Mobile apps are of the utmost necessity, and businesses are starting to realize their importance due to the growing demand from customers asking for mobile access to a company’s information or its products. Apps bring forth multitudes of benefits to businesses and help them establish a digital presence for a wider customer reach. That is why more and more enterprises are starting to develop apps to enhance their business and grow the enterprise application market as a result.
According to Statista’s report, “The global enterprise mobile app market is set to reach a market value of well above US$334 billion by the end of 2025.”
Those numbers are a clear reflection of the need for more mobile apps. However, that need has also translated into a bit of a demand for tools to develop these apps. Like all products, whether physical or digital, they require tools to build. And especially when it comes to digital ones, the development tools need to be modern and technologically advanced. Luckily, though, there are more than enough app development tools in the market that developers can choose from and use to kick-start and complete their development projects. That is why we will be listing the top 29 app development tools in this blog that are appropriate to the development platform and technological stack. So, without any messing around, let’s get straight into it.
29 Best Mobile App Development Tools in 2024 for Developers to Create Apps
It goes without saying the importance of app building tools as they help create native iOS and Android apps. Moreover, they help create cross-platform apps through cross-platform app development. Also, the app development tools offer lots of benefits to mobile app developers when building cross-platform mobile apps for iOS and Android devices, allowing developers to streamline the development process. These mobile app developer tools allow developers to build mobile apps for Android and iOS mobile platforms in the best way possible and using the appropriate and latest technology.
Moreover, the set of tools often helps developers create progressive web apps with web app development. However, we are here to talk only about mobile application development tools, and we have picked out the best 29 app development tools. This way, you can choose the right mobile app development app tool to develop your app and get your app up and running in no time.
Native Mobile App Development Tools for Android
The following are the best Android app development tools to create native Android apps:
1. Android Studio
Android Studio is the official integrated development environment (IDE) for Android mobile development. It is an independent product of Google that was created for coding, debugging, and testing Android applications. It has multi-language support for an intelligent code editor in programming languages like Java and Kotlin. Its advanced features include a layout editor with drag-and-drop facilities, an APK analyzer, and a fast emulator to test apps. Out-of-the-box integration with version control systems is supported, and real-time profilers are available for performance optimization. Gradle-based build systems allow easy management of dependencies and the creation of build variants. Regular updates keep Android Studio current with the latest Android platform features, and this tool will become indispensable to an aspiring or veteran Android developer.
2. Android Debug Bridge
ADB, or Android Debug Bridge, is a flexible command-line tool that lets the development machine effectively communicate with both Android tools and a range of devices. It’s an integral part of the Android SDK and facilitates the developer’s execution of a large variety of debugging tasks. Using ADB, developers can install apps on, remote shell into, and manage file operations on devices. It supports both physical devices and emulators; hence, it is vital for complete testing. ADB allows someone to view the device logs in real-time; this is extremely useful during troubleshooting. Other than this, it is also used for sideloading apps, capturing screenshots, and recording device screens. On top of these uses, ADB provides developers with low-level access to Android devices for those working on system-level applications or custom ROMs.
3. Android Virtual Device (AVD)
Android Virtual Device is also known as AVD. It is one of the essential tools in the development ecosystem of Android, which emulates a software basis on Android devices. AVD permits testing willed applications upon several configurations of devices without requiring any hardware hardware. It supports running multiple versions of Android, available screen sizes, and hardware specifications for various applications. Therefore, it gives a broad scope for doing compatibility testing of developed code. Developers may create custom AVDs, letting them work with targeted devices or use pre-configured profiles. The AVD Manager, though now embedded inside Android Studio, makes it significantly easier to generate and administer these virtual devices. Hardware acceleration, quick boot, and several other features make AVDs responsive for testing. They are great for testing on devices or Android versions that may not be physically available.
