Cost to Develop A Fitness Tracking App Like Google Fit

Are you planning to develop an app like Google Fit?

Well, with the growing popularity of fitness-tracking mobile applications in the market and the increasing demand, this is quite an amazing idea.

In this blog, we will talk all you need to know about how to develop a health and fitness app like Google Fit.

This covers everything from market basics to more advanced things like the development process and so on.

Therefore, with this being said, let’s get right into it, starting with:

Navigating the Health and Fitness Landscape: Market Insights

If you want to learn about the cost of developing an app like Google Fit and go for this project for your own company, it’s a good idea to first understand the market.

This is a crucial step in creating a good healthcare and fitness mobile application like Google Fit.

Speaking of which, some of the key fitness market statistics are, as mentioned below:

• As per Statista, Google Fit has over 2.6 million active users as per the latest report.
• The global market for fitness mobile apps is estimated to be valued at over 14.7 Billion dollars by the year 2027 as per. (Allied Market Research)
• Did you know that the US fitness app market alone generates 30% of global revenue for the industry? This is the largest share as per Statista.
• Again, Business of Apps tells us that more than 55% of fitness app revenue is generated via in-app purchases and subscriptions.
• “Wearable fitness integration has helped platforms improve engagement as well as revenue by over 15%, says Jabil.

Now that we are done with statistics, we are one step closer to understanding how to develop a health and fitness app like Google Fit.

In any case, let’s move to the next section and explore what Google Fit in detail in the section below:

What is the Google Fit App?

If you are to make a Google Fit-like app, you must first understand what it is.

Google Fit – as the name suggests – is a health and fitness tracking mobile application designed by Google itself.

Leveraging fitness wearable integration it connects seamlessly with smartwatches and fitness bands, taking tracking to the next level.

As a popular name in the fitness and health market, there are a lot of FitTech giants who want to create their own version of the platform. And that’s what brings you here, right?

In any case, to better understand the market and other health and fitness applications, let’s first look at some popular fitness tracking apps before we move to the cost to develop an app like Google Fit.

List of Top Health and Fitness Tracking Apps Like Google Fit

The market is filled with fitness apps like Google Fit that are not only helping people get healthier but also inspiring other startups and fitness businesses to enter the market.

Therefore, with this being said, let’s look at some popular fitness apps. These are, as mentioned below:

• ASICS Runkeeper
• Strava
• MyFitnessPal
• FitoTrack
• OutRun
• Apple Health
• Samsung Health
• Jogger
• Nike Run Club

These are some of the well-heard names in the world of fitness and are also seen as alternatives to Google Fit.

Understanding the competition doesn’t only take you a step closer to better grasping the entire concept of developing an app like Google Fit but also helps understand the competitive market you are entering.

Features of Health and Fitness Tracking Apps Like Google Fit

One of the biggest factors that affects the cost to create an app like Google Fit is its feature set.

Now, these are super important considering that features can make or break an app. Some of the key fitness app features that every fitness tracking application like Google Fit should have are, as mentioned below:

• Profile-login
• Personalized fitness program
• Fitness tracking data
• IoT integration with wearable
• Online fitness coach
• Online fitness community
• Push notification
• Data privacy
• Progress statistics
• Sleep monitoring
• Social sharing
• Gamification
• Custom diet chart
• Geolocation
• Real-time location – Geolocation
• Pre-loaded workout programs
• AI-powered personal coach

These are some of the basic and advanced features often seen in fitness-tracking applications like Google Fit.

Speaking of which, with this out of the way, it’s time to look at the Google fit app development process in the section mentioned below:

Steps to Build an App Like Google Fit

Want to learn how to develop a health and fitness tracking app like GoogleFit?

We got you covered.

In this section of the blog, we shall be discussing in detail app development process required to make a platform like Google Fit.

This is yet another move closer to understanding the cost of developing an app like Google Fit, since each of these steps incurs huge cost on the overall project, speaking of which, let’s get right into it.

