AR/VR App Development Cost | How Much to Make AR VR Application

Augmented and virtual reality technology will surpass the market by $15 billion to $65 billion in revenue by 2023. Most people think AR/VR technology is used only for gaming, but this is not true. Immersive technologies like AR & VR boost productivity, streamline business operations and improve customer satisfaction. 

Businesses considering AR/VR app development may have many questions about how the technology can be used in the real world, how long it will take, and what will be ar or vr app development cost.

The most frequent questions that come into mind are:

• “How long does it take to develop an AR app” and
• “How much does it cost to develop an AR VR app?”

We are here to answer these questions. Most experts say it takes 3 to 5 months in the development process, whereas others claim 10 to 16 weeks. On the other side, there is conflict regarding costing, a few are ready to build with less than 35K USD, and the rest charge 85K USD. 

How do these two situations conflict? Let’s deep dive into this and understand the complete time and cost calculation scenario to develop AR VR apps. 

Global AR/VR Market Statistics

• According to Statista, there are 171 million virtual reality (VR) players globally, and the global VR market was $12.13 billion as of 2022.
• The augmented and virtual reality market is expected to grow from $12 billion in 2022 to $73 billion in 2024.
• Statista says the number of people using augmented reality (AR) on their phones will skyrocket between 2019 and 2024.

Main Factors That Effect the AR VR App Development Cost & Time

Type	Development Time	Approx. Development Cost
Marker-Based AR	80–150 hours	$1500-$2500
Marker-Based AR with Animation	100–200 hours	$2000-$3000
Marker-less AR	350–450 hours	$5,000-$8,500
Projection-Based AR	200–260 hours	$5000-$7000

You can also check our Cost Estimation Tool For Mobile Application Development.

How Long Does It Take To Develop An AR App?

The longevity of AR app development mainly depends on what type of Augmented Reality App you want to build. There are some options that experts ask to pick what suits your business requirement. You have to choose what suits them best! Here we have some examples of app categories:

Marker-Based AR Apps

Marker-based AR apps are one of the easiest apps to implement in the market. These apps are created with an aim to trigger markers based on various real worlds with the help of QR codes, icons, images, or cards. Generally, these types of apps are used to tell the history of famous buildings or recreate historical events. Marker-based AR apps are operated through software that requires easy implementation of technology. Vuforia, Wikitude, Kudan, and Maxst are the most prominent examples of creating software development kits (SDKs). 

Location-Based AR Apps

Compared to marker-based AR Apps, Location-based AR apps are time and cost consuming. These apps provide the user’s current location and virtual object’s location in the real world. During app development integration, location-based augmented reality apps require GPS, a compass, and other sensors. Hence, these apps require a higher budget than others. 

AR Based On Visual Odometry

Visual Odometry AR-based apps are designed to associate camera images to and identify particular locations or perform particular actions. These apps perform complex tasks compared to marker-based apps. Therefore, these require complex algorithms to receive and perform actions. The complexity of apps also affects the development tenure and budget. 

Also Read: E Wallet App Development Cost

How Long Does It Take To Develop A VR App?

As AR apps are divided into three categories, the same way there are three types of virtual reality apps. These are:

Non-Immersive Virtual Reality

Non-Immersive virtual reality apps are people's most overlooked virtual reality category in common lives. The technology provides computer-based objects rather than physical environments to engage users. These applications are based on Video game consoles, displays, keyboards, controllers, and other computer devices. These apps are easy to integrate and can only be built in 2-4 weeks. 

Semi-Immersive Virtual Reality

Semi-immersive virtual reality environment provides a partial experience between non-immersive and fully immersive virtual reality. These apps are designed to engage users with 3D reality images as they keep them connected to their physical surroundings. Users use high-resolution computer screens, projectors, or VR glasses to move around a virtual environment and enhance the experience. These apps require complex details. Therefore, these are designed between 4-7 weeks only. 

Fully-Immersive Virtual Reality

Fully immersive virtual reality apps are designed to stimulate the user experience with complete sight and sound experience. The whole new phenomena of experiencing amazing content require high-resolution content, proper VR glasses, and a head mount display (HMD). These apps are commonly used for gaming and entertainment purposes, but now in education, these apps are spreading more light. To build full immersive virtual reality displaying apps, an experienced developer required 6-10 weeks. 

Also Read: AR & VR development companies in Australia

How Much Does It Cost To Develop An AR VR App?

