Home » Blog » Guide To Create On Demand Home Services App: Features & Cost Estimation

On demand home services app are not a buzzword anymore. Apps like Thumbtack, TaskRabbit & UrbanClap (now known as Urban Company) have turned life simpler for both- customers and service providers. Right from booking home salon services to getting AC or refrigerator repaired, everything is just a tap away. 

In fact, post COVID the rise in on demand home services has increased drastically. As per the reports, the potential market worth is USD 4730.31 billion during the year 2021-25. The market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 70.5%. This has made more business owners and entrepreneurs to invest more in the booming on demand home services industry.  

If you too have plans to start your on demand home service app, it is worth understanding:

• How apps like Urban Company & Thumbtack makes money?
• What are the important features to launch your on demand home services app?
• How much it cost to build home services apps like Urban Company & Thumbtack?

So, without waiting anymore, find your answers one-by-one here.

How On Demand Home Services App Makes Money?

Let’s understand this with the example of a popular on demand home services app – Urban Company. Formerly known as UrbanClap, this platform started back in 2014. By the year 2019, the company reported a growth of 150%  and the revenue jumped further by 103% in 2020.

Generally, these on demand home services apps make money through two different models: 

Commission-Based: The company acts as the middleman between the service provider and the customers. The service provider has to pay a certain commission to the company when the customers complete the order. 

Lead Generation: Certain requirements might not be listed on the app or what if customers need these services for a longer period of time. In such a case, the on-demand service provides leads from experts to their customers and charges them both for lead generation. 

The industry has seen a drastic rise in the number of customers who are actively looking for efficient services like these. To help you understand better how Urban Company works paved the route to success, we have shared everything here.  

What are the Features of On-Demand Home Services Apps?

Online home services platforms offer various features for the customers, admin and service providers. Let’s check them one by one.

Features for customer booking app

• Quick Booking: Customers can quickly register using the mobile app. The companies give options to register or sign up via mobile number, email or Facebook. After the signup process, customers can quickly book the services sorting their requirements. 
• Instant Notifications: Real-time notifications can help increase customer retention rates. Without navigating to the app, customers can know the status of their orders. 52% of users look for relevant information and offers in the push notifications they receive. Hence, the notifications can also be used for sending the promotions and latest deals and discounts. 
• Easy Browsing: One of the major USPs of the on-demand services is the ease of browsing to a specific service. Customers can quickly navigate to the services and use the filters provided to get their service. 
• Rating & Review: This feature is really helpful for the new customers willing to take up the services. The existing customers can rate the services provided to them. Thus, the new customers can choose highly-rated professionals for their services. 
• Payment Management: Customers can choose to pay via credit card, debit card, Paypal or any third-party wallet after the service provider has accepted the order. After the payment, the service provider will book the date and time slot for the appointment. 

Features for admin dashboard

• Comprehensive Management: This offers a bird’s eye view to the business owners to manage and track every aspect of their home services from a single dashboard.
• Promotion Management: For an effective marketing campaign to run, you need promotions in the form of regular discounts and offers. The on-demand services marketplace lets you create robust discounts and deals which increases brand visibility. 
• Listing Management: It allows business admin to keep control over the service listings and providers one their home services app. They can add any number of services, providers, set their pricing, taxes, and more.
• Analytics: If you are an admin and want to keep an eye on your progress, the analytics feature is a must-have. Admins can get an insight into the most popular services, customers registered and orders completed. 
• Feedback Management: This gives control to the admin to warn the service providers with negative customer feedback. This helps admin to filter only the best professionals and guarantee flawless services to the customers. It helps them find gaps and improvise.
• Manage Discount & Promotions: Business owners can create multiple discounts, promo codes, discounts, etc. to engage and retain their customers. You can run any number of promotional campaigns to grow your ROI.

Features for service provider app 

• Easy Registration: The onboarding process must be seamless and quick enough to get the service providers on-board. Once the registration process is completed, the service providers must be ready to work.
• Real-time Chat: There should be an in-built chat system for the service providers to interact with their customers in real-time. Customers can solve their queries and get the required assistance with such a feature. 
• Route Optimization: The route optimization option is a prerequisite for service providers to ensure faster delivery of the services. This feature gives the shortest and fastest route to ensure on-time arrival and cost-efficiency. 
• Track Earnings: Vendors can keep a check on their monthly, weekly or yearly earnings using this feature. They can track the transactions and get the cost estimation for each service provided. 

These are some of the essential features to run your online home services marketplace. In case, you need a complete feature book to outshine your on demand home services app, download here.

How Much It Costs To Build On Demand Home Services Apps?

When it comes to the cost, it depends on various factors like feature requirements, technology, platform, etc. The hourly price for hiring on demand home services app developers varies too. For example, the hourly rate in regions like Europe or America is $150-200 per hour. However in Asia, the development cost for your home service application can cost about $80-$130. To sum up, the key factors determining the cost are:

•         App Platform Required
•         Selected Theme Design
•         Content Inclusions
•         Developer Hired
•         Features Included
•         Hosting & Maintenance Costs

In all, the estimated cost of creating an app like Urban Company clone can cost around $15,000-$25,000. However, adding advanced features and functionality might increase the same up to $45,000. 

While you are all set to build your on demand home services app, make sure to have a right tech partner by your side. Choosing a reputed home services app development company like Code Brew can help you navigate your next. With a dedicated team of experts and experience of building over 5,000 successful businesses, your business idea is in safe hands.  

What about having a free consultation with industry experts to build your on demand home services app? Get in touch now!

Planning to Launch Your Own Branded Home Services App Like Thumbtack? Check out Live Demo: