Have you ever heard someone say, “I’ll WhatsApp you”? You might have. Almost everyone uses WhatsApp today, as it’s one of the most popular messaging apps. From teenagers to parents and grandparents, everyone knows how to use this app. The app has around 3 billion active users worldwide; this shows just how popular WhatsApp is. But it’s not just about the popularity; it’s the convenience it offers, making it easy to stay connected with loved ones. This is why the app is in such high demand and why many businesses are looking to create more apps like WhatsApp.
According to the Verified Market Research report, the global chat application market size is expected to reach $213.4 billion by 2030. These numbers are incredible and signal a great opportunity for businesses that want to develop chatting apps like WhatsApp and achieve similar success. However, the messaging app market is very competitive, with many apps already leading the way. To succeed, your app needs to be different, unique, and loved by users just like WhatsApp.
If you’re thinking, “How to build an app like WhatsApp?” don’t worry; our mobile app development company has created a simple guide just for you. It explains everything you need to know to create a messaging app like Whatsapp that people will actually enjoy using.
What Is A WhatsApp App?
WhatsApp is a highly popular and best app for encrypted messaging that lets users send messages, make calls, and share media over the internet. Unlike regular texting, it uses Wi-Fi or mobile data instead of SMS. You can send texts, photos, videos, and documents, and even make voice and video calls to anyone who has WhatsApp app downloaded on their phone, no matter where they are in the world.
To use WhatsApp, you need to download the app and register with your phone number. Once you’re set up, it will show you which of your contacts already use the app. You can then chat or call them for free, as long as you both have an internet connection. WhatsApp also keeps your chats private with end-to-end encryption, meaning only you and the person you’re chatting with can read your messages.
Essential Features Of Chat Apps Similar To WhatsApp
The main reason behind WhatsApp’s immense popularity is its features, which make it easy for people to chat and connect with loved ones. So, if you plan to create an app like WhatsApp, you need to make sure it includes features that make chatting with friends and family simple, giving them the feeling of being close even when miles apart. You can consult with your WhatsApp app developer to choose the right set of features.
In the meantime, let’s take a look at the table below to explore the must-have features of message apps like WhatsApp.
| Feature | Description |
| Profile Setup And Customization | This feature allows users to create their account on the app and display their profile picture and status. |
| Real-Time Messaging | Integrating this functionality enables users to send and receive messages instantly, ensuring a smooth chatting experience. |
| Multimedia Sharing | Apps similar to WhatsApp should have the feature of sharing videos, photos, voice messages, and documents in chats. |
| Search Bar | Through this feature, you can quickly find old messages or documents using a simple search bar right in the app. |
| Video/Voice Calls | With this feature, app users can make free and unlimited, high-quality voice and video calls, including group calls. |
| Message Status Indicator | The best message encryption app like WhatsApp should show whether the message was sent, delivered or read. |
| Group Chat | Allow users to create groups in the WhatsApp like chat app to talk with multiple people at once in a single conversation. |
| Push Notifications | Users should get instant alerts for new messages, calls, or updates so they never miss important notifications. |
| Cloud Backup And Storage | This feature of texting apps like Whatsapp empowers users to automatically save chats over the cloud so they can restore messages anytime. |
Advanced Features Of Apps Like WhatsApp
In the above section, we have discussed the basic features of WhatsApp type apps for messaging. Now, we will explore the advanced features. Integrating these advanced features will attract people and help your app stand out from others.
| Feature | Description |
| Disappearing Messages | Set messages to disappear after a short time, so they don’t stay in the chat forever. |
| Real-Time Location Sharing | Through this feature, users can share their live location with a friend or group. |
| Broadcast Messaging | Allow users to send the same message to many people privately, without creating a group. |
| Voice Messages | Apps like WhatsApp should have the feature of sending voice messages when you don’t want to type. |
| Emoji Reactions | React to messages with emojis instead of typing out a response, making chats more interactive. |
Tech Stack To Build Encrypted Messaging App Like Whatsapp
Creating a feature-rich, secure, and scalable application similar to WhatsApp requires a powerful tech stack. Messaging app development company in USA have to be very careful when choosing the tools and technologies to build chatting apps like Discord, WhatsApp, and Telegram. Why? The quality of your app is highly dependent on it.
In this section, we will explore the key tech stack used for app like WhatsApp development. Let’s have a look:
| Component | Tools And Technologies |
| Backend | Erlang, Node,js, Java, C++ |
| Frontend | HTML5, JavaScript, CSS |
| Database | Mnesia, MongoDB, MySQL |
| APIs | WebSocket APIs, VoIP, OAuth 2.0, GraphQL |
| Cloud Services | AWS, Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure |
| Push Notifications | APNS for iOS and FCM for Android |
| Multimedia Storage | Amazon S3 or Cloudinary |
How To Build a WhatsApp Clone App: Step By Step Process
As soon as you come up with the idea of creating a similar app like WhatsApp, your mind strikes with the question of how to develop an app like WhatsApp, right? Well, to bring your messaging mobile application idea to life, you have to follow a series of steps. These steps are interrelated, so you have to be very careful during the development process. Moreover, to build apps like WhatsApp, it’s best to hire dedicated developers from a trusted messaging and chat app development company.
