Full Guide on How to Make a Betting App

Updated 12 May 2023

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Gambling business has changed due to the digital revolution. There are a lot of solutions like online casinos and betting apps. According to the latest report, the gambling industry is expected to reach approximately $565 billion by 2022.

Betting app development can be challenging and time-consuming. The main reasons for that are a gambling license and app store restrictions.

In this guide, we’ll discuss the challenges of creating a betting app and basic features. Also, there is a ready-made estimation and comparison of prices in different regions.

How to Create a Betting App: Challenges to Consider

There are several obstacles that you may bump into even before betting app development. You have to think through several points to make a gambling application that works legally and is allowed to be used by the public.

1. Getting a license

The primary task is to get an online gambling license. It’s the only way to enter the gambling industry. It’s impossible to promote the gambling application and gain users without a license.

The following data is for informational purposes only. We’re not experts in online gambling laws. We’re providing a brief overview of laws by countries to inform you about possible obstacles.

Every country has different rules and regulations for getting an online gambling license. You have to study the jurisdiction of a particular country or state. You can speed this process up cooperating with a qualified lawyer.

Below you can find general information about getting an online gambling license in various countries.

The USA

In the US, it’s legal to have sports betting business only in several states like Nevada and New Jersey. In other states, online gambling is illegal.

Australia

Australia isn’t as strict as the USA with gambling laws. It’s legal to own a betting business, so you can apply for a license and nothing stops you from making a gambling app after you get one.

Europe

There are a lot of countries with different regulations for online betting business. Most European Union countries allow at least some types of online gambling games. For example, the German government prohibits almost all types of online gambling. However, in Italy, it’s possible to get a license in a specific committee. It’s better to study the regulations of a particular country or consult with a lawyer.

Getting a license for a betting business can be quite challenging and cost a lot. You need to look through all the rules and restrictions of a particular country beforehand and notify your developers if they have to follow some specific guidelines.

2. Publishing to the App Store and Play Market

Play Market

In July 2017, Google announced that developers can publish gambling apps on the Play Market. Though, there are still strict regulations to prevent young users from downloading apps of this type. For example, it’s required to have a gambling license from the targeted country. Also, the Play Market insists that publishers should make their betting apps free.

App Store

To publish your betting app to the App Store, you need to follow the set of rules provided by Apple. They’re pretty similar to Google’s. For example, any betting app should be connected to a business with a license and have a geo-fence.

3. Backend infrastructure

The backend, in simple words, is the cortex of your application. It directly works with all data-related processes. This is an essential aspect of creating a betting application. You’ll require a robust and scalable server architecture to process all the app’s backend operations.

However, the process of backend development may be complicated and time-consuming. Your main goal is to hire qualified specialists who’d help make your service scalable, effective, and successful in managing all user data, transactions, and real-time updates.

For betting app development, it’s recommended to select microservices infrastructure to be able to handle high user traffic, add new functionality, and make modifications with ease. This approach implies composing a whole software out of autonomic services connected via API.

This allows you to enhance productivity, optimize your app functionality, and speed up the platform launch..

4. Integrating payment system

Making a betting app, you need to implement several payment methods to make the transactions fast and comfortable.

A lot of payment system providers are ready to cooperate with online gambling platforms. Among the most popular ones are Stripe, NETELLER, and Skrill.

Stripe

The Stripe payment system offers fast and secure transactions. It’s common to integrate this payment solution since it’s easy to use for newbies. However, there are some regulations about using Stripe for betting apps.

NETELLER

NETELLER is one of the most widespread payment services with millions of users from all over the world. The main advantages of this system are high level of security and fast, anonymous transactions.

Skrill

This payment provider offers flexible services for the gambling business. Skrill offers it's users anonymity along with a comfortable way to cash out their winnings.

4. Considering UI/UX design

How to make a betting app that brings a lot of users? You need to pay attention to user-friendly and intuitive UI/UX design.

According to the latest trends, applications should have a simple interface without unnecessary elements that can distract users. However, it’s common to integrate small animations. For example, you can add motion or animated transitions among the screens.

People are visual creatures, so you need to pay attention to design to deliver value to end users. It’s better to cooperate with qualified designers who can create a quality interface.

