Dear Gab,

I am really interested in creating an android app as it seems to be a legit source of income. I have little knowledge in coding, marketing, SEO, ASO, and I'd like to make an Android app. I'm not sure how or where to start and the tools that I am going to need. Where do I start, Gab?

Sincerely,
Android Amateur

Dear Android Amateur,

Creating an Android app is sort of a two-pronged process.

If you are an amateur coder, there are so many sources online for you to harness your coding skills. You will also need to get familiar with Google Play's development tools as well as their guidelines. Just so you know, Google is known for its policy enforcement as they restrict apps for all kinds of things. This is why you need to fully understand and know what you can't or shouldn’t do before you even start.

Heads up! I am not going to walk you through here in this post, the entire coding process of developing an Android app that would be too much information to fit into this article. However, I will tell you my secret on how to create Android apps without coding, point you to Google's guidelines, and give you a few tips to help you develop your very first app.

Developing for Google Play is not just about familiarizing yourself with Android development tools like Eclipse, Android Studio, Python, or any programming languages. If you're not comfortable with coding, you can still create apps in various ways.

Being an amateur coder is not really a crime in this digital era. Yeah, you can try to study and explore the nerdy world of programming and designing languages. But the time you would consume teaching yourself how to program and design an app really depends on your learning curve. Rather than struggling with complexities of programming and designing, you might want to check different builders like AppsGeyser AppMkr, Eachscape, LumeApps or MyAppBuilder. There are hundreds of successful apps have been developed using any of these platforms and have successfully managed to bring appreciation from its users, and of course - PROFITS.

Building an Android App has never been a Child’s Play but in this mini guide I plan to give you an overview of the top Builders in the Market

Build Android Apps with AppsGeyser

AppsGeyser is an online mobile app creation platform that offers free and app creation tool to create, download, publish and monetize your Android app. It allows you to convert any web content, YouTube channels, RSS feeds and other sources into an Android App in just a few easy steps. These guys are the leaders in the market and it’s easy to understand why once you are using them.

Appsgeyser has been developed to convert our bright ideas into Android apps.

Appsgeyser is the only code free Android app development platform that allows us to create templated apps based on the web content pulled from webpages. It’s super easy to use and comes with social sharing, tabs, HTML5 enhancements, messaging and more.

Appsgeyser Key Features

  • 100’s of app templates to choose from for games, web services, media tools, social pages
  • Fully customizable with colors and features
  • Revenue sharing from app monetization for up to 50%
  • No SDK needed
  • You can create unlimited number of apps
  • Allows you to Publish to multiple app stores
  • Free and easy to use
  • Supports Android
  • You may sell your app on AppsGeyser
  • No coding required

The building process here is smooth and quick.

You just need to sign up, choose your app or game template, and it will walk you through the whole process until you have a working app.

All you need is to submit icons, screenshots, fill out a few forms, provide some information, and in a few hours your app will be ready to submitted to Google Playstore. AppsGeyser will provide you with an APK file that can be downloaded to any smartphone via a QR code for testing purposes. Upon publishing to Google Playstore, you can also setup ad networks for monetization purposes.

One of the things I like of Appsgeyser is the speed in support and how many new templates they are creating.

If you want to build a portfolio of apps… you need a lot of templates… and having a good “menu” to choose for it’s vital.

Appsgeyser offers also courses, community and great resources to learn how to build your own app empire.

Building Android Apps with AppMkr

AppMkr is an online platform developed to aid users without coding knowledge in creating their own mobile apps.

It's a free online service where you don’t need to register if you already have a Google, Facebook, Twitter, or Yahoo account.

Just login using any of the following credentials mentioned and it will direct you to the app creation page.

Here, you will need to choose the name of your app, type your name, and your email address.

You can choose from pre-created canvas (realtor, store, work group, etc.) or start with a blank canvas, and start creating an Android app from scratch.

Next step is to choose which functions from the left pane that you would like to be added to your app. I have tried creating an app using a blank canvas, and honestly, it’s kind of difficult. It’s time consuming and you really have to exert extra effort reading their tutorials and videos.

But again, it’s still worth a try. I like their pre-created templates though because you just need to edit the layout and functions the way you like it. However, as of this writing they only have 11 templates, so there’s a huge chance that you’ll end up starting from scratch or using a blank canvas.

Well, if that’s your case, you need to learn how to design, format, add functions, and add files to your app. While you’re at it, learn to market your app to your prospective employers. For your information, the cost to submit the app on the app store is nothing, however, you need to pay $79 monthly (subscription).

Not my favourite option, but still valid.

