The term ‘health app’ refers to mobile applications (apps) designed to help users track their health and wellness activities.
These apps may include fitness management tools, nutrition tracking, exercise monitoring, sleep analysis, chronic disease management, medical diagnoses, treatment planning, and scheduling, pain assessment, patient education, weight loss programs, and medication management.
Digital Health Market Overview
Health and fitness apps have been growing rapidly over the past few years, and they’ve become one of the top categories on Apple and Android stores. According to a recent study conducted by the National Center for Biotechnology Information, the number of people who use fitness apps increased by 300% from 2014 to 2015 alone, and a third of consumers who downloaded the first app were still actively using them at least once per week. There have been several reports that forecast the digital health market to reach $17 billion by 2025.
Health App Basic Feautres
Nowadays, almost everyone has a smartphone, so it seems like it would be a no-brainer to download a health and fitness app. But just how many are worth downloading? And what features make the best health and fitness apps?
- Health & fitness monitoring features – Patients can use them to track their progress throughout treatment.
- Integration with social media platforms – This enables users to share updates about their progress and receive feedback from friends and family.
- User-friendly design – Some apps have simple user interfaces that make them easy to navigate.
- Customization options – This means that patients can choose between different layouts and colors.
- Connected to doctor’s office – Healthcare apps can connect to electronic medical records and hospitals. These databases will store patient data and can share with doctors if necessary.
- Real-time updates – Users can receive real-time updates on the status of their health. A heartbeat monitor may send alerts to remind patients about an irregular heartbeat.
- Reminders – Whether it involves taking pills or following a diet, reminders are helpful for those who struggle with forgetfulness. Many apps can help users save schedules and reminders for upcoming events and appointments.
- Notifications – These alerts can be used to send warnings or information about a particular event. Users can choose whether to respond to notifications or not.
Types of Health and Fitness Apps
- Fitness/Activity Tracker apps – These Interactive fitness apps are a great way to track your progress and stay motivated throughout your fitness journey. Many of these apps include goals and rewards systems, while others provide users with personalized coaching and motivation. Other capabilities include automatic distance measurements and the ability to connect with friends who are running alongside you.
- Workout apps – Workout apps are great tools for anyone who wants to work up a sweat. Many workout apps offer basic routines, and others allow you to explore specific exercises and add to your training programs. There are plenty of features to choose from whether you want to focus on cardio, weight loss, building muscle mass, or just getting your blood pumping.
- Diet and Nutrition apps – These apps are a great tool if you want to improve your diet while staying fit. They’ll show you exactly how many calories you’ve consumed each day, and offer advice on how to eat healthier and lose weight. These apps can be used by everyone regardless of their level of fitness.
Step-by-step Guide to Health and Fitness Mobile App Development
- Research & Assess the Problem – An app is not useful if you do not know what problem you’re trying to solve, so start by understanding the issue. Once you have identified the problem, gather data. You’ll need to understand how much information you have, who’s using it, and where they use it.
- Define the Solution – Once you’ve gathered data about the problem, it’s time to define the solution. What type of app would best address the issue? How does this app differentiate itself from others? Do you want to make an app that works offline? Will it work across platforms, such as iOS and Android?
- Design the User Flow – With your answers to these questions in mind, begin designing your user flow. Your app should provide value to users and be simple enough to use. Take care to make sure users don’t feel overwhelmed.
- Build the Prototype – Now that you have everything laid out, build a prototype. Showing users the app concept through wireframes and mockups helps them visualize their experience before you build a real product.
- Test & Iterate – After making changes based on feedback, test your prototypes once again. Iterating until you get it right is critical to the success of any app.
- Launch Your App – If you’ve done it correctly, now is the time to launch. You may consider launching on a platform like Apple’s App Store or Google Play.
This service can also be outsourced to professionals at a reasonable fee. After developing a fitness app and are interested in scaling your app to larger audiences, consider launching it on Amazon Mobile Apps, Windows Phone Marketplace, BlackBerry World, Samsung Galaxy Apps, etc.
Cost of Developing a Fitness App?
If you want to get started building a fitness app, it will likely cost $30,000-$100,000 to design and launch. Here’s a breakdown of typical fitness app costs:
- Technical Documentation: From $1500
- Design: From $2500
- Development: From $15000
- Project Management: From $5000
- Quality Assurance: From $6000
Conclusion
Health and fitness apps have turned out to be incredibly popular these days. People are not only looking for a way to maintain their daily workouts and make sure they get enough sleep but are now willing to pay for the best health app to cater to their needs.