Mobile App Development: Flutter, Native or PWA?

3 min read

You have decided to build a mobile app, but you are not sure which technology to choose? In this article we compare the native, Flutter and PWA approaches in plain language and list the questions that will help you make the right choice for your business.

Three main approaches

Native app — two separate apps written in Swift for iOS and Kotlin for Android.
Cross-platform (Flutter) — both the iOS and the Android app are built from a single codebase.
PWA (Progressive Web App) — a website that opens in the browser and can be added to the phone's home screen "like an app".

Native: when is it the best choice?

The native approach lets you use every capability of the device to the full. It is preferred for complex animations, games, augmented reality (AR), heavy work with Bluetooth devices, or whenever maximum performance is required. The downside is two separate codebases: both development and later updates take more time and budget.

Flutter: one codebase, two platforms

With Flutter, developed by Google, the app is written once and built for both the App Store and Google Play. As a result:

the app reaches the market faster;
design and features are identical on both platforms;
support costs are lower, because updates are made in a single codebase.

For most business apps — e-commerce, booking, loyalty, delivery and service apps — Flutter delivers performance very close to native.

PWA: a website that works like an app

A PWA opens directly in the browser without an app store download and can be added to the phone's home screen. It is the most affordable option and is visible in search engines. However, access to some device features is limited, especially on iOS, and it is not listed in the App Store or Google Play.

Quick comparison

Criterion	Native	Flutter	PWA
Development speed	Slowest	Fast	Fastest
Budget	High	Medium	Low
Performance	Maximum	Close to native	Depends on the browser
Device features	Full	Almost full	Limited
App Store and Google Play	Yes	Yes	No

5 questions to help you choose

Which device features will the app use (camera, GPS, Bluetooth, notifications)?
Is it important to reach iOS and Android users at the same time?
How soon do you want the app to go live?
Does being listed in the app stores and collecting ratings matter to you?
How much budget can you allocate for updates after launch?

What determines the cost of an app?

The price depends not only on the number of screens, but also on the server side behind the app (backend and API), an admin panel to manage content, integrations such as payments, maps and notifications, the complexity of the design and the amount of testing.

How NS Studio approaches it

In our mobile app development service we use Flutter-based cross-platform development for most projects: the iOS and Android apps are built by one team with the same quality and delivered together with an admin panel and API. If you are choosing between a website and an app, our article website or mobile app? will also help. Contact us to discuss your project.