Looking for an alternative to Appmaker.xyz?
In this article, we'll share a quick overview of the tool, it's pricing and pros and cons, before moving on to the top alternatives in the market, including our own platform, MobiLoud.
Keep reading for all the information you need to choose the best app builder for your project.
What is Appmaker.xyz?
Appmaker.xyz is one of the most robust eCommerce app builders on the market today, primarily targeting Shopify and WooCommerce based brands.
It gives you a no-code, drag and drop app builder to create and customize your app's user interface, while syncing with your website to share all product information, images, etc.
The platform has an ecosystem of dozens of plugins and third-party integrations, and provides different levels of service depending on your specific plan and needs.
Now let's take a look at Appmaker.xyz's pricing.
Appmaker.xyz Pricing
Appmaker.xyz has two pricing tiers:
- Pro: $1,000/month
- Plus: $2,000/month
The Pro plan already includes a solutions engineer and publishing expert offering app launch assistance (initial 3 months). This is on top of having platform access for app personalization, app integrations & Plugin library, as well as, a personalized app migration.
You can also opt into the Plus plan which includes everything offered in Pro plus access to premium blocks and workflows, getting priority support, and having a dedicated customer success manager.
Appmaker.xyz Pros & Cons
Appmaker.xyz is generally a well-built platform that can produce decent eCommerce apps for iOS and Android. It has significant drawbacks and limitations though.
For a start, it's quite pricey compared to many other eCommerce app builders. You may expect more, particularly in terms of service, for the price.
The app builder is not as flexible as you'd want for such a high price as well. It relies on blocks, templates and widgets - which will be limiting for many eCommerce businesses.
Though the pre-built widgets and blocks will allow some degree of customization, you'll only ever be able to approximate your web store. You'll never be able to use the exact same plugins and the exact same features from the web. This is just the nature of a platform reliant on prebuilt front ends and standardized APIs.
Further customization of the platform requires React Native development, which will add a lot more cost and complexity to your project.
Now we've had an overview of the tool, its pricing, and its pros and cons. It's time to move on and start looking at some Appmaker.xyz alternatives, starting with our own site-to-app platform, MobiLoud.
Appmaker.xyz Alternative #1: MobiLoud
MobiLoud is our site-to-app platform, perfected over 10 years and thousands of successful apps launched.
Unlike classic app builders, MobiLoud actually converts your site into an app. It doesn't require you to rebuild anything.
The app you get (for iOS and Android) is a direct reflection (100% synced) of your website, with the same themes and functionality, and native mobile elements layered on top (such as native mobile navigation and push notifications).
On top of that, we provide a full-service experience to every user. We handle the build, configuration, testing, publishing to the app stores, and post-launch maintenance.
This takes a huge amount of work off your plate, and also lets you benefit from our team of experienced app experts, helping you build a five-star app experience.
Here are some of the best things about MobiLoud:
- No templates, no blocks, no APIs - you're not limited or restricted by pre-built templates or what the Shopify API allows, giving you far more flexibility and potential, and the ability to use the same features, apps and plugins as your website.
- Keep what works - With MobiLoud you can translate your site directly into native mobile apps, without needing to reinvent the wheel, keeping all the hard work you've done to optimize your website.
- Easy Management - you won't add another platform to manage to your workflow. MobiLoud syncs with your website, meaning you just continue to manage your website as normal. All the technical maintenance is done by our team.
- Done for you - all the hard work is done for you by our team. You just tell us any special requirements, add some key information, and we handle all technical aspects of the app build including submissions to Google Play and the AppStore.
MobiLoud Pricing
MobiLoud has two standard pricing tiers:
- Startup - For fast launching and validation: $350/month, plus a one-time $1,500 setup fee
- Growth - Perfect for more established businesses: $650/month, plus a one-time $2,500 setup fee
We also have custom, corporate plan for more demanding projects. Read more about our pricing here.
Comparing MobiLoud & Appmaker.xyz
Appmaker.xyz relies on pre-built blocks and themes, which is restrictive and will never let you fully recreate your website.
MobiLoud on the other hand converts your site in its entirety, allowing you to keep all the features that work on your website, and cutting down all the wasted effort and maintenance overhead.
MobiLoud is also more affordable. It's more expensive up-front, as we charge a one-time setup fee, and Appmaker.xyz doesn't.
But you'll spend more per month with Appmaker.xyz, potentially more than 2.5x-3x as much. An app is a long-term project, so inevitably, MobiLoud will end up being cheaper for you - a lot more so if you end up needing to hire React Native devs to tweak your apps with Appmaker.xyz.
Summing up, MobiLoud is much more affordable long-term, and you get a more flexible, more powerful app. From our angle, it's a no-brainer.
Check out a more detailed comparison between MobiLoud and Appmaker.xyz here.
Want to skip the rest and get your questions answered by one of our team? Book a demo now and get a one on one consultation with one of our app experts.
Now we've broken down Appmaker.xyz and the top alternative, here are a few more alternatives you'll see around the web.
