How to make a chat app like WhatsApp?

Do you want to build something great? Developing a billion-dollar messaging application is always the best idea to consider. Well, here we can let you know amazing details, which will certainly help you to create an effective and attractive messaging application.

WhatsApp statistics you should know

Almost every smartphone is using at least one kind of messaging application. Even more and more messaging applications are coming up with time. So, this can be the best time to cash in one of the instant messaging applications and can build a platform similar to WhatsApp for sure. So, this is the right time to take a dive through the process of creating an instant messaging application similar to WhatsApp. Not only this, but we will also analyze the factors which are necessary to take this application up and running. Here we will see the entire details regarding a template similar to WhatsApp messenger application. Ultimately, this will help you to understand things in an even better way.

Well, data from various resources, including web analytics, market intelligence company, and SimilarWeb, shows that the apps associated with the category of messaging are having most downloads in more than 150 countries. Even more, the Statista Statistics website has also reported that there are more than 2 billion users of instant messaging applications all around the world. While the statistics authority website has also forecasted that these numbers are going to increase to 2.5 billion until 2021. It clearly means that one-third of the world population will use instant messaging applications by 2021. However, there are numerous instant messaging platforms that are working at the present time. While WhatsApp messenger is the most dominant one among all of these instant messaging applications, which are being used by more than 1.3 billion users at the present time. However, if all of these statistics are making you more interested in building an instant messaging application, then keep reading this post.

Want to know more? Keep reading…

How you can make a chat app like WhatsApp?

As instant messaging applications have become a big turn of the century because these are continuously growing. These either took the form of the chatrooms, which you may have experienced such as Voice Over IP, Yahoo messenger, Skype, etc. However, over time developers have mixed the voice calls and messaging applications into one application with the addition of some new features. While WhatsApp took this innovation to the next level by offering the feature of a video call. By this, the industry of the instant messaging industry came alive with tons of other features.

The open API for messaging has emerged with various other things, including bots, payment methods, masks, statuses, public or group chat channels, and tons of other amazing features. However, the applications with plenty of users are now finding it a bit difficult to add more features in the application or making any difference in the structure. For example, WhatsApp, one of the major instant messaging applications, has not added a chatbot or API in this platform.

Well, just come back to the option of creating an interesting instant messaging application. So, the most challenging and difficult part of creating a WhatsApp like application in iOS and Android is its development architecture. However, to make your application more successful, it is highly important to add some more innovative features in this without causing any issue. Clearly, the concept of this application should not be just the creation of an application with a single feature. Foundation of features should also consider the available options in other applications too. Even more, you should also consider the features to accommodate, which can be required in the future.

Features to consider

More often, messaging applications end up performing much more than just sending and receiving messages. Therefore, whenever you have a look at the features of WhatsApp, you will come to know the list of amazing features that are present in applications like WhatsApp.

Here are some of the features which are essential to consider:

• Message status, for example, delivered, pending, sent, or received.
• The option of copy and paste messages within the application’s chat interface.
• Audio or quoting messages, forward the message or start a thread.
• Delete unwanted messages from the message history, whether local or at the recipient end.
• Stickers and emojis
• Search message history
• Delete dialogues
• Local storage of conversation
• Option to disable or enable application’s notification
• Providing a built-in interface for messages before sending.
• Opening, sending, or forwarding file attachments.
• Compare file attachments before sending to reduce the size of the file
• Import your contacts from the address book into the messages.
• To signal the current location option of sending geolocation should also be included
• Read and scan QR codes.

Most of these features you can see in the basics of instant messaging application which are being provided to the users. Some other amazing features which you can also think to include here are:

• Integration of online payment
• Booking services integration
• Hotel reservations
• Confirming tickets
• Subscription services
• Payment of bills

There are tons of other features that can also be added to this application to help it stand out in the crowd. However, before creating an instant messaging application, it is highly important for you to identify the functions and requirements of the application which are required. This will surely help you to understand the tasks ahead before you are going to face them headlong.

Should I use a chat application template?

