Today, almost 90% of companies integrate cloud computing into their operations, and cloud-based apps are becoming the go-to solution. This isn’t surprising, given that traditional infrastructure often can’t keep up with the growing demands of modern businesses, like higher data volumes, rising user expectations, and the need for real-time processing.
Cloud application development comes with a flexible, scalable, and cost-effective solution to these problems. Organizations can build apps that work on any internet-connected device without the need for extensive local infrastructure.
This article discusses cloud app development, along with its main benefits, challenges, and development steps, drawing on Neontri experience.
Key takeaways:
- Cloud-based application development allows businesses to create scalable and flexible apps.
- Developing apps in the cloud comes with benefits such as cost savings, stronger security, faster time-to-market, and higher quality.
- Companies might experience challenges with security, mobile app performance management, interoperability, and talent availability.
- To build successful cloud-based apps, organizations need to follow practical steps—from defining project goals, hiring a team, and selecting a cloud provider to planning architecture, and launching the app with ongoing maintenance.
What is cloud application development?
Cloud application development refers to the process of designing, building, and deploying software that runs on cloud infrastructure instead of traditional local servers. While users access these apps through a web or mobile browser, all heavy data computing takes place on a remote server via APIs. As a result, the user’s device only sends information, while the cloud environment handles the main processing.
Companies can choose from four common cloud deployment models, each of which influences how cloud applications are developed, managed, and scaled:
Apart from a deployment model, companies need to also select a cloud development platform. There are three main types, and each offers a different way to use the cloud for business. Often, businesses mix these options based on the size, complexity, and scalability needs of their projects.
Later in the article, we’ll discuss how these models break down into specific tools that developers use to build and manage cloud applications.
Application development in the cloud: Key benefits
Cloud application development changes the way businesses build and deploy software. It offers a new approach that lays the foundation for future success.
- Scalability and flexibility: Using cloud-based services enables organizations to easily scale their resources up and down without major infrastructure changes. Based on sudden spikes or drops in traffic or demand, businesses can simply add or reduce cloud storage and computing power as needed. This isn’t possible with traditional hardware services, where companies must set up extra servers—a process that is both costly and time-consuming.
- High-quality: By moving development to the cloud, dev teams can continuously improve apps. So, whenever changes are needed, developers can use microservices to update just certain components rather than rebuild the whole application. This shortens update time from months to minutes, resulting in greater software quality.
- Cost savings: Companies can save money by letting cloud service providers manage and maintain their IT systems. They no longer need an in-house IT team and conventional hardware servers to build applications, as everything is taken care of by the vendor. Providers typically offer pay-as-you-go pricing models, so organizations can pay only for the services they use, which helps optimize operational costs and reduce unnecessary expenses.
- Enhanced security: Cloud applications provide cutting-edge firewalls, encryption mechanisms, and regular upgrades to safeguard applications against cyber threats. Also, cloud providers have dedicated teams and resources to monitor and respond to any security issues that can take place.
- Accelerated time-to-market: Cloud development makes it faster to release changes and new features. Continuous integration and delivery simplify the deployment process, which reduces time-to-market and gives businesses a strong advantage over competitors.
Step-by-step process for developing cloud-based apps
To successfully develop a cloud application, follow the steps below.
Step #1: Define project scope and budget
Think about the purpose of your app, its main features, budget, and the results you want it to achieve. Setting boundaries for the research will help you focus on the most important market trends, user needs, and competition insights.
Without a clear budget, businesses might consider options beyond their financial reach, and vague goals make the research too general. It’s always better to define these aspects right from the very beginning so that further steps will fall in line with your business plan.
Step #2: Explore market trends and opportunities
By analyzing the cloud apps and strategies of other businesses, you can learn what works and what doesn’t. This gives a good idea of the problems your target audience is having and how you can help them. The most successful cloud apps are the ones that came out of in-depth research and finding a gap in the market.
To translate those valuable market insights into intelligent solutions that deliver tangible value and fewer unexpected challenges, modern businesses are increasingly exploring new opportunities as e.g. AI app development.
Step #3: Hire a cloud development team
Once you have analyzed the market along with the user needs and established clear goals for your cloud application, it’s time to hire software developers. There are usually three main options:
- Hiring freelancers;
- Building an in-house team;
- Outsourcing to a software development company.
Here’s a quick comparison of these engagement models.
| In-house team | Freelancers | Outsourcing | |
| Best for | Large businesses with long-term needs | Small projects, MVPs, or specific tasks | Companies that look for expertise, scalability, and faster delivery |
| Cost | Potentially high (infrastructure, salaries, tools) | Rather low (pay-per-hour model) | From moderate to high (depends on the project scope and vendor) |
| Expertise | Strong, but limited to in-house skills | Varies (quality depends on individual skills and is usually task-specific) | High (reputable companies follow industry best practices and have) |
| Scalability | Limited by team size and hiring capacity | Low (depends on freelancer availability) | High (vendors can scale teams up/down as needed) |
| Risk management | Direct oversight (companies manage risks and address issues as they arise) | Moderate (depends on the individual’s practices and reliability) | Varies according to the vendor’s policies |
| Speed | Quite slow (hiring and onboarding take time) | Moderate (depends on freelancer availability) | Fast (ready-to-go team accelerates development) |
Neontri’s recommendation: Creating cloud-based applications involves regular updates and might require adding new features as the project progresses to meet market demands. Therefore, you need to choose a development team that can deliver these changes quickly.
Step #4: Choose key app features
Identify the core features of your cloud app to build an MVP. Remember, these features should reflect the core idea of your product and be easy to develop. The goal at this stage is to create a basic version of the app that solves the main problems of users.
Spend resources on the features that will meet target audience needs. You may take a minimal viable product to test the software with real users and get feedback to make improvements. Projects with highly tailored specifications, such as custom web application development, frequently demand a more in-depth strategy than a basic initial estimate alone can provide.
Step #5: Find a trusted cloud services provider
The process of finding a provider might not be so easy, but this is an important step in developing cloud applications. To ensure the best fit for your cloud application, consider the following factors when reviewing providers:
- Price
- Compliance
- Integrations
- Customer support
Take your time, carefully weigh options, and then make a decision. The choice will impact scalability, security, performance, and overall costs, so it should be in line with your technical requirements and business needs. Key players include:
- Amazon Web Services (AWS)
- Microsoft Azure
- Google Cloud Platf