4. Eclipse
Although no longer the primary IDE for Android development, Eclipse is still quite popular among some due to its versatility and familiarity. It is an open-source, Java-based development platform that can support a variety of programming languages and development environments. Eclipse can be used with the Android Development Tools plugin for developing Android applications, though it has now been depreciated. The strong points of Eclipse lie in its extendability, with hundreds of plugins available for different tasks, mostly giving developers their own way of working; it supports code refactoring and debugging and has version control integration. Though this may not have tailored Android development features like the options that are provided by Android Studio, Eclipse, because of the cross-platform nature and support for diverse programming tasks, remains a decent option for several kinds of projects any one single developer may be working on.
5. Appy Pie
Appy Pie is a no-code, cloud-based mobile app development platform designed and created for ease of building Android applications. It’s for those people who have little or no programming experience. Essentially, this liberates the development of apps for many more. Appy Pie features drag-and-drop functionality that allows users to design the layout and functionality of an app in a visible format. It provides access to an extended list of templates and prefabricated elements for form building, map building, and other standard features that must be integrated with social media. Business apps, educational tools, e-commerce solutions—the platform can support such a thing. Appy Pie also enables app monetization, push notifications, and analytics. While this tool wouldn’t present itself with deep customization like traditional development instruments, Appy Pie offers its services in quick prototyping and building simple, functional apps quickly.
6. Firebase Tools
Firebase Tools is a suite of cloud-based services and development tools provided by Google to develop mobile and web applications better. At the core, Firebase provides Android developers with an excellent and wholesome set of backend services that are easy to hold within apps. These go from real-time data storage and synchronization to authentication services and user management, not forgetting cloud messaging for push notifications and analytics on app usage. Apart from this, Firebase provides hosting, cloud functions for serverless computing, and machine learning. The Firebase CLI, Command Line Interface, deploys and administers Firebase projects directly from the command line. Focusing on scalability and real-time operations, Firebase Tools critically reduces development time and complexity at the backend for Android apps.
7. Buddy
Buddy is an ultra-powerful platform for continuous integration and delivery (CI/CD) in Android applications. It automates the build, test, and deployment process of Android applications so that developers may efficiently deliver high-quality apps. Buddy provides a simple and intuitive user interface to build and manage pipelines; it also supports many VCSs like Git. It provides pre-configured actions for the most common Android development tasks, including running Gradle builds, executing unit tests, and deployments to app stores. Buddy’s containerized builds ensure consistency across different environments. Its integration with popular dev tools and services only adds to this flexibility. Parallel execution, caching, and other similarities make builds very fast in Buddy. It can automate the whole release process, making it very useful to teams applying DevOps practices in Android development.
Best App Development Tools to Build an App for iOS
Now is the turn for iOS apps, and the following are the app development tools that are considered the best for creating iOS apps.
8. Xcode
Xcode is the official Apple IDE for iOS, macOS, tvOS, and watchOS development. This will be a thoroughly fledged pack of tools, providing a powerful code editor, interface builder, debugging tools, and simulators for almost all devices from Apple. It works on Swift and Objective-C programming languages with features like code completion, syntax highlighting, and refactoring. It has an Interface Builder for graphically designing UI, supporting Auto Layout and Size Classes. Instruments are included in Xcode to analyze performance and trace down bottlenecks in code. It has integrated source control, continuous integration features, and TestFlight support for beta testing. In other words, it proposes a complete ecosystem for Apple platform development. This solution is updated regularly to include all the newest iOS versions and Apple hardware.
9. X Developer Platform
The X Developer Platform, otherwise known as the Apple Developer Program, is the complete set of tools and resources for Apple in developing iOS apps. It provides access to beta software, enhanced app features, and distribution on the App Store. Members get access to test versions of iOS so that early adaptation can be done for new features. Detailed documentation, sample code, and guidelines for development are also available on this platform. It has development tools for app analytics to help developers come up with user behavior and the performance of apps. Developers can distribute beta versions to testers efficiently through its TestFlight integration. This tool adds such capabilities as push notifications, in-app purchases, iCloud integration, and choices for in-house distribution and management for enterprise developers.