Appmaker.xyz Alternative #2: Vajro
Vajro is a Shopify-focused drag-and-drop app builder, offering cost-effective options for smaller eCommerce ventures. Through templates and drag-and-drop widgets, they develop branded apps integrated with Shopify using API. Integrations with platforms like Firebase, Tidio, and Klarna are available. While user-friendly, Vajro's will likely result in somewhat cookie-cutter eCommerce apps and will never be able to recreate your web stores features, functionality and plugins.
Vajro Pricing
Vajro has four plans:
- Starter - basic features and integrations - $99/month
- Core - advanced features and integrations - $249/month
- Premium - premium features and integrations - $499/month
- Plus - premium features, integrations, and priority support - $999/month
The more costly the plan is, the better app functionalities and benefits you get.
Further Reading: learn about Vajro in detail with a full comparison between MobiLoud and Vajro.
Appmaker.xyz Alternative #3: Shopney
Shopney, a user-friendly app builder, is recognized for its solid integrations, themes, and features, making it a practical choice for Shopify eCommerce stores. If you need an uncomplicated app that reflects your site's product catalogue, Shopney can meet your needs. But being template-based, it can't fully convert your site into iOS and Android apps or reuse all your pre-existing plugins, themes, and features. For businesses with unique or complex operations, this will pose limitations, forcing your store to conform to their existing templates.
Shopney Pricing
Shopney has four plans:
- Silver - basic features with flexible design - $99/month
- Gold - basic features with flexible design with 20 elements - $199/month
- Platinum - advanced features and unlimited design elements - $499/month
- Enterprise - premium features and functionalities and a dedicated success manager - starting from $999/month
Appmaker.xyz Alternative #4: Tapcart
Tapcart is a mobile app builder designed specifically for Shopify, allowing businesses to create their apps without coding expertise. It is a preferred choice among small and medium-sized eCommerce businesses.
Tapcart Pricing
Tapcart has three plans:
- Core - 15 blocks, basic features, and basic integrations - $200/month
- Ultimate - unlimited blocks, advanced features, and integrations - $400/month
- Enterprise - unlimited custom blocks, dedicated customer success manager, and premium integrations - $1K/month
The more costly the plan is, the better app features and benefits you get.
Appmaker.xyz Alternative #5: Mowico
Mowico is a no-code app builder targeting eCommerce companies. It integrates with Shopify and WooCommerce, and will soon work with PrestaShop, BigCommerce & Wix. Mowico has a set of useful integrations like Smile, Langify, and Judge.me, as well as features like push notifications and AR shopping. Like all drag-and-drop, block-based app builders though - Mowico has serious limitations.
While it can produce a basic eCommerce app with your products and logo, but it can't fully mimic your web store's intricate features, design, and plugins. The Shopify "integration" means pulling some data from Shopify that is exposed via API, it does not mean that you can reuse all the good stuff from your main store in the apps. You will always be confined to their pre-built integrations, which is limiting compared to the web and MobiLoud.
Mowico Pricing
Mowico has three plans for each eCommerce platform. For Shopify, they have:
- Startup - basic features - $79/month
- Growth - everything from Gold plus enhanced features - $399/month
- Enterprise - premium features, custom feature integrations, and tailor-made development - custom
The pricing may vary for each eCommerce platform but keep in mind that, the more costly the plan is, the greater benefits you get.
The Problem with App Builders
Most app builders, Appmaker.xyz included, have the same core flaws.
When you’re converting your website to an app, you won’t be able to fully recreate your web experience. You’ll be limited to what the platform allows, in terms of their pre-built blocks, templates and integrations.
Yet, realistically, recreating your website is 95% of what you want from your app. You know that your website works - you just need a few minor tweaks to it in the app.
Try as hard as you like, you’ll never be able to do it with an app builder without custom development.
You’ll end up having an inconsistent UI between app and website, and a lot of plugins, apps or features on your website won’t work the same in the app.
The result is usually a worse user experience in the app - exactly the opposite of what you want.
“The app needs to be at least as functional as the website. It doesn’t need to be better than the website, but the user experience can’t be worse.”
- David from Rainbow Shops
Maintaining Your App & Site
The other issue with app builders is that they take a lot more work than is advertised.
It’s not as straightforward as it looks to build your app. It usually takes a lot of tinkering, and can linger on and on as you try and build an app you’re happy with.
Then, after launching, it takes considerable time to keep your app up to date. Often, whenever you make a significant change to your site, you need to do it again on your app.
This can 2x or 3x your workload. Often, the extra work it takes to maintain your app isn’t worth the benefits you get.
Why MobiLoud is Different
MobiLoud solves the key issues present in app builders.
First, we fully recreate your website. We allow you to reuse everything that works well on your website, having these features or tweaks work the same in your app.
Small customizations on your website often have a big difference in conversions. You’ll keep all these minor improvements in the app, instead of starting from square one.
The other big benefit is that MobiLoud adds very little to your workload. The apps are fully synced with your website, so whenever you make a change to your website, your apps update automatically.
We also handle the technical updates, as well as the setup for your app. The overall labor cost to you, both to launch and maintain your app, is so negligible it’s hard not to come away with a positive ROI.
Let's Build Your eCommerce Apps
It all starts with a call with one of our app experts, where we go over your requirements for the apps and answer any questions you have.
We'll show you the process, and how straightforward it is, while allowing for more flexibility than you get with an app builder.
Book a demo now and get started with your own eCommerce app.