6. Provide strong data security

How to make a betting app without solid data protection? Unconditionally, that doesn’t make sense. Security measures are one of the primary aspects that you must consider while entering such a sensitive industry. All transactions and users’ personal data must be safe.

There are several ways to implement a strong set of security measures:

  • Data encryption. It’s a method of turning a readable scope of data into coded unreadable one in order to prevent it from being read by unwanted intruders
  • Two-factor authentication(2FA). This type of authentication requires two or more forms of identification, usually including phone number, email, login, etc.
  • Secure payment gateway. It’s an important aspect of every service that directly engages funds. Payment gateways are usually protected by encrypting sensitive transaction data in this case.

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Betting App Development: Must-Have Features and Their Cost

How to create a betting app? These apps require a lot of features. It’s better to start with the MVP version of the application. MVP stands for a minimum functionality that can satisfy users. Having developed an MVP of a gambling app, you can release it on the market and get some feedback from users. After that, you can upgrade your solution and implement advanced features.

The app functionally is the most significant factor that affects the final cost. Let’s discuss a set of MVP features for a betting app and cost to implement them.

Login and registration

Users start interacting with an app from registration or login. The basic option is to offer players register with email and password. After signing up, users need to log in. Also, it’s necessary to provide ‘Forgot password’ and ‘Log out’ features to make a gambling app user-friendly.

Create a wager

The ability to make a wager is crucial for any betting app. For example, players should see the list of categories and events. It’s good to integrate a flexible search system to help them navigate through these events. Also, you need to allow users to set picks and bet amount.

List of wagers

Users see the list of their wagers and sort them according to various filters like date, status, and more. Betting app developers can implement a suggestion system. So the app could offer to see the list of recommendations depending on users’ previous activity.

Betting wallet

Are you still wondering how to make a betting app user-friendly? Try to integrate a convenient wallet feature. It allows users to add their credit card credentials and top up the account. It’s also necessary to provide an opportunity to delete cards and add several ones.

Menu bar

The menu bar has to consist of several points. It’s better to create a ‘Rules’ screen for users to see the gambling policy. The betting app requires an ability to contact managers if necessary.

Notifications

This feature is quite useful to give users a heads-up about new wagers and any other changes. Additionally, push notifications drive better engagement making users spend more time with the app.

Betting app development: features

Core features of a gambling app

Time and cost of developing basic features

FeatureBack-end development, hoursiOS development, hoursAndroid development, hours

Login & registration

35 h

68 h

68 h

Create a wager

88 h

128 h

128 h

List of wagers

32 h

52 h

52 h

Wallet

31 h

62 h

62 h

Menu

14 h

30 h

30 h

Push notifications

15 h

17 h

17 h

Total time

215 h

357 h

357 h

Total price

$10,750

$17,850

$17,850

As for advanced features, there are some ideas:

  • Customer support 24/7
  • Bonuses
  • Several languages support
  • Real-time messaging
  • Several currencies support
  • Cryptocurrencies support
  • Betting guides

All the estimations provided below are based on the average rate in our region (Central Europe) — $50 per hour. We’ve calculated only core features. However, there are additional expenses that we’ll discuss later.

How to Make a Gambling App in 7 Steps

Creating a betting application from scratch may be confusing. Let’s clear up the development aspects and find out how to build such a solution in stages.

1. Come up with an app idea

A concrete understanding of what you want your final product to look like is halfway to success. Determine the main goals of your sports betting app, the key aspect of design, and fundamental features.

To start having great results, you have to clearly deliver your concept to your developers team. It’ll prevent misunderstandings and establish primary moments to adjust the app concept to a budget and technical abilities.

2. Conduct market analysis

When creating a betting app, you must define your target audience because these people may become your clients. Your ads campaign must reach exactly these users.

Besides determining the people to whom you will be delivering your service’s value — it’s required to research and analyze the solution of your competitors in the field.

Let’s rank 5 sports betting apps that will give you a solid understanding of what you need and which users’ needs you can address by making your own platform.

William Hill

William Hill is a company with vast experience in the industry. The service allows users to bet on sports and provides casino, poker, and political betting.

