Mobile apps · Mixed

Native, cross-platform, or a mobile website

In one line: The choice is set by how much you need from the device itself and by team size — not by which technology is trending this year.

Three roads

Native. Separate code for each operating system. The best access to hardware, performance and system feel. Nearly twice as expensive to maintain.

Cross-platform. One codebase for both systems. Very mature today, and suits most business apps.

Mobile website. No store, instant updates, a shareable link. Limited in hardware access and notifications, but enough for many cases.

What actually decides

Ask what's needed from the device: an advanced camera, sustained background work, location streaming, sensors, deep system integration. The heavier the answer, the more the scale tips toward native.

Ask about the team too: two developers won't maintain two native codebases without paying for it in pace.

The cost that isn't in the code

App stores add a whole world: approvals, signing, a privacy policy, reviews that reject versions, and waiting time. Plan a release path in advance and don't promise a date that depends on an external party's approval.

Going deeper

If you're unsure, a mobile-optimized site is usually the right first step: it validates demand without a store's entry fee. The move to an app is made when there's a proven need for notifications, offline work or hardware access — not in order to “be in the store.”