Looking to bring your business online? Not sure if you should invest in a web application or a website. Well look no further, here is a brief explanation on the two and which would be best for your online solution.
Same But Different
As a developer I’ve been asked this many times, what’s the difference between web apps and websites. Oftentimes people get confused between the two and I don’t blame you. Both can be accessed through a web browser, are desktop/tablet/mobile friendly, SSL secured and can be SEO optimized. From a technical standpoint both are oftentimes written in the same programming language, they may have a lot of similarities but they are not entirely the same.
What is a Website?
A website consists of text, images, audio, videos etc.. some may contain one page or a few pages. But the main goal of a website is to share information with the visitor and can be easily navigated. A website is not meant for visitors to interact back, it’s a one-way system where the business will share their information with the visitor.
A few examples of a website are:
- Blogging sites
- Community sites
- Portfolio Sites
A few websites we have built we’ve recently built:
- stevejelenic.com
- tncc.ca
- togetherapartcirque.com
What is a Web Application?
A web app is a software that can be easily accessed through a link. Some may think a mobile app is the same as a web app. But it’s not! Mobile apps will require a specific SDK, for example iOS will require you to use Swift, an annual fee and consider wait time to get your app approved to live on the app store.
Web apps are highly interactive, dynamic and contain a variety of functionalities. Oftentimes these sites can create, store, update and delete content.
Some popular web apps are:
A few web apps we have built we’ve recently built:
Choose Your Fighter
Website Web App Created For Public End-user User Interaction Visitors will have the ability to read information/data Users will have the ability to manipulate data if allowed Authentication Does not require authenticity/login, the public can gain access to view pages May contain a login portal for users to gain access to the system Functionality Built to display data to the visitor Complex and customizable Cost $ $$
Final Verdict
A website is a perfect platform to display your service and/or product, promote your business and gain legitimacy. While a web app is a good route to go if you are looking to build a functionality that requires user interaction to complete certain tasks such as an eCommerce site.
Now that you can differentiate a website vs web app, you can start considering building/moving your business online and have our expert web development team be part of that process!