PWA or Native App: The more suitable for your eCommerce business?

by Praveen
31 Jul 2020

By 2020, the number of smartphone users worldwide will reach 2.87 billion. Therefore it is evident that mobile apps and Progressive Web Apps (PWAâ€™s) will have a significant role to play in the world of eCommerce.

To choose wisely between the two, we have put together some facts that will help you take your business forward in the most profitable way!

What is progressive web apps?

The need to download from a play store is absent in the case of PWA as it works on a browser and this is the main difference between a PWA and a native mobile app.

Progressive web apps and their advantages

The main advantage of a PWA over a native mobile app is the ability to work without a playstore as it requires just a browser and therefore contributes in saving the storage space of mobile users.
Even if you are in offline mode, the PWA can work keeping the customers always connected with your eCommerce store
Easy to find for customers due to good optimization. The PWAâ€™s possess URLâ€™s which are indexed by Google and contributes to more reach
When compared to native apps, the PWAâ€™s are easier, faster and cheaper to develop. The development of a native app for different platforms require particular technologies whereas in the building of a PWA the needed software are HTML, CSS and JavaScript for a mobile app development company

Disadvantages

PWAâ€™s lack of access to calendars, contacts, browser bookmarks, alarms and also its inability to impede SMS or calls and also to obtain a users phone number contributes to its lack of functionality. This is due to the fact that it is a half app
Inability to access Bluetooth and sharing
In the US 51% of market share is taken up by the browser Safari. PWA does not operate on all web browsers and also on Safari and therefore there is chances of losing a large chunk of your audience
The PWA does not support the iOS customers ideally as it sends push notifications only to android users which can mean losing a large amount of business from iPhone users.

What is native mobile apps?

Native mobile apps are developed to operate simultaneously on Android and iOS platforms. There is more functionality to native apps. To use native mobile apps for eCommerce a mobile phone user has to download it from an app store.

Native apps and its advantages

Performance that is top notch. It is because of the fact that in smartphones the native apps are installed directly which gives the software, ability to gauge the device processing speed and function accordingly and the app functions faster since it is already present in the device
A great user experience as it has to comply with the Appleâ€™s Human Design Guidelines to be listed in the App Store
Easily integrate with external service like an authorization through Facebook or shipping via FedEx
Easily customizable providing the opportunity for store owners to add special features while they develop mobile app for eCommerce business
Ability to utilize core operating system features like Geofencing unlike PWAâ€™s. It leads to better communication as push notification will be send to users when the user reaches a location

Disadvantages

The need to download it from an app store adds that small element of inconvenience to customers who shop online when compared to a PWA
Higher cost of development when compared to PWA

Conclusion

Even though the cost and time involved in development is higher, for better reach and customer satisfaction a native mobile app for eCommerce will be ideal for your business. Also, your eCommerce business will have more conversions once you start using a native app as it provides a personalized, excellent user experience and also best performance. All these advantages will surely contribute in meeting the demands that potential customers have from your online store and contribute seamlessly towards a growing eCommerce business proposition.