How do you build scalable mobile apps?

Over time, many people will want to buy successful digital products that meet their customers’ needs. This rising user base needs an app that works well and gives a great user experience no matter how much traffic there is. If your mobile app cannot meet demand with the quality promised, it’s unlikely to be on the market for long.

When starting a digital company, it’s important to think about how to scale your mobile application. This will keep you from having a lot of problems in the future. The problem is best dealt with at the start of the planning process because making changes to a project that is already underway would take a lot more time and effort.

In this article, you’ll learn how you can design a scalable mobile app that will benefit you both today and in the future.

What does “app scalability” mean?

For investors, a scalable mobile app is one that’s capable of handling more than double the present number of users. In other words, the scalable architecture is capable of handling increasing demands. If your app’s usage increases, the current software infrastructure should be able to handle the additional pressure.

When a user interacts with your app, they send a request to your server, which should be processed as quickly as possible. Many requests may be handled simultaneously by a highly scalable program, resulting in a smooth user experience. To achieve scalability, solution architects and software developers focus on the user experience to see how quickly the system responds, as well as the performance of large databases.

You won’t get very far without a strategy for future app expansion. There’s a possibility it won’t prosper on the market since you won’t be able to match the rising user base’s expectations and wants. That’s why scalability needs to be the top goal right from the start of your project.

Horizontal scaling vs. vertical scaling

Scaling your application development can be approached horizontally or vertically.

Horizontal scaling (scaling out) involves adding extra hardware (computers or servers) to enhance capacity. However, the app logic might have to be restructured to execute with the present resources. This scaling method is more difficult to put into practice, but it’s less expensive.

Vertical scaling (scaling up) augments an app server with additional resources such as CPU, memory, network bandwidth, and more. It necessitates resource upgrades for the single instance to perform better. This scalability form is simple, but it may also be costly.

Choosing the correct form of scalability for your project may require some practical expertise. But no rule says you have to simply implement one type of scaling. An approach called “diagonal scaling” is commonly used by development teams to mix both strategies.

Key aspects of scaling mobile app projects

Too frequently, development teams are so enthused by new concepts that they skip over application scalability considerations and get right into code. If you’re wondering what actually makes a large mobile application scalable, the following are some guiding concepts that might help development go more consistently:

1. Stability. There should be no errors or failures when the product modules are developed. Also, any performance difficulties caused by an increase in users should be addressed.
2. Adaptability. When you have a new feature in mind, all modifications should be smooth and have no unwanted impact on existing elements. You should customize it as you see fit.
3. Reproducibility. Your mobile app’s architecture should make testing simple. The testing method can help reduce the number of mistakes, which makes the system more reliable.
4. Comprehensibility. The development code needs to be simple enough for all developers to comprehend the underlying basic code quickly. Beginners can always comprehend a project with good architecture.
5. Reduction of dependencies. Any update that alters the code might cause problems with the app’s functioning. So, to have as little code effect as possible, try to be more attentive when making any modifications.
6. System architecture. It’s a fundamental component of scalability. Keep in mind what platform you aim for (iOS/Android, or web application), and what programming languages, as well as database engines, might be used.
7. Development process. Scalable mobile applications don’t always need complicated coding. Setting up the correct procedure and scaling it up as needed can work wonders for your growth. As long as your development methodology is transparent and scalable and that will depend a lot on your technology partner.

How to build a scalable mobile app infrastructure?

The truth is that when the present architecture can no longer support the high workloads, it’s too late to do something about it. Improvements will need substantially more time and money than if the app had been designed for ease of expansion from the start. Digital product owners must think carefully about how their present infrastructure can handle sudden spikes in traffic without negatively affecting performance.

It takes a lot of work to make a superb, ready-to-go mobile app. Here’s everything to think about to make your mobile app’s infrastructure scalable.

Find out what you need to be able to scale

To prevent wasting money, your app’s scalability has to keep pace with user demand. What’s the projected yearly user base? Are there special occasions when a lot of demand is expected? Consider the maximum scalability at which the program will function successfully. Check your assumptions and the general architectural design as you go. These are the questions that an experienced mobile app development partner will most likely help you with.

Determine the scalability problems

The next step is to identify the problem with scaling the mobile app. Outsourcing partners may assist you by conducting product development workshops. You may use this approach to describe processes and define essential segments, as well as business constraints. If your app is already running, use metrics to figure out what operations are responsible for excessive demand.

Select a suitable technology stack

There is no such thing as a “one-size-fits-all” solution. Your app’s requirements are unique, so you must take time to consider which technologies and frameworks are most suited to your needs. Selecting a tech stack should be done according to your app ecosystem. Keep in mind that after the app is live, switching to a different tech stack will be much more challenging.

Choose the optimal application’s architecture

When it comes to getting the necessary level of scalability, the architecture of the application is critical. A cloud solution is an excellent option for your mobile app’s scalability needs.

Additionally, minimize the strain on your system’s resources by making good use of the cache. This entails storing preprocessed findings that may be sent or shown immediately. There are also CDNs (Mobile Content Delivery Networks) that work best when your users are spread out evenly across various nations.

Test performance during product development

Testing an app’s behavior in a variety of situations is critical to determining whether or not it is scalable. Introduce analysis for your app’s scalability. Load testing is an effective method for estimating your app’s current scalability by observing how it responds to a lot of stress. On the other hand, performance testing examines an application as part of the process. You can see the responsiveness through specific tasks and workloads. Thanks to this, you can prepare for the increasing demand for your product.

But keep in mind that you don’t want a system that’s over-engineered when it comes to designing system scalability. Building and maintaining software that can handle thousands of users when you only have ten is a waste of money. Estimate the real requirements.

The success of your software depends on its capacity to grow

As a general rule, scalability may help you with growth in the future. Your options for adding new features and functionality increase when you use a scalable application. Having a scalable app may help your business develop, provide a better user experience for the user base, and help you get a greater return on your investment. All experienced mobile app development companies ensures that scalability is a top priority from the beginning. If you wonder how to choose mobile app development company, read this blog post.