Here are the steps to develop an app like Google Fit:

Step 1: Market Research and Requirement Analysis

The first step in creating an app like Google Fit revolves around thorough market research.

This phase is crucial as it sets the foundation for your app’s development.

Begin by identifying your target audience; understand the demographics and lifestyles of potential users, from fitness enthusiasts to those who simply want to maintain a healthier lifestyle.

Next, conduct a comprehensive competitor analysis to scrutinize Google Fit and other fitness applications.

Focus on their features, pros and cons, user reviews, and engagement strategies to pinpoint areas where you can differentiate your app.

Following this, compile a comprehensive list of potential features you wish to include, such as activity tracking, sleep monitoring, goal setting, and community interactions.

Prioritize the features that will constitute your Minimum Viable Product (MVP), aiming to validate your idea quickly and efficiently.

This step ensures that your app addresses real user needs and has a competitive edge in the marketplace.

Step 2: Planning

Once the foundational research is complete, the next step involves meticulous planning to develop a fitness-tracking app like Google Fit.

Begin by conducting a technical feasibility study to assess the requirements and constraints associated with integrating devices and performing health analytics.

This step will help you understand both the technological hurdles and the necessary resources.

Subsequently, decide whether to build a native app specifically for iOS and Android or a hybrid app that works across platforms.

Each option has its own benefits, so weigh them carefully against your target audience configurations.

Determining your technology stack becomes paramount during this phase as well; you’ll need to select the appropriate programming languages, frameworks, and databases that align with your vision.

In addition to this, consider cloud services for backend hosting and data storage.

By the end of this planning phase, you should have a comprehensive roadmap outlining the technical aspects, necessary resources, timeline, and milestones for your app development.

Step 3: Design

The UI/UX design phase is where your concepts morph into tangible elements.

Start with wireframing, creating skeletal outlines of key app screens such as the home dashboard and activity tracker.

Wireframes serve as a visual guide to structure functionality and user flow, allowing you to visualize how users will interact with your app.

Once the wireframes are established, focus on User Experience (UX) design, prioritizing seamless interaction and intuitive navigation.

Craft user stories to delineate how various user personas will engage with your app, ensuring that your design reflects real user needs.

Following UX design, shift your focus to User Interface (UI) design.

This entails developing a visually appealing design using consistent colors, fonts, and icons. High-fidelity prototypes can be useful for testing your interface design, allowing you to gather valuable user feedback.

Don’t overlook the importance of usability testing during this stage, as real user input can lead to pivotal design improvements before development begins.

Step 4: Development

With designs finalized, it’s time to move into the development phase, where your conceptual plans transform into functional software.

Start by setting up your development environment, including necessary IDEs and version control systems to streamline collaborative work.

Focus first on backend development, configuring your database to store user profiles, health metrics, and activity data while also creating robust RESTful APIs that facilitate communication between the app and server.

Implementing secure authentication measures will ensure user data safety.

Once the backend is in place, turn your attention to frontend development where you will solidify app screens based on your UI designs.

This includes implementing crucial features such as activity tracking, health data collection, and integration with device sensors like GPS and accelerometers.

Don’t forget to incorporate third-party APIs that enhance functionality, like those from Google Fit or Apple Health.

If your app plans to interact with wearables, researching available SDKs and libraries will be essential.

This collaborative coding effort will ultimately yield a well-rounded, functional app ready for rigorous testing.

Step 5: Testing

Having developed app like Google Fit, the next critical stage is testing, ensuring that your software meets quality standards and user expectations.

This is where app testing comes in.

Start with unit testing to verify that individual components work as intended.

This testing lays the groundwork for integration testing, where you examine how different parts of your app collaborate to deliver a seamless experience.

User Acceptance Testing (UAT) plays a vital role in this stage, involving real users who will interact with the app in a controlled environment.

Their feedback will be invaluable in identifying both strengths and weaknesses in your app.