10. Jamf Pro
Jamf Pro is a fully featured MDM solution for Apple devices, including iOS ones. While not exactly a development tool, it’s significantly essential in deploying and managing enterprise iOS applications. With this, system administrators can remotely configure, secure, and manage iOS devices in their thousands. To this effect, it supports automated app distribution, which ensures that custom enterprise apps have easy distribution across all ends of an organization. Jamf Pro integrates well with Apple’s Volume Purchase Program for efficient app licensing and distribution. It provides granular inventory and reporting to ensure that organizations can track device usage and compliance easily. Since this solution allows one to enforce security policies, manage configurations, and provide remote support for devices, Jamf Pro becomes a requirement in development and deployment organizations running iOS apps at scale.
11. Parse
Parse is an open-source backend platform that provides great ease of development in the server-side logic for iOS applications. Fanned out from Facebook, now open-sourced, Parse offers a suite of tools and services handling common backend tasks. It also includes a scalable database solution, user authentication, push notifications, and cloud code functionality. Accordingly, iOS developers can use Parse to create a backend without bothering the host servers. It provides SDKs and APIs that integrate well with iOS development to easily store, retrieve data, and update it in real time. The Parse dashboard allows for analytics and manages applications. While the hosted Parse itself was deprecated, the open-source Parse Server can be self-hosted or deployed on different cloud platforms, making it flexible for an iOS app’s back end.
12. CodeRunner
CodeRunner is a powerful, lightweight code editor and IDE supporting iOS development and many other languages. Much less overwhelming in terms of features than Xcode for needs related to iOS only, it provides an uncluttered and snappy front-end for writing and testing code portions. It allows writing in Swift and Objective-C; thus, it’s excellent for quick iOS coding or testing algorithms. It is in the simplicity and speed where the power of CodeRunner rests: developers can quick-write and -run code without all the overhead of a full IDE. This editor supports syntax highlighting and code completion and a built-in terminal. As for the iOS developers, CodeRunner can accompany Xcode in rapid prototyping or for algorithms and cross-platform codes that are not specific to iOS.
13. AppCode
AppCode is a JetBrains-designed smart IDE for iOS and macOS development that is offered as an alternative to Xcode. Advanced support is given for all aspects of iOS app development in Swift, Objective-C, C, and C++. Principal strengths of AppCode include competent code assistance, refactoring tools, and code analysis. This is coupled with features such as intelligent code completion, on-the-fly error detection, and quick fixes for possible code issues. AppCode supports major version control systems, and they integrate tightly with popular iOS development tools. While it doesn’t replace Xcode fully, especially for Interface Builder and some tasks peculiar to iOS development, it is loved by many developers, especially for improved coding features and a customizable interface. AppCode establishes itself as a critical tool in the iOS development ecosystem, being built with considerations for code quality and the developer’s productivity for those already used to other JetBrains IDEs.
Cross-Platform Mobile App Development Tools
Many mobile app development tools can help developers create mobile apps on iOS and Android platforms. These are the cross-platform app development tools used to create apps for multiple platforms:
14. React Native for Hybrid Mobile App Development
React Native is a framework developed by Meta. It is very popular and uses JavaScript and React to build cross-platform mobile applications. React Native allows the developer to create mobile apps for iOS and Android from one code base. This significantly reduces development time and saves money. In contrast to classical hybrid applications, React Native uses native components to guarantee a look and feel that is genuinely native. It provides hot reloading, which means that changes are reflected instantaneously in the app without having to be rebuilt. It has vast and active communities, hence extensive third-party libraries and plugins. Its performance is near-native apps; therefore, it’s suitable for complex applications. Because it is flexible and can be combined with native code easily when needed, React Native finds a balance between cross-platform efficiency and native capabilities.
