For web-based businesses, converting your website into an app is (in most cases), a far better alternative than building a mobile app from scratch.
There are a number of companies who specialize in turning websites into apps, through either a self-service software portal, a service-based approach, or a mix of the two.
Two of these companies are Median (formerly known as GoNative), and our platform, MobiLoud.
If you want to build an app for your website, and you’re weighing up the options, this article will help. We’ll give you a side-by-side comparison of two of the top website to app solutions on the market, breaking down the key features of each, and who they’re best suited for.
You’ll be able to use our objective assessment to aid you in your decision, and help you choose the best solution for your brand.
So, without anything further, let’s jump into our comparison of MobiLoud vs Median.
What is Median?
Median is a platform made for converting websites into hybrid “webview” or “wrapper” apps.
These are apps that utilize a mix of web and native mobile code, displaying the content of your website within a “wrapper” or “shell” of native code (with some more native mobile elements layered on top).
Median does this with their “JavaScript Bridge”, which works similarly to cross-platform frameworks like React Native, providing a way for mobile operating systems to recognize and execute web code.
Their service comes in several forms, including a self-service portal that you can use to develop an app yourself, a full-service agency option, as well as an enterprise offering.
Who is Median For?
Median has evolved a lot over the years.
For a long time, the company was known as GoNative, and they specialized in helping small businesses (such as eCommerce brands, or startups with web apps) convert their website into apps.
Yet they have always leaned a little more towards developers, or companies with significant development resources in house, who lack mobile development experience.
The Median platform provides a low-code, web-developer-friendly solution to build and publish webview apps for iOS and Android.
Their recent evolution has also resulted in their messaging focusing much more towards enterprise use cases (such as internal company apps, CRM portals, employee dashboards), and less towards SMBs, eCommerce brands and other B2B/B2C use cases.
MobiLoud vs Median: Key Differences and Similarities
MobiLoud, like Median, is a solution for companies looking to build mobile apps without having to write native code.
We provide a full-service solution to convert your existing, mobile-friendly website into high-quality, full-featured iOS and Android apps.
The output is the same – a hybrid app, built with webviews, that displays content from your website in a native package, with native elements, to give the user a native experience.
Our approach, however, is less technical, with the full-service element standard, and is made with SMBs and independent brands in mind.
See below for a quick summary of the common features of MobiLoud and Median, as well as the most notable differences, and then keep reading as we make the case for why you’d want to choose MobiLoud for your project.
Similarities
- Both utilize a mix of webviews and native code to deliver hybrid apps that sync with your website.
- Both allow you to build fully white-label apps with all the features of native apps.
- Both provide expert help to simplify the process of mobile app development.
Differences
- MobiLoud’s full-service approach is standard, whereas Median offers both self-service and done-for-you (with a large cost for the DFY option).
- Median’s cost comes largely upfront, whereas MobiLoud works on a subscription basis (though Median has an annual fee for software updates, plus optional extras that come with recurring fees).
- Median uses a range of “native plugins” to integrate certain functionality into your apps (such as OneSignal for push notifications, or Google Firebase Analytics). These typically come at an additional cost. MobiLoud, on the other hand, takes the features that already work on your website and simply translates their functionality into your app.
Want to talk your project over with one of our app experts? Book a free, no obligation consultation now.
Why Choose MobiLoud Over Median?
We believe that most online businesses are better off building their app with MobiLoud.
MobiLoud is a better fit for companies that don’t want to, or don’t have the means to, manage and tinker with their app in-house.
Full service is standard with us, and we let you go to market with an app for less cost, with far less management and effort.
Our service is also extremely straightforward. We believe your website is already good enough to be your mobile app. It just needs someone to do the technical work to bring it to life as mobile apps, and add a few small native touches to create a proper native experience (and that someone is us).
Let’s dive deeper into the benefits of MobiLoud now.
It’s Less Technical
Median is largely targeted towards developers. While you do not need to be a professional coder to build an app with the platform, technical knowledge is advantageous.
It’s a “low-code” platform, which is the kind of platform that’s made to allow web developers to create apps while writing less code, rather than allowing non-developers to create apps by themselves.
MobiLoud, on the other hand, requires zero technical knowledge. Whether you have a web development team in-house, or your company is completely non-technical, MobiLoud will be a perfect fit either way.
If you do have an in-house development team and want to add custom code to your app, you’ll be able to do so, no problem. But we’re designed to help any company launch amazing apps with zero effort or experience.
Fully Managed Service
We know that building and maintaining apps takes a lot of work. Even if you have the ability to make apps, or you use a no-code tool to build your apps, the upfront and recurring time investment of launching an app can be insane.
MobiLoud takes all that work off your plate, with a fully managed service to build your app, get it published in the app stores, and make sure it stays up to date and bug-free.
