A complete guide to e-learning app development

The demand for e-learning app development is growing fast. More and more people want flexible, accessible, and creative ways to learn. Elearning app development and more specifically elearning mobile applications bring that interactive touch with an extra opportunity to create personalized experiences, much like a great tour guide, leading users through the maze of educational content.

In this article, we are breaking down the crucial steps for successful mobile elearning app development. We go over the fundamental features it should include, and explore how it can benefit users and organizations alike.

We also dive into the costs, and timeframes, exploring what it takes to turn a regular app into an extraordinary mobile learning experience.

Key takeaways

• Effective mobile applications for online education require intuitive design, robust features, and thorough testing for quality.
• Essential features in elearning software development for apps like personalization, gamification, and secure payments enhance user engagement and experience.
• Elearning app development benefits organizations by offering scalable, accessible, and interactive learning solutions.

Essential steps for developing a mobile elearning app

Elearning apps offer diverse applications and benefits, including personalized learning paths and the ability to facilitate remote training and educational experiences.

Below, we explore the key steps to achieve these goals, focusing on incorporating collaborative learning features and ensuring accessibility for all users.

Incorporating collaborative learning features

Any educational app should support collaborative mobile learning. This isn’t just my opinion. Ask any of your learners and you will soon find out they thrive through group discussions, peer-to-peer learning, live video sessions, and shared training materials.

That’s because they create a way for students to talk to each other, create a community, and maybe even make a friend or two. These collaborative learning features are particularly beneficial for educational institutions, as they boost student engagement and foster a more interactive learning environment.

Ensuring accessibility for diverse learners

When developing e-learning platforms, also take into account what students with different continuous learning needs might want. From various content formats to text-to-speech functionality, subtitles, and adjustable font sizes—the app should be fully compatible with screen readers and similar technology.

Using analytics to provide valuable insights

Analytics show you how students engage with interactive e-learning mobile solutions. Metrics such as completion rates, quiz scores, and time spent on specific modules give developers valuable insights into student progress so they can create personalized learning paths.

Conducting thorough planning and research

I wouldn’t start the elearning mobile app development process without thorough research into who your target audience is, what their learning challenges are, and what content or key features they expect.

Crafting an intuitive UI/UX design

Opt for a clean, intuitive app design that’s easy to navigate. If a user can’t find courses to learn new skills, access content, or track their progress, you’re not ready for launch.

Developing and implementing the app

The actual elearning application development involves coding the app, adding necessary features, and testing it. You will also want to consider a version for both Android and iOS platforms to reach more people.

Integrating and managing content effectively

You definitely want a content management system integrated into the app. This will make it much easier to upload, update, and organize lessons, discussion forums, and learning materials.

Adding gamification for enhanced interactivity

One of my favorite parts of any course is the gamification it provides. Seek to add interactive elements such as badges, points, leaderboards, virtual reality, and rewards to make the learning process interactive and enjoyable.

We have seen gamification doing wonders for language learning apps that incorporate these interactive elements to make language acquisition more engaging and effective. So why not do the same for other subjects being taught online?

Ensuring quality through comprehensive testing

Start with functional testing to ensure the core features work as expected. Follow this up with performance testing (to check if the app performs well under heavy usage) and user acceptance testing (to see if it meets the needs of real users).

Launching and maintaining the app

You are not done with simply launching the app. Schedule regular updates and maintenance based on user feedback and market changes to stay ahead of competitors and provide a smooth user experience.

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Essential features every elearning app should include

Essential features like seamless user registration, robust search capabilities, and intuitive, personalized dashboards ensure that users can navigate the platform effortlessly, stay engaged, and achieve their learning objectives.

Here’s a closer look at these must-have components:

User registration and account management

A user-friendly registration is what lets users create an account, log in, and manage their profiles in the first place. Without an account management system though, users won’t be able to track their progress and save their learning preferences.

Advanced search capabilities

An advanced search across mobile devices is simply a nice-to-have feature that works for extensive course libraries where users need to find courses, virtual classrooms, discussion forms, lessons, interactive simulations, or adaptive learning materials based on topics or needs.