Application templates are around for some time, but these are here to provide you some of the most amazing benefits to the developers. Generally, application templates are pre-existing structures that can be helpful in completing your development tasks more efficiently and effectively.

Well, most of the developers want to know why they should consider buying a chat application template for their instant messaging application option. so, here we have brought some of the most important reasons which are essential for you to consider in this regard:

Reduced application development costs

As the application templates already have user-interface. Therefore, there is no need to spend a sizeable money amount on the process of frontend development at all. This is usually the most expensive and time-consuming process of application development, where companies are spending thousands of dollars. Most of the developers and designers think that making an application from starch is better, but actually, according to a business perspective, it is baseless to start from a starch when you already have an option to get a template to start. So, there is no meaning of wasting time and money on the solutions which you already have.

However, templates are not only allowing you to save the cost of frontend development. It can also reduce the costs of backend development. Because various of the available templates can connect with an effective BaaS platform such as Back4App. This can ultimately simplify the process of application development dramatically. Even more, using an application template will also provide you the common or basic features of an application. Ultimately, you can easily focus more on the development of new and unique features, which can help you to stand out in the crowd of similar kinds of services with ease.

Reduced team size

When you have a template, then this will ultimately reduce the number of team members. Because of this, you don’t have some members to work on the application template. Even more, starting up in the early stage will also save you from the hassle by using a hybrid development model for any of your devices, whether iOS or Android. Apart from this, you can also choose the off-shelf template, which can aid in the process of development while keeping the size of your team limited.

Reduced time of development

The very first draft of the application development usually comes with multiple malfunctions and bugs. Ultimately, developers have to go through each bug to fix them and to identify the cause behind the improper functioning of their application before eradicating the bugs. This entire process will take immense effort and time for the developers. While on the other side, having a pre-built template will provide you most of the coding, which obviously errors free. Therefore, this will help you to save a lot of your time and efforts and will also help you to optimize your budget in a more effective way.

Quick time to market

Choosing an effective application template can help you to end up by saving months of development time. Therefore, using an application template will not only help you to reduce the budget that you have to spend on this application. But it will also allow you to push the application to the market. So that you can easily engage more customers sooner and can start reaping profit as soon as possible. This will certainly help you to try and configure the success rate as soon as possible. This is a mantra, which is always important for programmers and startups. While having a template can easily help them to achieve this faster to validate their products or application.

The architecture of Clone app for WhatsApp

Here are some of the most important things which are essential to consider while architecting clone app for WhatsApp:

Keep the things simpler

When you are designing an application technically, which will drive multiple users simultaneously, then simplicity must be your major architecture focus. Because this will impact the various major aspects of user-experience such as speed. Keep the structure of your data simpler, store the things which are essential only. Ultimately, this will result in faster responses, quick calls, and will make the application more responsive in the best possible way. So, ideally, your features will be stored in the simpler classes. Which can be inherited into the complex UX designs easily. Keep in mind the fact that more than 80 to 90% of your traffic will be on simpler text messages. While 10-20% can be a bit complex. So, if you are going to focus on optimizing this 80-90 % more, then you can save a lot of storage, time, and traffic. Simplicity and avoiding over-querying will pay an important role in making your application much responsive, faster, along with keeping the payload simpler.

Clone application must be flexible, scalable, and testable

Accommodating scalability can be the most critical aspect of developing a messaging application without discouraging application’s testability and flexibility. Therefore, it is always important to design architecture into multiple layers. After that, focus on creating the objects, logic, presentation in such a way that modification in one of these options could not affect the working of other functions. This can be an effective idea to develop the base of this application for scalability. Utilizing a BaaS can be effective to ensure scalability. This will let you outsource the server-side functionality to a third-party to simplify the process of application development.

Application performance

Developers of messaging applications prefer to base their application on a well-known programing language. Otherwise, after completing the development process, they may realize that their platform, services, language, and libraries are not aligning with the application’s demands. That is why it is always better to consider the benefits of the programming language which they want to prefer for their application. However, it is always highly recommended to choose the option which comes with more adaptability to build an effective system. Going after a trending programming language can be an erroneous approach.