15. Xamarin
Xamarin is an interoperable, cross-platform development product from Microsoft for developing native Android, iOS, and Windows applications in C# and NET. It provides access to a single shared code base for business logic and combines it with platform-specific UI development. Xamarin.Forms is the further development of Xamarin, which extends sharing even more by providing a cross-platform UI toolkit. On top of that, Xamarin exposes native-level performance and access to platform-specific APIs. It integrates well into Visual Studio, providing a familiar environment for .NET developers. Xamarin Test Cloud enables automated UI testing across thousands of real devices. Sharing up to 90% of code across platforms and powerful backing by Microsoft makes Xamarin a robust choice for enterprises and developers familiar with C# and .NET ecosystems.
16. Flutter
Flutter is an open-source UI software development kit by Google, used to develop natively compiled applications for mobile, web, and desktop from a single codebase. It uses the Dart programming language and allows a reactive programming model. Flutter does something no one else does: it paints every pixel on the screen, which gives it pixel-perfect consistency across platforms. Besides, it provides a hot reload for fast cycles of development, accompanied by a rich set of widgets that can be freely customized to complex UIs. Its performance equals native performances; hence, it is suitable for high-performance applications. Due to the growing community support and the fact that Google backs the project, Flutter quickly rose in popularity. It is expressly noted for its ability to create visually attractive brand-first designs that maintain consistency across platforms.
17. Titanium SDK
Axway provides an open-source framework called Titanium SDK, which helps develop cross-platform mobile applications using JavaScript. A single JavaScript codebase can generate native iOS and Android applications. Titanium compilers compile the JavaScript code into native codes; therefore, it provides nearly native performance. It gives access to many native UI components and device-specific properties. Another essential feature is the MVC architecture provided by the Alloy framework of Titanium for better code organization. While it has a higher learning curve compared to some of the other frameworks, Titanium does offer flexibility and control. It’s particularly suitable for those developers who would want to leverage their web development experience toward making mobile applications without compromising too much on native functionality and performance.
18. Sencha Touch
Sencha Touch is a user interface JavaScript framework specially designed for cross-platform mobile web applications. Inbuilt, it comes with a comprehensive set of UI components, all native looking on iOS and Android, among other devices. Sencha Touch uses HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript to create responsive and performant applications. It has an advanced data package for handling data; hence, it is quite relevant for data-intensive applications. Sencha Touch offers tools for theming and changing the look of applications. Though this is mainly a web application-oriented language, it is possible to mix it with tools such as PhoneGap in order to develop hybrid mobile applications. The actual power is in complex, enterprise-grade applications that have the same face on all devices.
19. Adobe PhoneGap
Adobe PhoneGap is one of the popular app development frameworks that lets developers build hybrid mobile apps based on the open-source Apache Cordova project. It allows building cross-platform mobile apps with only standard web technologies: HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript. Only a native container will be created by PhoneGap, which encapsulates a web app and grants access to device features through a JavaScript API. It lets one develop at a very high speed and deploy on multiple platforms quickly. PhoneGap Build is a cloud service that now simplifies the app development process by building apps in the cloud. Admittedly, it cannot match the performance of fully native apps, but it works well for smaller apps or even for prototyping an idea quickly on several platforms.
20. NativeScript
NativeScript is an open source mobile framework that allows one to build native, cross-platform mobile applications using JavaScript, TypeScript, or Angular. It helps developers use their web development skills to build apps that use native UI components for a native look and feel on iOS and Android. Also, it includes access to NativeScript native APIs, without any wrappers, for all native platform capabilities. Moreover, it supports hot module replacement for faster development. This makes it quite attractive to web developers since NativeScript supports popular web frameworks like Angular and Vue.js. It provides performance near native apps and has a specific strength in creating custom, unique-looking user interfaces across platforms.
21. Ionic
Ionic is an open-source framework for developing hybrid mobile applications using only web development technologies. Also, it is essentially Apache Cordova combined with Angular—which aims to build cross-platform mobile apps from HTML5, CSS, and JavaScript.