Personalized dashboards

Personalized dashboards provide a more visual experience where users can see their progress, discover new and upcoming online courses, or receive recommendations based on their interests and goals.

Engaging course pages

How else would you convince people to open up a course, right? Course pages should be visually appealing, full of exciting multimedia content, and complete with details on the course objectives, requirements, and outcomes.

Secure payment options

Selling paid courses or subscriptions? You simply can’t without secure payment options like trusted payment gateways such as PayPal, Stripe, or credit card payments.

Push notifications

There’s no faster way to keep learners informed about new courses, deadlines, and reminders than push notifications. Use them to alert users about important updates or to encourage them to keep at it.

Comprehensive teacher profiles

For the unique cases where learners aren’t familiar with their instructors, use teacher profiles in the tutoring apps to reinforce trust. Add info on the teacher’s qualifications, experience, teaching style, and user ratings.

Benefits of elearning application development

E-learning software solutions and applications provide:

• Higher access to education anytime and anywhere
• An opportunity for students to study at their own pace
• A cost-effective solution to employee training
• A pathway for organizations to reach a large audience without geographical limitations
• Personalized mobile learning experiences to help companies improve student engagement and retention

These educational mobile apps break barriers to access, provide flexibility, and support personalized learning experiences that enhance engagement and retention. Whether it’s empowering students or streamlining corporate training, elearning apps rest as a cost-effective solution for education.

What is the cost of developing an elearning app?

Building an elearning app for mobile devices will depend on whether you are working with an in-house team or online learning app development consultants as well as the scale of the project. Let’s take a common scenario:

Development will cost you anywhere between $1,000 – $100,000 (if you work as a freelancer) and the price can scale to $500,000 for projects involving up to 10 developers. This doesn’t factor in any extra hourly costs for maintenance or specific services such as ensuring app accessibility.

Added to this are the infrastructure costs. Azure and Google Cloud pricing varies based on services, usage, and region. For instance, Azure VMs range from $0.01 to $0.60 per hour, while Google Cloud VMs typically cost between $0.04 and $0.15 per hour. Both platforms offer pricing calculators to estimate costs based on specific configurations.

You will also need to pay to host your learning materials and assets. Amazon S3 (Simple Storage Service) for storing files costs around $0.023 per GB for the first 50 TB/month. EC2 instances for compute resources can range from $0.01 to $0.10 per hour depending on the type and size.

Extras include payment for tools like AI support, bug tracking, project management, and payment gateways.

💡You can also opt for a mobile app builder tool like the one LearnWorlds provides to create a course in less than an hour at a fraction of the cost. The app comes as an add-on and you will need a Pro Trainer subscription plan to activate it. Learn more about LearnWorlds pricing.

Ready to invest in elearning mobile app development?

Developing an elearning app is an exciting opportunity to create a platform that can empower learners worldwide. By focusing on intuitive design, key features, and ongoing optimization, you can build an app that provides a valuable learning experience for users.

With the growing demand for online education and mobile learning apps, the potential for success in the custom elearning app development space is vast. Whether you are an educator, an organization, or a mobile app developer, creating a mobile elearning app is a worthwhile investment that can help you stay ahead in the ever-evolving world of education.

Ready to invest in e-learning mobile app development to build your academy’s learning app? Discover how quick and easy it is with our powerful mobile app builder.

Frequently Asked Questions – FAQs

How much time does it take to develop an elearning application?

The time required to develop an elearning app depends on its complexity. A basic app may take around 3-6 months, while more advanced social learning features could extend the timeline to 9-12 months or longer.

Can you build elearning app with AI?

Yes, AI-powered e-learning app creation is always a good idea if you want to speed up the process and get an extra helping hand at testing. It will also support you in providing personalized learning experiences, smart content recommendations, and automated feedback, creating a more interactive and effective learning process.

Alexandra Cote

Alexandra Cote is a SaaS growth marketer and online instructor who's worked with dozens of brands in the MarTech, HR tech, and productivity space. She's also a strong supporter of staying happy at work and choosing a healthy career path.