile app is a big decision for a company. It affects many things, so the CEO needs to find answers to some questions first:

• What’s the motive behind building the app?
• How much is the budget?
• What methodology should be followed?
• What is the timeline to market the app?
• What exact features should be in the app?

When you have answers to the above questions, you are more likely to take intelligent decisions. Your choices will be in favor of your next hybrid mobile app development company and its growth.

Now, let’s understand both types of mobile applications in detail.

Native Mobile Apps – Explained

Native mobile applications are designed to work on a specific platform or device. They use the phone’s special hardware and software. Native applications have good performance and can have new-gen features like AI image-processing

Generally, there are two main mobile operating system platforms: iOS, made by Apple, and Android, created by Google. In order to create a Native app for multiple platforms, developers use different coding languages. Android apps are coded in Java, whereas iOS apps are coded in Swift or Objective-C.

Native mobile apps are those that are specifically designed to work on a certain type of phone, like an iPhone or Android phone. They usually work faster and more accurately than apps that weren’t designed for a specific platform. Their UI controls and layouts are also more accessible and easier to use. However, an app made for iPhones won’t work on Android phones, and vice versa.

You will have to create different versions of your application for each platform, which can be expensive and require a big team to release software on both iOS and Android at the same time.

Hybrid Mobile Apps – Explained

Hybrid development lets you write code that will work on many different platforms. This is done by combining the best features of both web app(s) and native apps.

Common web technologies like HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript are used to develop a hybrid app. However, they also require native plugins to get additional functionalities. These features make hybrid apps work just like native ones.

Hybrid mobile app(s) support all the built-in features of a mobile device. For example, cameras, fingerprint sensors, file storage, etc. Because of a single codebase, hybrid apps are cheaper to develop.

Hybrid apps are built by combining a web view with different pieces that may be submitted to app stores. This gives the illusion of two applications, yet there is only one

Best technologies to build Native applications

For native iOS app:-

• Objective-C: With many libraries to make the work easier, Objective-C is a collaborative programming language.
• Swift: Various popular iOS apps are written in Swift. This technology makes the product work smoother.

For native Android app

• Java: A sound library to create Android OS features, Java is one of the best languages for Android mobile apps, desktop apps, and web development.
• Kotlin: Created by Google, Kotlin can be used as a compiler in Android Studio. It helps in the faster development of applications.

Best technologies to build Hybrid applications

• Ionic: It has a simple and accessible-to-understanding user interface. However, after the release of React Native development techniques, its popularity has reduced.
• React Native: Developed by Facebook, a high-speed framework for rapid application development. It is heavily used for developing web apps.
• Xamarin: Supported by Microsoft, Xamarin is good for creating business-driven applications.

Some successful Native mobile applications you know

Icons of: Pokemon Go, Tesla, Whatsapp, Spotify

Some successful Hybrid mobile applications you know

Icons of: Twitter, Instagram, BMW App, Discord

Characteristics and Benefits of Native Apps

• Native apps are faster in performance.
• They can have features like push notifications.
• Native apps’ quality can be measured through their ratings on their respective app stores.
• These applications support online as well as offline operations.
• Native apps are versatile enough to leverage the features of mobile devices.

Characteristics and Benefits of Hybrid Apps

• Hybrid apps can function on poor internet connectivity.
• These apps can be integrated with web-based services.
• These apps are easy to manage because of a single codebase.
• Hybrid apps provide you with a broader range of audiences.
• These applications are also easily scalable.
• Hybrid apps are cheaper to create. You don’t require many developers for them.

Closing up

Hybrid applications are faster to market, affordable to build, and easier to manage. However, they can sometimes perform underwhelmingly.

Native and web apps are best in security, performance, and user experience, but can be expensive to develop because of a single codebase.

Both native and hybrid apps have their pros and cons. It all depends on the company and what they require.

The questions we provided at the top are there for a reason. You can use them to know your answer to hybrid vs. native.

We hope you’ve found this post helpful.

Still, if you have any doubts, contact our mobile app experts. We offer a free consultation.

All the best 🙂