What is better a mobile website or a mobile application?

Developing a website for an online presence is not enough these days. As most users go mobile, companies are expected to follow them with either a mobile friendly website or mobile applications. There are heated debates going on in the IT world whether apps will overtake mobile websites. And many people suggest that a company especially if it’s into ecommerce, manufacturing or service provider then it is imperative for them to have both an app and a mobi-site.

As the common denominator between them is the mobile devices, it becomes a bit confusing for non-technical people to understand the difference. Let's keep the debate aside for a moment and dig a little deeper to understand the fundamental differences and similarities between an app and a mobile-friendly website. We at VK web engineering has compiled these 12 points that help you choose between developing a mobi-site and an application.

  • Mobile websites are instantly available compared to Applications which needs to be downloaded.
  • Mobile Applications support Push Notifications for an update, mobi-sites need to be updated in the background for users to spot changes.
  • Mobi-sites work across the devices. Apps need different code to work across different platforms like Android, Windows, iOS and Ubuntu.
  • Apps can work offline without the internet whereas mobi-sites require constant internet connection.
  • Mobi-sites have a wider reach. Mobi-apps require wider sharing and downloads
  • Mobile websites are secure and can’t be deleted. Apps can be deleted and fiddled with.
  • Maintenance of applications is a bit costly compared mobi-sites which don’t require constant monitoring and updates.
  • The shelf life of mobile websites is much longer than an application which only has a shelf life of 90 days on an average globally.
  • Searchability of mobi-apps is manifold compared to apps which are only available on app stores.
  • Mobile-apps increases sale opportunities than mobi-sites.
  • Designing an app is easier compared to mobi-sites.
  • Mobi-sites are easy to setup compared to apps which are required to follow stringent rules of an app store for submission.

Conclusion

We believe that a user should consult industry experts, do thorough research on customer habits and keep costs in mind before deciding to choose any of them. As there are certain businesses like salon, hairdressers, retail clothing chains, utility companies which require apps and the others like service industries which do better with mobi-sites. So, one should consult a professional and experienced mobile application developer to help them with their development requirements.

If you have a project in mind for either mobile applications or mobi-sites then contact us for a Free Consultation.

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