Building Android Apps with EachScape

Creating an app with EachScape is super simple. You can build out an app features using its user-friendly drag and drop interface (MVC Framework). With EachScape, you design your app the way you like it and submit it to app. It's free to use, but you have to pay extra if you want access to more app feature.

I like the fact that it allows you to connect CMS solutions or use their own CMS. You may also add SDKs from third party sources like analytics, ads, and more. In its admin panel, you can define user privileges, organize Android, and JS components with ease.

It offers many templates to start you off. There's also a blank app also known as the Visual Editor option, when you create a new app using its Web Studio.

It's a good mobile app builder - not awesome but good enough.

You'll like its IDE as it offers many features and capabilities. It also provides MBaaS options and supports third party SDKs and other services. Moreover, it can be integrated with JSON, XML, and RSS via its RESTful URL scheme. However, using this platform requires you to be technically savvy (must be a skilled developer). It's not totally free to use also. It also cannot wrap existing apps as well as databases with REST services.

You can set up an account now with EachScape and and start building your first Android app today: https://eachscape.com/. Happy building!

Build Android Apps with MyAppBuilder

MyAppBuilder is an online service aimed at the mass market to make sure that anyone can have their own Android app without coding skills.

They are one of the pioneers who have been developing mobile apps for their subscribers since 2008. However, their service is not totally free as you have to pay monthly and the price varies depending on the plan that you choose. Refer to the pricing options below:

Price does not include third party plugins, graphics and themes. After 90 days of hour requirements met for project, client can change subscription to a hosting only plan for $9 a month.

They have a 30 day trial with each subscription, where you can cancel any time once you find their product or service unsatisfactory.

With MyAppBuilder, you can easily have a File Sharing App, a Messaging App, or a Shopping Cart App. Or, you can have them customize their existing app templates to your liking:

  • Real Estate App
  • Car Dealer App
  • Author/Publisher App
  • News App
  • Church/Religion Apps

MyAppBuilder has built over a thousand of apps already since launch and still developing new app templates for their users. It is a Platform as a Service who releases most of their apps for free and the code is open source.

Build Android Apps with LumeApps

Lume Apps is web based platform that can aid you in building Android apps without coding knowledge. Like most mobile app creating platforms, there's a price you need to pay depending on which subscription plan you choose. If you just need to create 1 app, there's a basic plan that's just right for you, for $29.00/month.

If you want unlimited number of apps, then you can choose the Advanced plan for $99 a month where there's Push Notifications and Email/Chat Support. Just note, your app will be powered by LumeApps. If you want your app to be hosted independently, then choose the Enterprise plan for $199 a month.

Building Android apps here is simple. You can add features for social sharing, promos, lead generation, coupons, as well as push notifications via its user-friendly admin interface. Your app design is customizable too you can have your app completed and ready for submission to Google Play Store in just minutes. Sign up now and start building your first Android app for free!

Build Android Apps with BiznessApps

BuzinessApps has over 500,000 apps under its belt. It's a San Diego-based company and is one of the fastest growing mobile app businesses in the US. They offer nifty app features and styles covering several categories such as restaurants, health & fitness, real estate, and more.

The app templates that they offer are very valuable and were built to serve various markets. However, more customization options would be appreciated to allow for greater productivity. There's also push notifications feature and genuinely handy features like custom logins for team members, live stream feature, and an app previewer.

They also offer ad support (iAds, AdMob, Double Click and your own). Their animated slide images could be used efficiently by tech savvy app designers out there. However, you will need design knowledge and skills to make your app look more professional.

They offer 2 plans:

Single App Plan and the Reseller.

I would recommend the Single App plan for $99 a month to give this platform a try. But if you are a person who is looking to become a mobile app reseller, who owns an app agency, or start an app mobile business with white label app builder, then the Reseller plan for $299 a month is the right choice.

With Bizness Apps, you need to be somewhat technical, at least, or know the kind of market you are targeting to be able to maximize the full potential of this platform. Overall, it is an invaluable resource for SMBs!

Build Android Apps with Yapps

Yapp is an easy and affordable way to create Android apps for events, conferences, and meetings. You can easily create Android apps in just minutes and submit them to Google PlayStore instantly. No coding or app design skills are required.

As of this writing, there are 350,000 apps that are already been created on Yapp's online self-service mobile creation platform for a variety of teams and events such as conferences, meetings, trainings, team engagement, and so much more. Yapp's users range from big companies to non-profit association.

You cantry out this mobile app creation platform to create full featured Android apps completely free (no credit card required)!

It's easy to get started with Yapp. The available mobile app features made allows you to be more creative in designing your app and for sure it will turn out better than using other mobile app creation platforms.

