How Does Much It Cost to Create an App Like Robinhood?

If we say that the average cost to create an app like Robinhood is ranging from $10,000 to $12,000, would you believe it?

Yes, many of you blindly trust it, without asking what exactly is built under these cost brackets.

Well, to estimate the cost to build an app like Robinhood, you’ll need to dig deep into the various factors that actually influence its development cost.

Let’s begin with the fact that how and why Robinhood has become a popular trading platform. Why should startups or enterprises get influenced by Robinhood and create a stock trading app like Robinhood…

Surging Popularity of Robinhood From Zero To Hero in 48 Hours!

When it comes to developing a stock trading app like Robinhood, many trading startups are still full of curiosity — “How Robinhood Convinced Millennials To Trade Their Way Through a Pandemic?”

How Does a $8.3 billion stock trading startup drastically fumble into the financial crisis and now it winning the market?

Let’s get into it…

In the fast-paced world of stock trading, it is rare for a trading app to capture the attention of millions and skyrocket to success in just 48 hours.

However, there are certainly exceptional cases where a combination of unique circumstances, strategic decisions, and favorable market conditions can propel a stock trading app from obscurity to stardom in an astonishingly short span of time.

One such example of this astonishing success is — ROBINHOOD!

Robinhood- a no-fee trading app that was commonly known for its younger user base and unicorn-level validation, was completely in shambles until the pandemic hit the world.

“Till then, the services badly suffered an outage which lasted not for an hour or couple of hours but for the entire trading day. Hundreds of frustrated Robinhood traders have rallied to blast the startup for this technical outage kept away traders from the market.” (By CNBC)

So when they reopened the account to move all their funds, they find that Robinhood has upgraded their stick trading infrastructure, which prove as a sudden turning point for them.

March 2, 2020, was the turning point for Robinhood which has taken this platform from zero to hero in just 48 hours and become a buzz work in the trading market.

Since it was a pandemic, people have plenty of time to hit and trial such platforms and so millions of users have joined this platform and started trading.

Overall, this was the highly influential journey of Robinhood that has encouraged various startups and financial marketers to hire mobile app developers in India to create a stock trading app like Robinhood.

But before that, let’s gain some market insights…

What Increases The Hype of Robinhood as a Stock Trading Platform?

There is no doubt in this fact that Robinhood has given wings to even micro investors by making them understand how to start trading even with zero joining fees and manage money smartly.

Earlier to Robinhood, stock trading won’t be easier and more convenient to the traders. To join any trading platform, users would be charged between $5 to $10 per trade. Moreover, there was a minimum investment of $500 would be required to start investing in stocks.

So if you’re also interested to create an app like Robinhood, then you should know what exactly makes it so special for trading.

Here are the quick highlights of Robinhood that make it so popular among investors:

• Portfolio Creation: Empower investors to easily create and manage their investment portfolios within the app.
• Real-Time Market Data: Provide users with up-to-date market data, ensuring they have access to the latest information for making informed investment decisions.
• Dividend Notifications: Keep investors informed by sending push notifications regarding their upcoming dividends, ensuring they never miss out on important earnings.
• Instant Trading: Enable investors to trade without waiting for funds to “settle,” allowing for faster and more efficient transactions.
• Zero Commission: Offer a commission-free trading experience, eliminating charges for both buying and selling stocks, making it more cost-effective for users.
• No Monthly or Annual Fees: Ensure a transparent pricing structure by not imposing any monthly or annual charges, allowing users to enjoy the app’s features without additional costs.
• Cryptocurrency Trading: Provide commission-free trading for cryptocurrencies, enabling users to diversify their investment portfolio with ease.
• Referral Program: Implement a referral program that rewards users with free stocks for inviting others to join the app, fostering user growth and engagement.

These points highlight the key features and benefits of the stock trading app in a concise manner. If you are not yet convinced to hire a software developer in India to create an app like Robinhood, then you need to understand these market statistics.