Ionic exposes a rich set of UI components that automatically adapt to the platform they are run on, offering a native disguise and feel. The documentation is excellent, and the community is amicable, so any web developer will find it easy to understand. Ionic’s CLI tools make development smooth, starting from the creation of projects to testing and deployment. Though traditionally a hybrid application framework, the recent versions of Ionic already support PWAs and even native compilation via Capacitor. Ionic suits the best for rapid prototyping and developing complex UI apps that must be consistent across different platforms.
Rapid Mobile App Development Tools
Developers can rapidly create mobile apps using the following app development tools:
22. Alpha Anywhere
Alpha Anywhere is one of the best rapid mobile app development software. It aims to speed up the development of cross-platform mobile and web applications through both professional developers and citizen developers. At Alpha Software, we embrace and enable the low-code movement to radically reduce development time. Alpha Anywhere provides a comprehensive suite of tools to build responsive and offline-capable web and mobile applications. Its main feature is that it enables one to develop heavy-duty business apps that are data-driven with really minimum coding.
It comes packed with a visual designer for constructing UI, a built-in database, and straightforward linking with external resources of the data. Alpha Anywhere enables working offline in case of a problem with internet connectivity. It provides in-built security, includes version control and advanced features, and can further accommodate custom code insertion. With its focus on enterprise-grade applications, Alpha Anywhere is particularly suitable for businesses looking to rapidly deploy mobile solutions that integrate with existing systems.
23. Appcelerator
Appcelerator is a solid cross-platform mobile application development platform allowing a single JavaScript codebase, which speeds up the development of an application while retaining native performance and functionalities. The core part of Appcelerator is Titanium, a free framework to create native iOS and Android apps with JavaScript. To put it briefly, Appcelerator goes beyond Titanium and adds extended tools and services in the enterprise-grade app development scenario. Appcelerator is the perfect fit for businesses and developers that need fast development and Apple App Store and Google Play deployment of sophisticated cross-mobile applications that can deliver full native performance and independence from platforms.
Its ecosystem of tools and services makes it a complete solution for any part of the lifecycle of mobile applications, from development to deployment and management. Essential features of Appcelerator include the following: Rapid Development: Enables developers to create applications very quickly, thanks to JavaScript support; the created apps can run in a native environment for each platform.
Low Coding App Builder Platforms
A tool like the ones listed below can help developers create mobile apps with very little coding. The following are the low-coding app development tools:
24. TrackVIA
TrackVIA is one of the leading low-code application development platforms designed to empower business organizations to build custom mobile and web applications for their business needs faster and more efficiently. It empowers IT individuals and supports a citizen developer, which has a user-friendly interface with minimal coding knowledge required. TrackVIA has a drag-and-drop interface. This allows users to create fast application designs and layouts with pre-built templates and can, therefore, start in any industry. The platform allows for the building of sophisticated business processes and automation through custom workflows, with smooth integration into existing databases and third-party systems.
With its mobile-first approach, TrackVIA ensures applications are responsive and work seamlessly on mobile devices. In addition to that, it offers built-in tools for creating dashboards and real-time reports, coupled with strong security features that accommodate the management of user permissions through role-based access control. TrackVIA would perform best for organizations looking to digitize and optimize operations, particularly in manufacturing, healthcare, and field services. Its flexibility enables quick prototyping and iteration; hence, it’s opportune for any business where requirements keep changing at the snap of a finger.
25. OutSystems
OutSystems is a complete low-code development environment that builds enterprise-class applications fast. It’s genuinely different in that it holds a purpose for complex and scalable applications while keeping the speed and ease of low-code development. Moreover, OutSystems offers a visual development environment with an intuitive interface that supports design, enabling design processes for user interfaces and workflows or data models. Full-stack development includes front-end, backend, and database development, all within one platform. The platform also incorporates AI-assisted development that suggests improvements to code and thus streamline the development process. Security features in OutSystems are enterprise-grade, and industry compliance standards guarantee robust security for any application.
It is quite easy to integrate into current systems and third-party services. Built to meet high-volume and demanding mission-critical applications, OutSystems exhibits excellent scalability. Besides that, it offers automated DevOps due to the presence of built-in deployment, monitoring, and management tools. Such popularity among large enterprises and institutions dealing with complex data-intensive applications is very common. Moreover, OutSystems has created many content/use cases. It suits companies modernizing legacy systems, creating omnichannel experiences, or quickly building and deploying customer-facing applications.
26. Fliplet
Fliplet is a low-code, user-friendly app development platform that helps businesses create custom mobile and web applications with limited coding knowledge. It serves many users, from IT professionals and business analysts to those applying its services within enterprises. Fliplet offers an intuitive application builder with drag-and-drop ease of developing apps and ready-to-use, out-of-the-box templates for many common business cases. The platform allows branding and design options in terms of its corporate identity. Fliplet does multi-platform development to build apps that run across both iOS and Android, along with web browsers. It has an offline function that allows the running of apps without continuous connectivity to the internet.
Easy integration with existing databases and APIs makes data integration very easy. Fliplet also offers enterprise-grade security features such as data encryption and user authentication. This solution is best for internal tooling, employee apps, or customer-facing applications that get a worker up and running quickly. The strength of Fliplet lies in its simplicity and speed. This makes it very suitable for those organizations looking to prototype and iterate on app ideas rapidly. Also, it caters mainly to developing apps for communication among employees, event management, training, and onboarding scenarios, as well as simple data collection with reporting cases.
No-Coding Mobile App Development Platform to Build Powerful Mobile Apps
If someone wants to create a mobile app but does not have any coding skills, then they can do so by using the app development tools below. These app development tools will help you create mobile apps by giving you pre-made templates and an overview of mobile app settings.
27. AppSheet
AppSheet is a no-code platform for creating mobile and web apps. This way, each user, irrespective of their experience in programming, will find it easy to use. It takes data from spreadsheets, cloud services, or both and automatically turns it into an app. One of the most famous features of the Appsheet solution includes intuitive drag-and-drop interfaces, pre-built templates, and customizability. The application proposes making apps for collecting data, inventory management, and running field service operations; support is present offline —it synchronizes the data and integrates with popular services. Thanks to its AI-based approach, AppSheet will not only suggest app improvements but also automate some development tasks. It is one of the most popular choices for any business looking to digitize processes but requires them quickly, building functional apps with no coding required.
28. BuildFire
BuildFire is an intuitive, no-code mobile app development platform. It caters to businesses, especially if you are looking to build your app on both iOS and Android. It hosts various pre-built templates and modules across different industries and app types. Its drag-and-drop interface allows users to quickly customize layouts and features in an app. Also, It provides robust functionality with push notifications, user authentication, and shopping cart capabilities. Besides, it integrates with third-party services to add advanced functionality to your app. By its nature, BuildFire offers DIY methods and professional services that accommodate more complex projects. With simplicity at the core of this solution and its high scalability, it’s perfect for small businesses, entrepreneurs, and organizations looking to establish mobile exposure quickly and in a cost-effective way.
29. Quick Base
Quick Base is a no-code application development platform that helps run any business by making workflow apps for management, data capture, and process automation. It has a drag-and-drop visual interface to build apps; further, this interface helps users create an app without coding. Moreover, Quick Base supports relational databases and custom forms for capturing required information. It supports real-time reporting and role-based access controls. Also, it easily integrates with other business systems. Specifically, Quick Base excels in project management, CRM, and operational processes app-building. Also, flexibility like this makes the platform relevant to any business size, from small teams to large enterprises that might want to build and deploy custom business applications rapidly.
Final Thoughts
Those are all the app development tools we have to feature in this blog. We hope these app development tools can help you create your app successfully and with ease. However, if you require help from professionals for your app development project, then you can consider Linkitsoft’s app development services to develop your app. Also, we hope you liked reading this blog on app development tools. So, if you found it useful, then we recommend you check out more like these on our website.
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