Performance testing is equally important; it assesses the app’s responsiveness, load times, and overall stability under various conditions.

Security testing should not be overlooked, particularly given that health data is sensitive and requires meticulous handling to comply with regulations.

By the end of the testing phase, your app should be robust, user-friendly, and secure, ready to transition into the deployment phase.

Step 6: Deployment

The deployment phase is where your hard work pays off as you prepare to launch your app to the public.

Begin by creating developer accounts on both the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store, ensuring you understand their submission guidelines.

Collect and prepare all necessary assets for the app store, including app descriptions, promotional screenshots, and any required promotional videos.

Before going fully live, consider rolling out a beta testing phase, inviting a limited audience to use your app and provide feedback.

This can help you catch any last-minute issues and make adjustments based on user experience.

When you launch the app, it is essential to have a marketing strategy in place to promote it effectively. Utilize social media, health blogs, and targeted advertising to create buzz and attract initial users.

Once the app is live, be prepared to monitor user interactions and feedback for further refinement.

Step 7: Post-Launch and Maintenance

After the launch, the journey doesn’t end; ongoing post-launch maintenance is crucial for your app’s sustained success.

Begin by actively gathering user feedback through app reviews and social media engagement, aiming to comprehend user pain points and expectations.

Regular updates are essential, not only to fix bugs but also to enhance performance and introduce new features that users request.

Utilizing analytics tools like Google Analytics or Firebase helps track user engagement and retention, providing insights into how users interact with your app.

It’s important to iterate and evolve based on these analytics, ensuring that the app remains relevant and appealing.

Furthermore, effective community engagement fosters user loyalty; consider organizing challenges, events, or forums to cultivate a sense of belonging.

This step focuses on long-term success, signifying that your app is not just a one-time project but a continually evolving platform in the fitness space.

By following these detailed steps, you can systematically approach the journey of creating a fitness tracking app like Google Fit, setting the stage for a meaningful and impactful user experience in the health and wellness domain.

The Technology Stack of Health and Fitness Apps Like Google Fit

Creating a health and fitness app like Google Fit involves a robust technology stack to ensure scalability, performance, and user engagement.

Here’s a detailed breakdown of the components commonly used:

1. Frontend Development

Mobile Frameworks:

• React Native or Flutter: For building cross-platform applications efficiently. These frameworks allow you to write code once and deploy it on both iOS and Android.
• Swift: For native iOS development, providing access to iOS-specific features and optimizations.
• Kotlin: For native Android development, offering modern features and improved performance.

UI Libraries:

• Material-UI or Ant Design: For building aesthetically pleasing and responsive user interfaces.
• D3.Js: For creating data visualizations, helping users track their activities and progress.

2. Backend Development

Programming Languages:

• Node.js: For building a scalable API using JavaScript, which is event-driven and efficient for real-time applications.
• Python: For data analytics and machine learning, offering a wealth of libraries for processing health data.

Frameworks:

• Express.js (with Node.js): For building RESTful APIs.
• Django or Flask (with Python): For rapid development and handling complex data processing.

Database:

• MongoDB: A NoSQL database for flexibility in storing diverse user data (like activity logs, preferences).
• PostgreSQL: A relational database for structured data storage, useful for complex querying.

3. Cloud Services

Hosting & Storage:

• AWS (Amazon Web Services) or Google Cloud Platform: For scalable hosting solutions and storage, along with advanced services like analytics and machine learning.
• Firebase: For real-time database capabilities, user authentication, and push notifications.

4. APIs and Integrations

Health APIs:

• Google Fit API: For accessing fitness data and enabling synchronization with other fitness apps and wearables.
• Apple HealthKit: For integrating health and fitness data on iOS devices.

Third-Party Integrations:

• Fitbit API, Garmin Connect API, etc.: If you plan to allow data integration from wearables.

5. Data Analytics and Machine Learning

Analytics Tools:

• Google Analytics: For tracking user behavior and app engagement.
• Mixpanel: For in-depth user analytics and retention tracking.

