How Much Does it Cost to Develop A SaaS Application Like Uber?

Curious about the cost to develop a SaaS app like Uber? You're not the only one. At Imaginovation, we've found that such projects range from $67,000 to $150,000, covering iOS and Android platforms.

In today's fast-paced market, SaaS applications like Uber are game-changers. With the SaaS sector projected to hit US$167.30 billion by 2027, the interest is skyrocketing.

Why such a cost range? And how can you turn your investment into a successful SaaS venture? This blog explores these vital questions, drawing insights from Uber's groundbreaking model.

Join us to unravel the key factors driving the development costs of an Uber-like app.

How Does Uber Work? Critical Features to Look into

Have you heard of the business term ‘unicorn'? The terminology ‘unicorn' describes a business model so rare in its success that it’s almost impossible to replicate.

The firm’s valuation rose to a record-setting $68 billion within seven years of its founding.

It’s no wonder that it is vital to study Uber-unicorn. The insights on features would help you with the development and pricing facets of your own apps like Uber.

The Story of How Uber Works

If you wish to create an Uber-like app, and wondering how much it would cost you, then it would make sense to encapsulate how the service works on the customer side.

Steps capturing how Uber works:

• The customer can request a ride (car) via the app, either instantly or scheduled. Drivers nearby receive such requests.
• The driver has the option to accept or reject the trip. If a driver refuses a ride request, then the next available driver may approve the request.
• The customer can now track the car and check out the estimated time of arrival.
• The app helps to calculate the price beforehand, and the customer can enjoy a cashless way of payment.
• The rating helps with building service reliability.

Please remember that building an enterprise SaaS app is analogous to construction. You need to add minute details to your app blueprint (Software Requirement Specifications [SRS]). The finer details can help you come up with competitive features and pricing that can help you stay ahead.

Features that Make Uber A Successful App

The development cost would vary depending on the features that you implement in your app. So, it is best to be prudent and look at the viability of each feature.

Let’s look at some features that Uber incorporated. The aspects would help with understanding how a feature-rich application can help you with pricing and much more.

Table 1. Summary of Features of Uber App

Source

Uber designed the app features keeping in mind its two main entities: a passenger and a driver.

Developers have created the features for both parties, specifically catering to their needs. Now, that’s an important takeaway.

The list of features also highlights the effort taken to understand the target market. Let’s try and dissect some of the features and draw out the cost and development facets.

Customer-side Features of the App & The Cost of Development

Let’s first check out the customer-side features of the app and how much they cost to develop.

1. Payments

You would need to come up with your strategy when you develop an app like Uber. Uber rates vary depending on the ride you order (i.e., UberBlack, UberSUV, and so on).

Are there any criteria that Uber uses to estimate the fare for a trip? Yes! The model that Uber uses include:

• Base fare
• Cost per minute
• Cost per mile
• Sales ride free

If you wish to build an app that’s like Uber and also incorporate cashless payments, then here’s what you need to do. One of the first things you’d wish to include is the financial data safety of your customer.

Remember to keep PCI compliance as a top priority if you want to store and process credit card data.

Alternatively, you can opt for payment gateway providers that ensure fully supported PCI compliance solutions, such as Stripe or Braintree.

Uber uses Braintree for processing their credit card transactions. The Uber app also utilizes the card.io platform to scan card numbers, using a camera.

Table 2. An approximate cost to build payment features for an app like Uber

2. UI/UX Design

User experience plays a crucial role in the success of your app. You’d wish to impress your clients with an easy-to-use and stunning UI/UX.

Brilliant design can have many aspects, but minimalism, clarity, and simplicity normally stand out. The cost of UI/UX design will also depend on what you want to achieve.

Table 3. An approximate cost for UI/UX for an Uber-like app

3. Scheduling a Ride in Advance

Scheduling a ride is one of the best features of Uber. It allows much more flexibility on the client side of things, as it allows them to plan ahead and incorporate the ride into their daily itinerary.

This feature makes Uber seem all the more brilliant. It just goes to show that when you research your customer profile thoroughly, you can really build in features with the most benefits.

Table 4. An approximate cost to incorporate scheduling a ride feature for an app like Uber

4. Booking a Ride for Someone Else (Other People)

Imagine you wish to book a ride for your grandmother through your account. She’d definitely be happy! Uber's advanced feature is food for thought.

Similarly, scheduling a trip, it’s a useful feature. When you book the ride, your grandmother, your friend or your relative will receive the ride details. Both the customer and the driver will receive the ride details via SMS.

Table 5. An approximate cost to incorporate booking a ride for other people feature for an app like Uber

5. Splitting Fares

Another exciting advanced feature is the ability to split the fare. The feature allows customers to share (split) the cost of a ride with fellow travelers. Here's how much it will cost to develop such a feature:

Table 6. An approximate cost to incorporate split a fare feature for an app like Uber

6. Geolocation and Routing

Let's get back to one of the basic features: geolocation and routing. The primary functionality of geolocation and routing is tracking the location of the vehicle using GPS technology.

This kind of technology is quite appealing, as it allows the company to keep a tab on their drivers, while the complex processes and architecture are concealed in the background from the customers.

To make the feature work, you'd find the need for a routing server that can calculate the distances and run the routes. Uber's routing engines effortlessly work from the moment customers launch the app until they get dropped.

On the technical side, developers can use Google Maps for real-time car movement. The driver can follow GPS directions, courtesy of Google Maps. It’s a must that you plan to have Maps SDK in your tech stack to make an Android app like Uber.