But the most exciting thing about William Hill is how they build a user internal service journey. They help new users fit in by providing free bets and allowing them to bet at the moment of the game.

BetMGM

BetMGM is a US-based entertainment company that offers users safe services and a lot of pleasant bonuses.

BetMGM provides users with accurate statistics,24/7 customer support, live streams, and a welcome bonus in the face of $1,000 free bet options.

Paddy Power

Paddy Power is one of the most popular betting services in the UK and successfully uses a gamification strategy. They’ve implemented an internal service game, which allows users to win multiple rewards, including free bets.

Also, they created the largest horse-riding community and still gather a lot of fellow thinkers around this topic.

Caesars Sportsbook

Caesars Sportsbook took the hearts of millions of users to its simplicity and robust security measures and is the largest among the US betting services welcoming bonuses.

They’ve engaged a method of two-factor authentication, which settled high-security standards. Using Ceasars Sportsbook lets you bet on baseball, basketball, football, and more.

Parimatch

This company was founded in 1994 still remains one of the leaders in the betting industry.

Parimatch strongly cares about users' data security and provides reliable statistics. It also offers the ability to bet on cybersports and a wide range of regular sporting activities. It also provides insane welcome bonuses of up to 100% on your first deposit.

The question of how to make a betting app rigorously is a very arguable topic. Betting is basically a controversial industry that is even considered illegal in some countries. You must abide by all necessary guidelines, laws, and rules to avoid getting into multiple troubles.

However, keep in mind that the rules differ depending on the country you will launch your service in. Also, you must consider the question of getting a proper license. This aspect may also vary in its difficulty depending on the region.

4. Choose a reliable IT provider

To start a successful collaboration, make a checklist of crucial aspects to pay attention to while choosing iT provider. Such aspects include:

  • The range of IT services the company provides, such as mobile/web development, native development, AI integration, etc.
  • The types of cooperation models the provider offers, so you can select the ones fitting your budget and interests
  • Real clients' feedback and reviews on trustful platforms like Clutch
  • The availability of the business analysts and solution architects in the company. These specialists will assist you in the research and planning phases and ensure that your gambling app complies with legal regulations

5. Determine the list of features with your IT partner

Deciding on what functionalities your platform must contain is a tricky process.

It is recommended to create a feature list with your IT provider. The expert team will help you decide on the functionalities required to implement the solution business logic and meet your target users expectations.

In fact, the best option is to develop an MVP version of your app. This approach implies implementing essential features in the application. After its launch, you can expand it to make your platform more advanced.

6. Start to develop your app

Development process is a main part of sports betting app creation. However, this part involves the work of other specialists like UI/UX designers, QA engineers, etc.

UI/UX designer is a person who ensures your product's visual concept and general recognition. Usually, the main visual aspects should be agreed upon previously discussed business goals, and purposes of your product.

Once the engineering part is paced, QA specialists help to ensure the general product’s quality and to trace all possible technical issues or malfunctions of an app before launching.

7. Launch and support

Finally, it’s time to launch your gambling application. Depending on your chosen solution, you can opt for one of the app marketplaces, (such as App Store or Google Play) or provide a solution to cater to both platforms.

Besides, to make your app competitive and up-to-date you should consider its further developer support. It’ll help to enrich your product with advanced functionality and essential updates.

How to Create a Betting App: Team and Technologies

Betting app development requires a joint effort of various specialists. Here come the team members (they can vary depending on your project requirements):

  • Business Analyst
  • Project Manager
  • UI/UX designer
  • 1 or 2 iOS developers
  • 1 or 2 Android developers
  • Back-end developer
  • QA engineer

Want to know more about team members? Discover the application development team roles and responsibilities at Cleveroad.

To create a mobile app, you need to choose a suitable tech stack. The most popular ones are Swift (iOS) and Kotlin (Android). Below you can find an approximate tech stack needed to create a betting app.

The tech stack of your gambling app depends on your project requirement. It’s better to consult with professionals to pick the right one.

How to create a betting app: tech stack

Tecnologies to create a betting app

How Much Does it Cost to Make a Betting App?

