Cost To Develop An Online Shopping App Like Xcite

In the age of technology, online shopping apps like Xcite have revolutionised the shopping experience for users. Xcite is a popular electronics retail platform in Kuwait and Middle East. It has set the standard with a wide range of products, easy to use interface, secure payment methods, and doorstep delivery! With its success, many entrepreneurs and businesses are keen to create similar online shopping apps. But the first question is: how much will it cost? In this blog, we will identify the factors that will impact the cost in developing an online shopping app like Xcite, including features, technology stack, development team rates, and other aspects that can assist in planning your budget.

What is Xcite?

Xcite is a retail brand in electronics and home appliances located in Kuwait, operated by Alghanim Industries, known for being a strong brand in the region. It sells all types of products to consumers including mobiles, laptops, televisions, gaming devices, household appliances, all online and in store. Xcite is known for providing competitive pricing, regular promotions, and excellent customer service. This success has positioned it as a trusted location for tech savvy shoppers in the region. With delivery options, and multiple showrooms, it provides the consumers with a seamless and reliable shopping experience.
 

Key Features to Include in an Online Shopping App Like Xcite

Here is the list of amazing AI shopping app development that you must need to have your hands on. 

User Registration & Login

Quick registration via email or social accounts, allowing customers to create profiles, keep track of orders and securely store preferences

Smarter product search

With xcite online shopping app this feature offers fast search bars or filters, users can find what they're looking for (category/price/brand/popularity).

Product catalog & details

Product listings are inclusive of images, descriptions, specifications & customer reviews to help inform the user’s purchasing decision.

Add to cart & wishlist

Personal shopping experience - allows users to conveniently save products for later convenience then allows them to add directly to the cart no hassle.

Secure payment gateway

Payment options include; card, cash on delivery and wallets: assuring a smooth, secure transaction which users can trust.

Live order tracking

With Online shopping app development users can track all orders live from dispatch to delivery for transparency and customer satisfaction.

Push notifications

Sending alerts to customers about sales, discounts, restocked items, and to update their orders increases engagement and retention of users with the help of ecommerce apps like xcite.

Personalized recommendations

AI offers users suggestions based on past behavior and preferences - increasing the likelihood of purchasing something - creating a better experience for the user.

Ratings & reviews

Users can rate items they have purchased and leave comments, which will allow others to make an informed buying decision as well as giving the items embellishment and credibility.

Customer support chat

Allows users to chat, call or use FAQs for instant support to help answer queries or assist throughout the shopping journey.

Loyalty Programs & Offers

Rewards points, discount codes, and special offers encourage repeat purchases and increase customer loyalty.

Multi-language Support 

App Supports Multiple Regional Languages for accessibility for a larger user base, and improving accessibility for international app users.

Simple Checkout Process 

A smooth one-page checkout process with less steps and less time, creates a better customer purchasing experience.

Social Media Sharing 

Allows users to share their favourite product or deal via one of the social platforms increasing referrals and reach of brand.

Admin Dashboard 

A fully functional back-end admin dashboard to allow managing products, orders, inventory, users, and analytics with ease.

Cost to Develop Online Shopping App Similar to Xcite in Kuwait

Typically the cost to develop an online shopping app like Xcite in Kuwait is between USD 10,000 - USD 50,000+, depending on the properties and complexity of the project. For example, a simple MVP with a few basic features like a catalog, cart, user log in, and payment, would be on the lower side. However, a full-scale multi-vendor system integrated with ai, loyalty programs, and  crafted design that is cross-platform, would be at the high end of the scale. The ecommerce app development cost structure will fluctuate greatly if you're not using a local Kuwait based agency, or if you are engaging external contractors for development work. Below are the nine major components which could impact total cost to build xcite like app, each described in detail.

1. App Complexity & Number of Features

The more features your application has (e.g. live tracking, personalized recommendations, multiple payments methods, discount systems, in-app chat etc), the more development hours and cost. With basic functionality you will spend less;  with advanced, custom designed features (such as AI-based suggestions, loyalty rewards, or virtual trials) more design and development effort is required along with testing effort which has an impact on the total App development cost in Saudi Arabia.

2. Platform choice (iOS/Android/Web)

Xcite like ecommerce app development to a single platform are inherently less expensive, doing native apps for iOS App and Android App Development are double the effort, time, and cost. Cross platform, meaning one app on two platforms (or many platforms), are often less expensive, but often have more compromise on performance. Adding a responsive web portal or admin dashboard to the base budget, increases this Cost to build xcite like app.

3. UI/UX Design & Language localization

Having a beautiful interface with ease of use for the end user in two languages (Arabic/English) requires a minimum number of skilled designers (illustrators, and developers), as well as additional development work. All considerations need to be weighed when developing custom animations, out-of-the-ordinary layouts, icons, and letting the user experience UI/UX Design the app in their preferred language. The more polished and branded you want your look, the higher your design fee.

4. Location of the development team

Hiring a company from Kuwait or the UAE will incur the cost to create an online shopping app like Xcite to hiring a company or team from India or another Eastern Europe country, to do the same work, all other things being equal (e.g. quoted hourly rates). The more experience an ecommerce app development company has and the more senior a team's designers or developers are, also taken into consideration. An experienced senior developer team can expedite development, while charging more per hour.