Developers can also use the Geolocation API to get the user’s precise location data. When planning the iOS version of the app, you can use the CoreLocation framework that helps with location services. The MapKit framework will be handy for the selection of routes and directions.

Table 7. An approximate cost for incorporating geolocation and routing features for an app like Uber

The Driver-side Features of the App & The Cost of Development

It’s essential to look at the features of both entities (that includes drivers) to give you a complete picture of the SaaS development cost structure.

1. Driver Report

The feature (driver report) ensures the safety of both entities: the driver and the passenger. The report encapsulates the driver’s driving style.

The reports are made within a specific timeframe - weekly or monthly. So, in instances where a driver drives carelessly, either once or in recurrence, the report would help Uber to take a call on banning the driver for violating rules.

Table 8. An approximate cost to build the driver report feature for the driver’s app

2. Driver Destinations

The driver destination feature is an exciting feature and a must-have. Drivers can pick the preferred location, which enables them to find passengers who need a ride in that specific direction.

The feature is beneficial for drivers who wish to blend work with their personal affairs.

Table 9. An approximate cost to incorporate driver destinations feature for the driver’s app

You can see that Uber has a feature-rich app. When you start ideating on your app, you must understand that the features will play a key role in pricing.

The software development cost will depend on the features that you wish to implement in the app. Your app development would be dependent on multiple factors. Let’s look at a few of them.

Other Factors that Determine the Cost of SaaS App Development like Uber

Apart from the features, there are also some other factors that decide the cost of developing an app like Uber. Let’s take a look.

Company Type

Your company type is a significant facet. Are you a startup? Do you wish to build the app alongside your business? Typically, startups may face a tight budget scenario than a business that’s well-established.

App Platform

Here’s one most common question that you would come across before development. Do you wish to develop an Android app or iOS app, or both?

When Uber launched its app—the app was first on iOS. Back then, iPhones were tremendously successful. The iPhones market had around 80% of the market share (on the US market).

It is quite critical that you plan ahead on which platform you will base your app on. When you base it on market research, it would be easier to make that final call.

Type of the App

The next critical decision to make is on the technology front. Will you choose to develop a native app, or will you go for a hybrid? How are they different? You would find subtleties in programming languages, architecture, and many other facets.

What if you aren’t too sure?

You can always consult an expert mobile development service provider such as Imaginovation. Experts can help you with making a final call on your Uber-like app development approach.

Tech Stack and Development Team

The development team you hire would use different programming languages based on your requirements. The tech team should have expertise in the following programming languages or tools to build an app like Uber.

• Swift for iOS app
• Kotlin for Android app
• Node.js for back-end
• Amazon S3
• Amazon EC2
• PayPal / Stripe
• Elastic email
• Twilio
• Socket.io
• Google Places
• Google Maps
• Google Directions
• APNS
• Firebase
• Facebook SDK
• Card.io

Now, coming to the team. Your development team would most probably include:

• Project Manager
• Business Analyst
• Android / iOS engineer
• UI/UX designer
• Back-end developer
• QA engineer

The final cost of development may vary based on the team size and overall experience of team members.

Should You Approach Freelancers or an Agency to Develop an Uber-like App?

Well, we know that freelancers are less expensive than technology companies. But there are many downsides to hiring freelancers over a technology team.

One of the major drawbacks with freelancers is that you can’t be 100% sure about success. On the other hand, finding good freelancers and hiring them at competitive rates is way too hard and time-consuming.

If you really want your Uber-like app to be successful in the market, you should hire a professional team of developers. Technology companies, like us, have solid roadmaps for development that guarantee success.

On the cost side, tech companies might charge you a little more than freelancers, but they typically cover expenses for managing their project management, quality control, developers, office space, and more.

The good part—tech companies offer security for your project’s success, which is highly crucial.

The Final Cost of Developing an App Like Uber

After looking at the various cost components, let’s come back to the primary question. What is the final cost of developing an app like Uber? Let’s look at the price breakdown.

Table 11. Approximate cost to build an app like Uber

The cost to build an app like Uber may range anywhere between $67,000 and $150,000 for one or two user apps (for iOS and Android), respectively. You would also need to include the price of an admin panel development that could start at $14,000.

As Jason Cohen, Founder & CTO of WP Engine states: “Features, messaging, the path to customers, your competitive edge, your pricing model — all this gets figured out as you go.” It’s crucial to build a detailed blueprint and check out the viability of each feature critically as it could affect pricing. The exercise will also help you with a competitive edge.

Work on Costs to Build a SaaS App like Uber With Panache

It's easy to plan out the costs of developing a SaaS system once you plot down your choices, app features, and cost components. You cannot only plan your initial costs and ongoing expenses but also work on cutting costs like an expert.

As entrepreneurs, it always feels right to base decisions on well-ground research. It always works! You may find that your instincts can help you navigate towards more informed choices and help you to increase your profitability in the SaaS market.

In conclusion, the features and the cost components are essential. However, what is more, important is to understand how you can bring value to your customers with a brilliant app.

Pricing and financials can be overwhelming, but nothing can beat the joy of having ‘happy customers.’

Build a Successful Uber-like SaaS App with Imaginovation

Do you wish to be a unicorn and build an Uber-like SaaS app for your customers? If you don’t know where to start, then get in touch with us.

We are an award-winning mobile app and web development company with vast experience creating meaningful digital success stories for startups to Fortune 500 companies.

Let’s talk.