The total augmented reality app development cost ranges from $10,000 to $200,000. And the total vr app development cost ranges from $20,000 to $100,000

1	Features	Time Frame
2	Simple VR app (Android/ iOS)	Up to 30 Days
3	Online VR shops for retail (Android/ iOS)	Up to 90 Days
4	3D MAX Modeling	Up to 180 Days
5	Complex AR VR App	Up to 1 year and more

The cost of AR/VR apps depends on many factors, including the app type, features, technologies, and company you hire. We have divided the whole new segment of cost calculations into two categories. These are:

Discovery Stage 

• Business Analysis

At this stage, business analysts identify your business needs and find out a solution that fits customer expectations. We combine data from various sources and implement the required functionality. Our experts design apps that help you to stay ahead of competitors with next-gen strategies. When it's about time taking, generally, it may take 50-70 hours to develop a comprehensive augment application business strategy. This section also adds significance into vr development cost.

• Augmented Reality App Design

This is one of the most challenging parts of the development process. Designers start creating innovative designs based on the data received from analysts. They have to meet end-user requirements with visualizing features and an eye-catchy user interface. Keep in mind that this segment is a time-consuming process as it requires animated images or 3D graphic models. The value of time consumption on designing segments also adds cost to the AR VR app development process. 

• Software Architecture Planning

 This is the crucial stage of the development process and impacts your AR VR App development cost. Here the business pays for selected features, functionality, technology choice, and more. Depending on these criteria, the application takes 25-40 hours. You can also integrate blockchain technology in your AR VR apps to ensure end-to-end data encryption. 

• Project Management and Team Review

Project managers are designated to correlate the efforts of all other team members. Their major responsibilities include controlling tasks, setting priorities, planning processes, and looking at accomplishing projects. The manager looks for projects that require improvement scope. The efforts put by experts on the project add cost to the AR VR app development. 

Development Stage

• Early Planning

The next biggest thing that boosts your app development cost but cuts time for building apps is its early planning. These involve preparing for what type of API will be required and what will be your prioritized tech task, tools, and practices to be used in the development section. Sometimes the whole process takes 1-2 weeks, depending on the selected company. 

• Development 

The development process is the main segment of augmented app development. It involves time and cost with the basic set of features. Here we have defined time estimation, and the cost will vary depending on it. Let’s check it out:

Features	Estimated Time (in hours)
Development with ARKit (involves basic features and objects like scales, rotate, and move)	130-150
Developing admin panel	25-35
Back-end (server-side data storage)	30-50
User profile and user engagement	20-30
Attractive menu	5-10
Push notifications	8-12

Depending on these features and challenges, the AR VR app development company charges a cost to the business. 

• Quality Assurance & Testing

The project goes on constant testing modes with the diverse modern tools during the developing stage. The quality assurance and testing mode ensure whether the objects can be tracked in real-time, performance under various inputs, 2D/3D objects registration and whether the platform can go well in all conditions. To provide an error-free solution testing manager provides documents and reports for

• Test Plan
• Testing Checklist
• Bug-report
• Test-report
• Test Summary Report

Once the app clears the following platform testing:

• Browsers: Chrome, Safari, Firefox.
• Platforms: Windows, macOS, iOS, Unity for mobile AR
• Mobile: Variants of Android and iOS OS. 

AR/ VR App Development Cost As Per Industry Verticals

Industry Vertical	Cost (In Percentage)
Healthcare	12%
Gaming	30%
Video Entertainment	9%
Military	4%
Live Events	10%
Engineering	12%
Real Estate	6%
Education	30

Virtual Reality & Augmented Reality App Development Cost: Total

So, you get a good idea regarding app development costing. Still, you have questions regarding “ how much does it cost to develop an ar vr app” or “what will be the cost to build ar vr apps”. We have created a rough estimation for your application. 

First app version development (basic features)	~$50,000 - $80,000
Development of complex app version	~$135,000+
Development of highly complex AR VR apps	~$270,000+

Note: Please pen down these are estimated figures only. To know the real worth of your apps, you can contact our experts. Our professionals guide you based on selected features, level of platform complexity, and technology that you choose. 

So, do not delay anymore, hire our experienced professionals for your mobile app development services. Now, if you have a question, why Rising Max only. Just check out; we provide

• Customized blockchain services
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• 150+ developers under one roof
• Proficient in building any technology customized apps from 13+ years
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