Machine Learning Libraries:

• Scikit-learn or TensorFlow: For implementing personalized fitness recommendations based on user data.

6. Security

Encryption Libraries:

• SSL/TLS: For securing data in transit.
• JWT (JSON Web Tokens): For secure user authentication and authorization.

Regulatory Compliance:

• Make sure to comply with health data regulations like HIPAA (in the U.S.), focusing on data privacy and security.

7. DevOps and CI/CD Tools

Version Control:

• Git: For source code management and collaboration.

CI/CD Tools:

• Jenkins, CircleCI, or GitHub Actions: For continuous integration and deployment, ensuring code quality, and automated testing.

Monitoring and Logging:

• Loggly, Sentry, or New Relic: For tracking app performance and error reporting.

Selecting the right technology stack is vital for the success of a health and fitness app like Google Fit.

The chosen stack should not only support core functionalities but also ensure scalability, security, and a user-friendly experience.

By leveraging modern frameworks, cloud services, and analytics tools, you can create a robust application tailored to meet user needs while adapting to evolving technological trends.

What’s the Cost to Develop An App Like Google Fit?

On average, the cost to develop an app like Google Fit can range from $60,000 to $150,000 depending on various factors that you can see below.

Cost to develop a fitness app depends upon:

• Location of developers
• App complexity
• Features of the app
• App development platforms
• All the integrations in the platform

And so on.

These are some basic factors that affect app development cost.

Now, this is a wide range since there are many variables involved here. But if you are looking for anything more i.e. more details on the cost breakdown.

They will be able to give you better insights for the same.

Speaking of which, now that we are done with this, it’s time to move out to next section and look at cost to maintain a fitness app like Google Fit.

How Much Does It Cost to Maintain an App Like Google Fit?

Finally, it’s time to talk about the cost to maintain a fitness tracking app like Google Fit.

You see, one of the biggest parts of Google Fit app development cost is maintenance. In other words, maintaining an app like Google Fit involves several ongoing costs across different categories.

While costs can vary widely based on features, user base, and geographical factors, here’s a breakdown to give you a clearer picture.

♦ Cloud Services

One of the first factors that affect the cost to develop an app like Google Fit is the cloud services used in the solution.

To ballpark it, annual costs for cloud services (like AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud) can range from $500 to $5,000 depending on usage, server type, and data storage needs.

But beware, scaling considerations for user growth may increase this cost.

♦ Bug Fixes and Updates

A big part of app maintenance cost is, that regular updates are necessary to fix bugs and improve functionality.

If we are to talk about how much it will cost, it averages $1,000 to $5,000 per month depending on the complexity of the features and the developer’s rates.

In addition to this, things like rolling out new features and adapting to OS updates are also covered in the same.

♦ Development Team

Finally, it’s time to talk about the cost to hire development team.

A small team (one Project Manager, one or two Developers, a Designer, and a QA Engineer) can cost anywhere from $15,000 to $30,000 per month.

But then again, this highly depends on their location and expertise.

If you want to save on this cost, a good alternative is hiring freelance developers.

This doesn’t only provide variable expense options, but it also provides more flexibility in team structure and the work itself. 

♦ Helpdesk Services

A big part of creating a platform is setting up a helpdesk in other words also known as customer support.

To make this happen, you can either hire staff dedicatedly or Offer customer support can involve hiring staff or outsourcing.

Costs can range from $2,000 to $10,000 per month, based on the number of users and the level of support offered.

Integrating chatbots can reduce costs but may not eliminate the need for human support.

♦ Onboarding Users

Lastly, let’s talk about the most important part which is user onboarding.

This is where elements of digital marketing campaigns come in.

This involved everything in the line of social media, Google Ads, influencer partnerships, etc. It goes without saying that here it can vary widely in cost.

On average, budgeting $1,000 to $10,000 per month is common for sustained marketing efforts.

Always keep in mind that engaging users with incentives such as challenges, rewards, or community features may necessitate additional budget allocation.