5. Backend Development & QA Testing

The foundation for product management, servers, API and databases all take time and expertise to establish. Testing is crucial to ensure the app functions seamlessly across devices and operating systems. Building scalable back-end architecture, security protocols and integrating third-party plugins all adds or compounds to build complexity that can dramatically increase the cost to develop an online shopping app like Xcite.

6. Maintenance & Post-Launch Support

After you launch the app, you will most likely want to plan on support in the form of fixing bugs, enhancing performance, patching security vulnerabilities and adding periodic new features. As a general measure, be prepared to pay approximately 20-30% of the initial Shein like app development cost annually for maintenance. And if you don't pay for it, the app is doomed to have glitches and poor user experience.

7. Third-Party Integrations

All third-party services for payment gateways, SMS integrations, social logins, analytics, push notifications and delivery trace services have separate LICENCES or APIs. Every external service integration comes with subscription cost, time and API management fees each month, which contributes to both development costs and monthly running Xcite like app development cost.

8. Deployment, Hosting & Server Hosting Costs

There are several payments you'll need to make for app deployments (Apple app store or Google app store), plus server hosting, domain purchases, SSL certificates and database services on top. Cloud servers like AWS or Azure have scalable service plans but come with monthly or yearly costs in addition to the development fee.

All in all, creating a shopping app like Xcite in Kuwait is a considerable, but rewarding expense. The cost to develop an online shopping app like Xcite is dependent on such factors as your features, approach to development, and goals to scale. Working with the right Mobile app development company will help ensure that you get a well-developed product for your ecommerce app development cost Saudi Arabia.

How to Decrease the Cost to Develop an Xcite-Like App?

Developing a shopping app like Xcite will come with big expense, but there are ways to minimize your cost smartly while compromising almost nothing on quality. Here are six smart and proven ways to get the development costs down:

1. Start with an MVP

Instead of a Best ecommerce app that is fully loaded with bells and whistles on day one, drill it down to just key features: product catalog, cart, payment, login and basic tracking. This Minimum Viable Product (MVP) route allows you to launch quicker, validate the concept, gather customer feedback, and spend capital on advanced features after customers have been using your app and you know they want it. This approach can save you thousands of initial expenses.

2. Cross-Platform Development

Building native app for both iOS and Android costs more because you have to pay for separate dev teams to build each. Instead, use a cross-platform framework such as Flutter or React Native. This allows you to build a single app that runs well on both platforms, using unique layouts for each, and can reduce development time and resources by 30–40%, while still being performant.

3. Use Pre-Built Templates & Modules

To mitigate costs, use UI kits with ready-made components, templates for ecommerce apps, etc.  A lot of what we use in terms of features already exists as modules i.e. login, payment gateways, OTP or product screens etc.  This way you don't need to design everything,  that is what saves time on the design element as well as reduces the coding time.

4. Find Affordable Options Around the World

There is a significant difference in cost hiring developers in Kuwait, UAE or Europe (high price) versus hiring experienced Mobile App Developers teams in India or other Asian countries (low price). In either situation, Off-shore development companies can provide the same quality at a much lower hour rate, thus drastically reducing the budget plus keeping the quality benefit, pace advantage and clear communication. 

5. Do not Include Features at the First Stage 

Consider limiting the elements such as the AI recommendation, AR try-on or loyalty program features on the first version of the app,  if you do have a limited budget.  Focus instead on a clean app that works as intended.  You can include advanced modules later through an update to the app once you start receiving incomes and that is when you can include that cost to develop an online shopping app like Xcite.  This controlled Cost to build an app like Excite in Kuwait measure is very beneficial for a first app. 

6. Use Open-Source Tools

When possible, use open-source technologies for backends, databases, content management, and analytics.  This avoids the brand's licensing fees or recurring payments.  Use components such as MySQL, Firebase or even open-source payment libraries, lowering the initial investment substantially.

Why Consider IMG Global Infotech for your Ecommerce Application Development in Kuwait?

IMG Global Infotech has earned the reputation of offering high-performance ecommerce apps for clients with diverse needs tailored to the Gulf. With years of experience, bilingual UI/UX, and a team with native and cross-platform App development skills, they produce scalable and feature-rich apps that fit your remaining budget. Their agile process, transparent communications, and affordable (ultimately offshore) development services make them your best pick. Building for businesses between MVP and enterprise-level ecommerce solutions, IMG Global Infotech can reliably provide ongoing support while incorporating a business-oriented approach to design, security, and a customer-first vision in their creative process, empowering businesses to thrive in the digital economy of Kuwait. 

Conclusion 

If you are looking to build an online shopping app like Xcite in Kuwait, it can be a great investment as long as you build the app strategically. There are so many factors that can impact the total price you will pay, including the features you want in the app, the technology stack you will use to build the app, the visual design you are looking for and the development team you have assembled, but, this is where and why you need to strategically plan to effectively manage your expenses. If a customer has limited budgets, we encourage clients to build an online shopping app by starting with an MVP, using cross-platform frameworks and offshore development providers - which are ways of effectively reducing costs without sacrificing quality. Regardless of whether you are a startup building your first app, or an established retailer, investing in the creation of a nice ecommerce app can open opportunities for new sales, customer connection and long growth in Kuwait's dynamic digital economy.