Cost to Develop a Travel Mobile App

American tourism and the travel industry are huge. The travel & tourism market is expected to generate revenue of US$214.40bn in the United States by 2024.

The market is projected to grow at an annual growth rate (CAGR 2024-2029) of 4.37%, resulting in a market volume of US$265.50bn by 2029.

Despite the mind-boggling size of the industry, we are going to discuss a very particular part of this industry, “travel apps”.

With the rising number of smartphone users across the world and these solutions becoming more & more helpful, the use of mobile applications in the tourism and travel industries has increased.

Travel and tourism apps like Booking.com, Trivago, and Google Travel are changing how the industry works.

Travel apps generate millions of dollars in revenue for businesses. And it is expected that by the year 2026, travel and tourism apps alone will be making more than a billion dollars in revenue.

This presents a huge opportunity for a lot of businesses. With curiosity for travel apps comes a lot of questions, like the cost of developing a travel app, what the features are, how you can make one, and so on.

So, if you want to learn more about developing a travel app, this blog is for you.

How Mobile Apps are Changing the Travel and Tourism Industry?

Ever since the introduction of smartphones, mobile apps have become one of the largest technological trends.

Fast forward to 2023, and there is an app for everything.

Want to order food? There’s an app for it. Can’t find a charging station for your EV? Just download an app. Want to hire people for your workplace? There’s an app for that too.

Even if you want to book a flight, reserve a hotel room, or plan a whole trip, you can find a mobile app to do just that.

All in all, mobile apps—sitting at the centre of the fourth industrial revolution—are making the world a simpler and easier place.

The travel and Tourism industry is no stranger to this trend either. In fact, in recent years, the use of travel apps has only increased.

Some Statistics about Travel Mobile Apps

• More than 61% of travellers in the United States book and pay for their travel through mobile apps.
• 64% of tourists use smartphones (& mobile apps) for navigation.
• On average, leisure travellers have 7–8 travel apps on their phones.
• The global revenue in the ‘Travel’ segment of the app market is forecast to continue to increase between 2023 and 2027 by a total of 0.8 billion U.S. dollars (+64%)

• They use it to search for destinations and attractions, check the weather, book flights and hotel rooms, and more.
• The majority of travellers prefer to use mobile apps for hotel booking and payments.
• With digitisation, most tourists rely on mobile apps to track loyalty programs and access boarding passes.
• Asia has the highest install rate for travel apps by region, North America has the lowest.
• The average order value for the travel app was 547 in 2023.

These statistics clearly show how much tourists rely on their phones and particular apps for everything. This is the impact of travel apps on the industry.

In the next few years, industry leaders will be pushing towards mobile technology, as we have already seen in other industries like on-demand, healthcare, education, and so on. While the motivating factor here is ease of use and convenience, this is a huge business opportunity.

With the rise of mobile applications in the Tourism and Travel Industry, platforms like Booking.com, Trivago, and Apps Like TripAdvisor are generating millions in revenue.

If you want to build a travel booking app, we will be discussing all that. However, let’s look at why everyone loves these apps and why there are so many businesses that want to invest in them.

These are some of the most popular and best travel apps in the market. And with this out of the way, let’s look at different types of travel applications in the section below.

This is an easy process you can use to develop and deploy a travel application. Now, let’s see how much it costs to build a travel app.

How Much Does It Cost to Create a Travel App?

It’s time to answer the big question.

“How Much Does It Cost To Make A Travel App?”

With the rising demand for travel-related applications, there are a lot of travel and tourism businesses that want to develop their travel applications.

The first question that comes to mind is, “What will it cost me?”

Well, on average, the cost to build a travel mobile app typically varies between $20,000 to $150,000 based on factors like the type of app, its complexity, and its location.

But if you are looking for a closer estimate, it’s highly recommended that you consult an agency that can help you. They will be able to give you a closer look at development costs based on your project specifications.

With that out of the way, let’s look at some of the top features that can affect the total cost of developing a travel and tourism-related application in the next section.

Factors that Affect the Cost to Create a Travel App

The development of travel apps is a very complex and lengthy process. As such, there are various factors involved in the process that can affect the final cost.

In this section of the blog, we shall be discussing these cost-affecting factors. With that said, let’s get right into it:

♦ Complexity

You can develop a simple travel app like a flight tracker, or you can create a complex one like a super app for travelling. Now, as you move from simplicity to complexity, the price increases.

This is one of the biggest factors that affect the cost of developing a travel app.

♦ Features

As we discussed, features are one of the most important factors affecting the cost to develop a travel app.

As you move towards more unique and complex features, they will add to the total cost of development. Whereas, basic features will keep the cost minimal.

This is how the features you choose to fit in your travel app affect the total cost of development.

♦ Mode To Hire Developers

If you want to create a market-leading travel app, you need to hire travel app developers. But the question is, how do you do it?

Well, there is more than one way to acquire a development partner in 2025. Depending on which one of them you choose, the total cost to build the app also differs.

Let’s look at these below:

• Hire Freelancers – $45/per hour – $95/per hour
• Outsource to App Development Company – $25/per hour – $75/per hour
• Assemble in-house – Indefinite cost

These are the different factors that affect the total cost of making a travel app. And with that, we have come to the end of our blog.

Connect with Nimble AppGenie and Lead the Travel App Industry

Do you have an idea for developing a travel app?

We have the required team, development skills, experience, and innovation required to create the next-best travel app in the market.

If you want to make millions of dollars and lead the industry, reach out to Nimble AppGenie, the best travel app development company, and discuss your project with us.

Our team is ready to convert your dream travel app into reality and turn your idea into a success.

Conclusion

To evaluate the cost of creating a travel app, it is essential to evaluate different factors, including complexity, features, mode of hiring developers, and many others.

Other than this, you should implement crucial features such as secure registration & login, advanced search filter, booking system, push notifications, payment gateway integration, and many others.

Connecting with an experienced company can help you achieve your dream.

FAQs

Niketan Sharma

Niketan Sharma is the CTO of Nimble AppGenie, a prominent website and mobile app development company in the USA that is delivering excellence with a commitment to boosting business growth & maximizing customer satisfaction. He is a highly motivated individual who helps SMEs and startups grow in this dynamic market with the latest technology and innovation.