1. Market Research And Competitor Analysis
The first thing you should do is conduct extensive market research, which covers identifying the target audience, assessing market size, and evaluating users’ needs. Additionally, thoroughly study WhatsApp and other similar apps like Zangi and Telegram. Analyze their features, USPs, business models, what people love about them, what they do not, and everything in between. This stage creates a solid foundation for the complete app development process.
2. Defining App Features
Features and functionalities you add to your application similar to WhatsApp, are among the top deciding factors that evaluate whether your app is going to be successful or not. The main aim of a WhatsApp look like app is to enable instant and real-time communication; if it doesn’t fulfill that, people are not going to use your app, so choose the features wisely. You can analyze the features of WhatsApp and other similar apps; it will better assist you in deciding what features to add.
3. App Designing And Prototyping
This stage focuses on the UI/UX design of apps like WhatsApp, where the app designers will start working on how your app will look and feel. The UI and UX of your app should be simple, clean, and visually appealing while making navigating the messaging app easy, and to ensure that designers should follow the best UI/UX design practices. Moreover, the UI/UX designers will also craft an interactive prototype to give you an idea of how your app will work in real life.
4. WhatsApp Like App Development
In this step, chat app development company USA will start building your app like WhatsApp by writing superior-quality code. They will create the frontend and backend of your texting app using the best technologies and programming languages. The frontend is the part that users interact with, and backend is the server-side of the mobile app that manages behind-the-scene functions. Chat app developers will also manage and configure the servers to ensure the app functions smoothly.
5. Testing And Deployment
If you think that after the WhatsApp clone development you are ready to introduce your app to the market, then wait, as one more important step is still left, and that is mobile app testing. QA engineers will conduct rigorous testing of the app like WhatsApp to identify and fix bugs, glitches, and other issues. Once you receive the green signal from the QA team, then you can move forward to deploy the app. Even after the launch, you have to monitor the app’s performance and fix issues if any arise.
Cost To Develop Chatting Apps Like Whatsapp
There is no doubt that investing in creating the best message encryption app like WhatsApp demands a substantial investment. Therefore, understanding the cost of making an app like WhatsApp is very important to make your dream app within set budget. The cost to build chatting apps similar to WhatsApp is influenced by a number of factors like:
- App customization level
- Platform chosen
- Complexity of features
- UI/UX designing
- Tech stack selected
- App development company’s location
- Support and maintenance.
After analyzing all these variables the price is calculated. If we talk about numbers, the cost to build WhatsApp clone app can start approximately around $5,000. This is just a rough estimate the actual price may differ according to your needs.
To get a custom quote use our cost calculator by simply entering your project requirements or feel free to reach out to the team at Helpful Insight.
How Helpful Insight Can Help You Build An Instant Messaging App Similar To WhatsApp
On the Play Store and App Store, you will find thousands of chatting mobile apps, but WhatsApp ranks at the top for all the good reasons. Without a doubt WhatsApp is the no.1 choice of users worldwide for chatting. The huge popularity and success story of WhatsApp have encouraged many budding entrepreneurs and startup owners to create application like WhatsApp. Are you also one of them? If yes, then trust the expertise of Helpful Insight to bring this dream of yours into reality.
We are a top-rated mobile app development company in USA that holds decades of hands-on experience in creating versatile, secure, and feature-intensive apps like WhatsApp. We have a team of certified mobile app developers who specialize in building chatting apps using the best tools and programming languages. We completely understand that there are already so many message apps available, so we aim to make something innovative and out-of-the box, new app like WhatsApp that the market hasn’t seen yet. Our team of app designers and app developers will build chatting apps that will dominate the app development industry and be widely embraced by their user base.
Reach out to our team today to build a profitable app like WhatsApp and bring a revolution in the mobile app market.
FAQs
The timeline to build app like WhatsApp is impacted by a diverse range of factors, which makes it a little difficult to state the exact duration details. Variables that impact the timeline include app complexity, the number of features, UI/UX design, app development team expertise, mobile app testing, etc.
To know the precise duration for when your WhatsApp clone development will be completed, share your project requirements with us, and we will provide you with the timeline details.
Chat app developers do face some challenges while creating apps like WhatsApp like:
- Ensuring end-to-end encryption
- Cross-platform compatibility
- Managing data security and scalability as the user base grows.
There are so many ways through which instant messenger apps like WhatsApp can earn money. Some of the popular monetization models include subscription model, in-app purchases, business APIs, collaborations/partnerships, and payment gateway fees.
Telegram, Signal, Google Chat, Discord, WeChat, and Wire are named among the best WhatsApp alternatives.