To find out the final cost of betting app development, you need to consider several factors that can affect the final price. Among the most significant ones are:

  • design
  • admin panel
  • development team’s location

Admin panel

The betting app should have an admin dashboard to manage users and the platform. It also allows handling transactions done via the app. Creating two mobile apps for iOS and Android, you will only need one admin panel that works for both of them. To build a basic solution, developers would need at least 105 hours.

Design

Design is essential for any mobile application, especially for a gambling one. You need to hire a qualified specialist that can create a user-friendly design. To make a good-looking UI/UX design, specialists need approximately 130 hours for one mobile platform.

Team's location

It’s common to cooperate with outsourced development companies to make betting apps. Depending on the location, vendors offer various hourly rates. For example, software builders from Eastern Europe provide affordable rates along with high-quality code.

Developers rates (Source: Codementor)

RegioniOS($/h)Android($/h)Web($/h)

North America

100

100

100

Latin America

80

80

80

Central and Northern Europe

50

50

50

Australia

100

100

80

Asia

40

40

40

Final Estimate

Betting app development for two mobile platforms (iOS and Android) may cost about $83, 600. This number is APPROXIMATE and is based on a $50/h rate.

We’ve calculated the MVP features of an app, design, and admin panel.

How much does it cost to make a betting app? (MVP version)

Type of workBack-endiOSAndroid

Features

215 hours

357 hours

357 hours

Admin panel (one for all platforms)

105 hours

Frameworks and libraries integration

57 hours

19 hours

24 hours

UI/UX design

140 hours

150 hours

120 hours

Quality assurance

240 hours

180 hours

180 hours

Project management

120 hours

90 hours

90 hours

Total time

877 hours

796 hours

771 hours

Total price

$43,850

$39,800

$38,550

How to calculate the final cost? You need to multiply the number of hours by hourly rate. We’ve counted the final price for different regions.

  • Central and Northern Europe. $83,600 (based on $50/h)
  • North America. $167,200 (based on $100/h)
  • Western Europe. $150,480 (based on $90/h)
  • Australia. $167,200 (based on $100/h)

How much would a betting app cost?

Our team is at your disposal. Reach out to us, we'll prepare cost estimate for your betting app idea

Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to make a betting app?

As software engineers are the main price factor here will depend on their rates and, respectively, location.

  • Central and Northern Europe. $83, 600 (based on $50/h)
  • North America. $167, 200 (based on $100/h)
  • Western Europe. $150, 480 (based on $90/h)
  • Australia. $167, 200 (based on $100/h)
How to make your own betting app?

There are several steps to follow:

  • Step 1. Get a gambling license.
  • Step 2. Cooperate with experienced developers
  • Step 3. Consider must-have features.
  • Step 4. Create a user-friendly design.
  • Step 5. Test the app to avoid bugs.
  • Step 6. Release the betting app and update it regularly.
Author avatar...
About author

Evgeniy Altynpara is a CTO and member of the Forbes Councils’ community of tech professionals. He is an expert in software development and technological entrepreneurship and has 10+years of experience in digital transformation consulting in Healthcare, FinTech, Supply Chain and Logistics

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Comments

8 comments
MM
Martin munene
17.08.2023 at 07:56

This is great and so helpful.

JM
Jasper Montes
27.10.2022 at 08:23

This is so helpful. BTW, do you have updating this content?

EW
Emma Winget
13.12.2021 at 13:27

In this article each information for creating betting app is clearly mention. Getting the license is the most important thing in this business. you mention each process for developing the application. You define estimate cost of the app in USA, by this I can set my budget for the application development. Thanks for sharing the article.

EN
Esmat Naikyar
25.05.2021 at 21:31

Great article and info. Once in a while you run into a GREAT articles, and this is IT! Thank you.

CR
Cyprian robert
17.05.2021 at 18:48

Nice information

ZG
Zabuni Group
13.05.2021 at 18:46

How do you get the odds? Are they purchased or you just get them for free

RN
Ravi N
22.12.2020 at 19:25

Nicely explained. Covers all aspects at a high level

R
Rassy
11.09.2020 at 06:23

Brilliant info!

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