We do more than just wrapping your website in app code and handing it off. We’re essentially your app development team, letting your focus remain on your business and on your website, without the worry of maintaining another platform along with everything else.
"Nothing out there provided us with the ease and accessibility that MobiLoud did to our team. The team at MobiLoud held my hand to ensure our app was done properly from beginning to end."
-Nick Barbarise, John Varvatos
Median’s basic offering is a self-service platform, which, as mentioned earlier, is made primarily for developers.
And while they offer some support, at an additional cost, it’s not a fully managed service, and you’ll need to adjust your workflow to account for managing your apps.
They do offer full-service options, but these come at a much higher cost, and still require some collaboration and effort from your development team.
More Cost-Effective
While you should by no means look for the cheapest option to build something that could potentially drive a lot of revenue for your business, ROI is important. And MobiLoud is a more cost-effective option that gives you an easier path to a positive ROI.
Our pricing is a little higher than a typical “app builder”, but that’s because we’re not just an “app builder”. We offer something closer to what you’d get if you paid a team of developers to build and manage your app.
The cost, however, is far less than it would be to hire talent yourself. You can go live in just a couple of weeks for a low-four figure cost, and pay a manageable monthly cost to handle all app updates and maintenance (far less than the 4-5 figures per month minimum you’d spend to maintain an app development team).
“If we had unlimited time and money, we would probably go for a custom native app, but that is half a million to a million a year to maintain.”
-David Cost, Rainbow Shops
Median’s pricing works a little differently. They offer the enticing prospect of a one-time upfront fee, rather than a subscription.
However, there are additional costs associated with it, above the upfront fee, such as:
- Software updates, for $200-$500 per year.
- Extra costs for some native plugins and integrations.
- The cost of your own team’s time and effort to manage your apps.
- Additional support costs if you can’t manage any issues in-house.
And their managed service can get quite costly – starting at $7.2k, some businesses have been quoted a $40k fee upfront to build their app, which is getting into the realm of custom app development.
MobiLoud is much cheaper upfront, and when you consider the savings in labor cost thanks to our fully managed service, we’re more affordable long-term as well.
It’s Simpler: No Need for Native Plugins or Complex Integrations
We strive to make MobiLoud as straightforward for you as possible.
We convert your website into mobile apps, keeping all the features, plugins, apps, integrations and custom alterations that drive revenue and make your website great.
We have some native integrations built in (such as OneSignal and Klaviyo for push notifications). But on the whole, you don’t need to worry about adding special plugins or integrations to make features from your website work in the apps.
Median offers a range of native plugins, to help your app integrate with things from third-party tools to native device features.
Some of this can be useful, depending on your needs. If a deep integration with device features is particularly important to your app, Median may work out to be the better choice.
But for many businesses, MobiLoud’s more straightforward approach to converting your website into an app will be preferable.
"If you already have a really good mobile site, I don’t really see the benefit of rebuilding an app to go with it from scratch when you can convert your site."
-Arran Rice, Simple Flying
When to Choose Median
We strive to be objective, and we can recognize that there are situations when you might want to choose Median over MobiLoud.
Median may be a good fit if you're a developer or you have an in-house development team, and you want more hands-on control over your app.
It's also a better option if you need device features such as biometric authentication, camera and GPS – and you can justify the hit to your ROI from adding these features.
Read to learn more? Get a preview of what your app could look like when you go with MobiLoud as your Median alternative.
Ready to Convert Your Website into a Mobile App?
MobiLoud has helped more than 2,000 companies build their own mobile apps, without investing hundreds of thousands of dollars, 6+ months of development time, and untold effort and hassle.
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You can read some of these companies’ stories here, including:
- Bestseller, one of the largest fashion companies in the world, who have more than 20 individual brands (including ONLY, ONLY & SONS, JACK & JONES and VERO MODA), and used MobiLoud to build and manage high-revenue mobile apps for various brands.
- TOBI, a boutique brand with a custom-built eCommerce site, who were able to cut their workload by nearly 90% compared to the previous, custom-coded version of their app, without losing anything in quality.
- TradeZing, a company created by the founder of an award-winning app development agency, who felt that MobiLoud was much more straightforward and headache-free than building and managing apps with native or cross-platform development.
By converting your website into Android and iOS apps, you can open your brand up to a much wider audience, boost retention and revenue from your existing customers, and build a powerful moat for your business.
All this with a minimal cost, little to no effort or overhead, and no technical expertise required.
It’s completely risk free, and almost guarantees a positive ROI from your mobile app.
"The fact that we can roll out quite complex solutions and updates to improve our experience for customers on the website, and that's immediately in the app, that's priceless. That's amazing!"
-Damien Smith, BoozeBud
To learn more about what’s possible, and get a working preview of your site as an app, book a free demo now.
Let us show you how much of an impact MobiLoud can make for your business.