♦ Integrations with Wearables

One of the biggest parts of creating a fitness app is making IoT compatible.

Partnering with platforms like Fitbit, Apple Health, or other APIs can lead to costs depending on usage and partnerships. Budgeting $500 to $2,000 per month is advisable.

In addition to this, depending on user engagement and the features utilized, additional transaction fees may apply.

♦ Compliance Costs

It goes without saying that with modern rules and regulations, making a mobile app compliant is a big task, let alone a fitness application.

This is that much more important if you’re processing sensitive health-related data, as compliance with regulations like GDPR and HIPAA can add significant costs.

Security audits can range from $5,000 to $20,000 per year.

Keep In mind that, regular updates to ensure compliance can involve a share of the cost to build an app like Google Fit.

♦ Tools

Last but not least, we have costs associated with app development tools.

Utilizing tools like Google Analytics, Mixpanel, or application performance monitoring (e.g., New Relic) may set you back $100 to $1,000 per month depending on the complexity of tracking required.

Overall, maintaining an app like Google Fit may cost between $40,000 to $100,000+ annually, depending on user engagement, features, and other variables.

It’s crucial to regularly assess the effectiveness of your investment in maintenance, infrastructure, and marketing to ensure that your app remains competitive in the dynamic health and fitness landscape.

Continuous user feedback and agile development approaches can help in optimizing costs while enhancing user satisfaction.

How to Monetize a Fitness Tracking App like Google Fit?

Now that we are done talking about the cost of developing a fitness tracking app like Google Fit, it’s time to talk about mobile app monetization.

Monetizing a fitness tracking app like Google Fit can be approached through various strategies.

Here are some effective methods to consider:

• Basic vs. Premium Features: Offer a free version of the app with essential features while charging for advanced features (e.g., personalized training programs, in-depth analytics, or health metrics).
• Subscription Tiers: Create multiple subscription tiers that offer varying levels of services and content, such as monthly, quarterly, or annual plans.
• In-App Ads: Use advertising platforms (e.g., Google AdMob) to show targeted ads. Consider limiting ads for premium users.
• Sponsorships: Partner with fitness brands to feature their products within the app, which could include advertisements, featured workouts, or brands collaborating on challenges.
• Aggregated Data Insights: Sell anonymized data insights to health and fitness companies or researchers interested in trends on user behaviors, activities, and health metrics. Ensure compliance with data protection regulations.
• Integration with Wearable Devices: Collaborate with wearable technology companies (like Fitbit or Garmin) to integrate with their devices, offering users a seamless experience while potentially charging fees for the integration.

The best approach to monetizing your fitness tracking app may involve a combination of these strategies.

Understanding your target audience and continuously iterating based on user feedback will help you select the most effective methods.

Moreover, ensuring a seamless user experience while implementing monetization strategies will be key to maintaining user engagement and satisfaction.

How Nimble AppGenie Help You Develop an App Like Google Fit?

Do you want to develop an app like Google Fit?

With the increasing popularity of health and fitness apps, there are many startups, businesses, and entrepreneurs who want to create a fitness-tracking mobile app.

Are you one of them? If you are, Nimble AppGenie is a market-leading fitness app development company that can turn your idea into reality.

With expertise in the health and fitness app market, we know what it takes to deliver a solution that helps you conquer the market.

Because we have done this before, more than 350 times.

Recommended by top platforms like Clutch, TopDevelopers, GoodFirms, and so many more.

Reach out to us and we will help you create your fitness app, as you want it.

Conclusion

Google Fit has been an inspiration for many fitness based businesses across the world who want to create their own fitness app like Google Fit.

One of the first questions these people ask is how much does it cost to make an app like Google Fit. In this blog, we have discussed all that you need to know about the same.

This covered everything from the basic market overview to the development process, cost, and much more. With this, you are ready to build a fitness and health tracking app like Google Fit guided by an experienced app development company.

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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.