You can add speaker bios with all the information at hand. With this, all the attendees would be able to tag speakers on their Facebook or Twitter posts. I have tried other platforms before this one.

None had all the feature that I am looking for. Yapp had more features at the best price. See pricing options below:

The problem I had with Yapp is their support.

When I submitted a query through the ZenDesk help, I never got a response. I only got a response from them via their chat feature. You also won't be able to link speaker biography and documents to specific team events in the schedule. This feature is not available yet, but they said that they are working on it.

Give Yapp a try. Team events are best suited with it, and way more robust than what you’d expect. They’re also expanding new features in thecoming months.

Build Android Apps with AppyPie

Appy Pie is a mobile app creation platform that the aims to minimize the amount of app coding users have to do for themselves. It is entirely cloud based and no installation is required.

There's a free plan but there will be ads. The paid versions won't have ads and will add Android support, and other features such as push notifications, updates, analytics, and more depending on the paid plan that you choose. For pricing info, please refer below:

It features a Drag-and-drop interface, meaning there's no development skills or no technical knowledge required. As you can see above, there are three different paid plans which provides customer support and one-time free Android app submission.

The only thing that you need to do to create a free app is to sign up for and input your information. Once you have filled out your details and published your app, you'll get an HTML5 based hybrid app that you can submit to Google Play Store.

You can create casino app, animation, recipe, messaging app, crm app, birthday app, gps app, ebook, social media app, worship app, and so much more. To know more about its features, click here.

So Which Mobile App Creation Platform is the BEST?

Comparing all the platforms above, it's a neck-to-neck between AppyPie and AppsGeyser. For me, the best would be AppsGeyser due to its user-friendliness (you'd be able to create an app in less than 5 minutes), more customization options, over 70 diverse customizable app templates, and monetization options (50% of revenue).

It's also absolutely FREE, no extra charges, subscriptions, and limitations in terms of creating and publishing your Android apps.

There's also lots of easy tutorials and guides that can guide you on Android app creation and app publication.

Android App Creation Tips

Android phones are everywhere! In fact, over 80% of all smartphones are running Android O.S.. This is the reason why mobile app marketing is an ideal business today. But then again, you should be extra careful in using any attractive mobile app offerings.

While they say that it's free to use, make sure that you read the fine print. Unlike Appsgeyser, some of these platforms will take your money and demand you to make your app look better. Deception is the right term to describe this. It is the enemy of the online World. These platform offerings are examples, so stay away from them.

So, you already know how to create an app without coding knowledge. Now, let’s continue with my answer to your question by telling you a story on how I created my first android app which eventually reached over 100,000 downloads. Yup, I didn’t have to code anything.

First, you need to know what your strength is.

Are you good at app marketing?

Designing?

Development?

ASO?

or are you good at the promotion aspect?

If you are a developer, then that’s a key advantage as you can create your own app vs using a builder.
If your strengths are elsewhere, then you can hire a developer or use AppsGeyser to create an app without technical knowledge required.

Second thing to consider is your APP IDEA. Actually, it does not have to be a something spectacular, keep it simple…. Make it work.

It’s not that super important. Your total execution is much needed. Your app needs to be something useful so people will download and use it. You can easily validate your app idea by asking your friends or by looking at similar apps that do something similar.

My very first app (a long long long time ago) was a weather app that I created using AppsGeyser. It was a simple app that has weather effects on top of your cellphone’s wallpaper. Most weather apps out there provides a weather background. Mine was kind of unique as it allows you to have the cool effects on top of your Android wallpaper. And this was my selling point.

You see the app was simple, what made it awesome was my execution.

Most developers can code, and yeah that is great, but they lack the foundation on other areas, their app business usually turn out to be mediocre.

If you want to successful in the mobile app business, your Android app must be useful, unique, and has that extra factor.

In other words: Do you own market research!

Don’t forget.

Documentation:

Create documentation for your app. If you are not good at documenting how your app works, you can hire someone at Freelancer.com to do this for you.

The main reason why you need to build guides and tutorials, it’s is that it will help you to communicate all your app features to your users and provide information on how the app works.

Test:

You should also test your app. With AppsGeyser, you’ll get an APK that you can download to your phone via a QR code.

This will help you beta test and figure out what needs to be improved on your mobile app. You don’t want your users to run into problems using your app on its launch, right? You’ll lose prospective users, if this happens.

When you start testing your app, you should prepare for its launch. Use social media, and product hunt to tell users that you are going to launch your app. You must be sure enough that your Android app is solid and it’s something you feel confident about.


When you’re launching your app, be calm and motivated! Do your best in promoting your app, even if it fails. Remember, you will learn far more from your failures than not even trying.

Good luck,
Gabriel Machuret