Crucial Stats and Facts About Robinhood and Trading Market

• According to the market survey report, the global online trading platform market size was valued at $9.32 billion in 202 2 which is expected to grow from $9.94 in 2023 to $15.34 in 2030.
• Robinhood is one such stock trading app that is even more popular even before its launch and made 340,000 people sign up for the app’s waitlist.
• Before its launch, the figures doubled to 700,000, in 2015.
• Europe, Australia, and South America are the top countries where Robinhood has set a benchmark.
• There are 15.9 million active users in 2022 and have generated $1.81 billion revenue in 2021 which is a 90% hike from previous years.

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These statistics are really encouraging startups to get started with trading apps like Robinhood. By hiring a full-stack app developer in India, you can start implementing your ideas practically. But the one such question that always disturbing is “How much does it cost to create an app like Robinhood?”.

How Much Does It Cost to Build an App Like Robinhood?

As mentioned in starting, the average cost to create an app like Robinhood can fall between $10,000 to $12,000, but what exactly is built at this price? So ultimately it means there are a number of factors that influence the app development cost.

To create a stock trading app like Robinhood, the overall development cost can fall between $20,000 to $50,000 as per market reports. But it won’t be said that you can’t develop an app for less than $20,000 and the cost won’t go higher than $50,000.

Developing an app is like buying a car. As you evaluate various parameters before buying a car, you also need to understand the important factors that ultimately influence the app development cost.

So to understand the exact cost to create an app like Robinhood, you may require to hire programmers in India to help you understand all the nitty gritty and estimates the cost based on your real business requirements.

Understand the Factors Affecting the Cost to Create An App Like Robinhood

Creating an app like Robinhood involves various factors that contribute to the overall development cost. While it’s challenging to provide an exact figure, still here we have concluded various factors that majorly affect the cost to build an app like Robinhood.

Here are the few major factors that impact overall development costs:

1. Features and Complexity: The complexity of the features you want to include in your app will impact the cost. An app loaded with highly complex features will require highly skilled developers and will take long hours to develop and resulting in higher costs.

Here is the estimation of major features and its cost breakdown:

2. Platform(s) and Devices: Developing for a single platform (iOS or Android) is generally more cost-effective than building for both platforms simultaneously. But by hiring a React native developer in India, you can save up to 40% cost on app development.

Since React Native is one of the leading cross-platform programming languages, it made it easier to build an app that seamlessly works on multiple platforms using a single codebase. The average cost to build two native apps will be ranging from $30,000 to $40,000 whereas a cross-platform app can cost between $18,000 to $20,000 depending upon the complexity.

3. UI/UX of the App: A well-designed and user-friendly interface is crucial for a successful trading app. The cost will depend on the complexity of the design, the number of screens, custom animations, and the need for UI/UX expertise. The average

4. Backend Development: The development of a robust and scalable backend infrastructure is necessary for handling user data, transactions, market data, and other functionalities. The complexity of the backend system and server requirements will impact the development cost.

5. Security and Compliance: Security is critical when dealing with financial transactions and user data. Implementing stringent security measures and ensuring compliance with regulations like KYC (Know Your Customer) and AML (Anti-Money Laundering) may require additional development effort and cost.

6. Third-Party Integrations: If you plan to integrate third-party services, such as payment gateways, market data providers, or identity verification services, it may incur additional costs in terms of integration efforts and potential licensing or subscription fees.

7. Testing and Quality Assurance: Rigorous testing and quality assurance are essential to ensure the app’s stability, performance, and security. This includes manual and automated testing, bug fixing, and ensuring a smooth user experience across different devices.

8. Ongoing Maintenance and Updates: After the initial development, there will be ongoing maintenance, updates, bug fixes, and compatibility enhancements. The cost of maintenance depends on the frequency and complexity of updates.

These are the major factors that can affect the overall app development cost. But while estimating the app development cost, keep in mind that the app’s features and functionalities are the biggest budget eater of the app.

The Must-Have Features To Create a Stock Trading App Like Robinhood and Its Cost Breakdown

Deciding upon features and functionalities of the app will be a big part of this “How to build a trading app like Robinhood”. Whether you are a startup or an entrepreneur, it is always worth building an app like Robinhood with minimum features at the initial level. Or you can choose to create an MVP solution.

So here are the important features to include in your app like Robinhood:

To create a stock trading app like Robinhood, here are the major features you should consider including:

• User Registration and Authentication: Allow users to create accounts, sign in securely, and manage their profiles and preferences.
• Real-time Market Data: Provide users with up-to-date and accurate market data, including stock prices, charts, market indices, and relevant financial news.
• Stock Trading Functionality: Enable users to buy and sell stocks directly within the app, including market orders, limit orders, and stop orders. Implement features for order confirmation, order history, and transaction details.
• Portfolio Tracking: Allows users to monitor their investment portfolios, view current holdings, track performance, and access detailed information about individual stocks, including real-time portfolio values and gains/losses.
• Payment Integration: Integrate secure payment gateways to facilitate seamless fund deposits and withdrawals for users’ trading accounts. Support multiple payment methods, such as credit/debit cards, bank transfers, or digital wallets.
• Push Notifications: Send timely push notifications to users for important account updates, trade confirmations, price alerts, market news, and upcoming dividend notifications.
• Watchlist: Allow users to create and manage a personalized watchlist of stocks they are interested in, enabling them to track the performance and receive updates on those stocks.
• Market Orders and Limit Orders: Enable users to place market orders to buy or sell stocks at the current market price or set specific price limits with limit orders.
• Research and Analysis Tools: Provide users with access to research tools, such as company profiles, financial statements, analyst ratings, historical data, and stock performance indicators to support their investment decisions.
• Account Management: Enable users to manage their trading accounts, including account balance, transaction history, statements, tax documentation, and settings like password changes and email preferences.
• Secure Authentication and Data Protection: Implement robust security measures, including two-factor authentication, encryption, and secure protocols, to ensure the protection of user data and transactions.
• Regulatory Compliance: Adhere to financial regulations and compliance requirements, such as Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) policies, to maintain regulatory compliance.
• Educational Resources: Provide educational content, tutorials, and resources to help users learn about investing trading strategies, and financial literacy.
• Customer Support: Offer responsive customer support channels, such as in-app chat, email, or phone support, to assist users with their inquiries, account-related issues, and technical support.

The average cost to build an app with these basic features will be ranging from $18,000 to $20,000 if you hire an app developer in India at an hourly cost of $15 to $20.

How To Make Money From a Stock Trading App Like Robinhood?

There are several effective ways to monetize a stock trading app like Robinhood. Here are some popular strategies:

1. Commission Fees: Charge users a small commission fee for each trade they make on the platform. This traditional revenue model allows you to generate income based on the transaction volume.
2. Subscription Plans: Offer premium subscription plans that provide users with additional features and benefits, such as access to advanced trading tools, in-depth market analysis, personalized recommendations, or priority customer support. Subscriptions can be offered on a monthly, quarterly, or annual basis.
3. Margin Trading: Enable users to trade on margin, which allows them to borrow funds from the app to increase their purchasing power. Earn revenue by charging interest on the borrowed funds or implementing a margin trading fee.
4. Premium Data and Insights: Provide exclusive access to premium market data, real-time news feeds, advanced charts, technical indicators, and in-depth analytics. Users can opt to purchase these premium data packages to enhance their trading strategies and decision-making.

Conclusion

As the stock trading market continues to thrive and remain in trend, it’s important to acknowledge that trading app solutions come with certain restrictions, such as KYC, AML, and customer data protection.

Therefore, if you’re considering building a stock trading app like Robinhood, it is highly recommended to hire a mobile app developer in India that can help you navigate the complexities of launching an investment application while ensuring compliance with trading licenses. These experts can assist you in creating an app that handles stocks, sends notifications, provides a user-friendly dashboard, and more.

Whether you have a unique idea you want to bring to the market or you’re interested in developing an app similar to the Robinhood stock trading app, you can contact us to get real estimations.