How And Where To Host Mobile App Backend

A mobile app backend is a necessary software to help communicate with the website or application by running on a server. The backend is mainly responsible for storing, sharing and controlling app data and even allows hosting content on the app. Not only this, it is helpful in running the business logic and getting the required data as per the applied command. The best companies that offer Android and iPhone application development services also provide hosting backend of mobile apps in their pricing model.

4 Ways to host mobile app backend:

BaaS

Baas or Backends as a service use different services available online such as Mobile Hub by AWS, Firebase from Google, Microsoft’s Azure mobile tools or GraphCMS. It is super quick to set up and also can be scaled up easily as per the users’ demands. The best part is that it cuts down the need for a dedicated backend developer, a large amount of money can be saved in the development process. Stable scaling is always a concern faced in all applications and this facility takes the entire burden off your shoulders. There may be a little flexibility issues as custom commands or other things could be difficult to manage.

CloudKit

It is a free, user-friendly hosting provider from Apple that is meant for iOS and web apps for data storage. All top Apple apps use it owing to its reliability and support from Apple. The best part is that there is no need for user registration as the app users are already registered using their respective AppleID. 

Shared Hosting

Taking hold of a custom backend running on other clouds such as Azure Virtual Machine, AWS EC2 etc. allows you to perform as many functions and operations as you like since it can be managed conveniently. Developing a backend from scratch, you have all the flexibility to choose everything and make it possible. Since you own the cloud, you will get maximum privileges at all times. Also. as the demand increases or requirements change, you will be able to shift to any other cloud easily as well. However, as you have more increased control, it does come with a price. The plans are quite expensive for this type of hosting and you need to deal with more IT-related headaches. 

Self-hosting

A fully custom backend that will be present in your intended server at a datacenter, self-hosting is for the ones who can invest in getting their own hosting. Many top tech companies are doing so however, they are also somewhere renting space on other’s servers. A good example of this type of hosting includes the Netflix app that makes use of AWS for hosting some of its infrastructure parts. 

Where to host Mobile apps?

There are different platforms to host mobile apps. The most popular ones remain to be Google Play store as well as App store.

1. Google Play Store: All the Android apps can get easy hosting from Google Play store. All you need to do is create your account and pay the one-time fee for registration which is $25. Once it is paid and your app gets submitted, you need to wait for its approval which generally takes 72 hours and then, start with your app’s marketing.

2. App Store: For all iOS apps, Apple has provided hosting from its own App store where one can create an account and add the app’s first version. The App store takes a recurring fee of $99 every year to renew your app’s registration. It may be an expensive option however, apps hosted on Apple are super reliable and more secure.

Conclusion

With this, you must be aware of all the mobile app hosting options that are available in the market. All you need to do is make a decision based upon some crucial factors such as the amount of storage space, bandwidth and the number of emails and domains. If you are creating a data sensitive app, it is essential to keep the flexibility in your hands to keep the data secure. So make a wise choice by keeping all these options in mind.