The application must handle heavy leads and scale userbase

One of the most essential aspects to build a WhatsApp clone is the process of establishing the architecture and to tweak the business logic to align with the application. While the application which is being developed with this approach can crumble under heavier load. Therefore, it is always effective to establish your business logic of the entire system first and then build the architecture which can work with this in a more effective way. Developing your application with this approach will make the addition of new features a breeze with ease. Even more, it will also help in expediting the cycle of the project effectively. This can be the best solution to build a robust messaging application that can adopt the heavy workload too.

Multifarious stability

It is essential to develop your application while being mindful of the needs of the users worldwide. The speed of the internet is varying extensively. Some users may have high-speed internet connections while some are using a low-speed option too. While there can be various other technical things there but surely users are not concerned about these at all. The only thing which your consumers want is to use the application without any delay and receive their messages, notifications, or send their messages after the connection has been restored. Therefore, it is highly essential to adjust the platform that must be able to perform functions optimally, whether internet connectivity is poor or excellent. Before marketing your application, test every aspect of your application properly to ensure you will not dissatisfy your users.

Privacy and security are essential

Firstly, you have to meet the legal requirements in terms of security and privacy. European GDPR, the US HIPPA, and Brazilian LGPD the most important example to consider in this regard. The core of all of these options is meant to reshape how you are going to collect and proceed with the personal data of users. Also, how you will follow the new rights to control and access the data of the individuals on the internet. So, if you are developing an application that can be used globally, then it is highly important to fulfill all the security and privacy complaints. In this situation, BaaS services such as back4app can facilitate the process of compliance. GDRP and other privacy and security act requirements are quite complex, and their implementation can demand a lot of engineering efforts. Therefore, outsourcing these implementations can be a better option to choose from.

BaaS GDRP will offer you all the vital sources of establishing excellent application security. To build a WhatsApp clone, it is essential to safeguard the data of your users to keep it safe from unauthorized access. Communication should be encrypted with a security protocol along with embracing the anonymity of users. Make sure you are securing the user-identifiable information effectively. Well, all of these features can easily be applied with the BaaS GDRP without facing any hassle.

Elements to focus on UI and UX

When you are designing an application and thinking about how to make a WhatsApp clone, then it is highly important for you to consider some essential things to build UI and UX effectively.

1. Keep the application interface simpler so that users do not have to resort to the user’s guide or tutorials to use the features of your application.
2. Keep the UI of the application straightforward. So that users can simply select a contact to start communication. For this, you can make sure to choose an all-inclusive native principle, technology, and design. The end result will always be with a predictable user-interface to offer convenient user-experience.
3. Create some empty states in different sections. Ensure the users will take appropriate action.
4. It is a vital fact that all of the features in any application could not take place simultaneously, so make sure to inform the user about the activity before it completes.
5. As the instant messaging application will be used all the time; therefore, it is always essential to perform extensive application testing before launching this. Testing will help you to focus on the challenges which users will experience, and developers can easily focus on resolving these in a more effective way.
6. Display the errors when they are occurring. This can help you in the process of identification of the cause of these errors.
7. Never leave your users wondering what will happen with this application. Display the errors on the interface when they are occurring while someone is using this application. So, users can easily identify what is happening.
8. There are various features which are essential, including searching message or contacts, chat history, uploading and downloading pictures and videos, etc. Similarly, an audio message replay is also an important feature to consider for this application. So, keep focusing on the most important features which must be a part of your application. This is essential for the fine-tuning of your application and to consider what you have to offer to build a successful application.

WhatsApp App: Difference between Android and iOS

If you want to take a closer look at the application, you can understand the fact that there are certain features that are different for both platforms, such as eMoji. This is because iOS issuing a standard keyboard. While the Android platform has not standardized its keyboard at present. However, emoji difference is just one difference among various others. For example, playback, video recording on both platforms also require different codes. That is why a video play on Android will not be played on iOS if you are not going to convert it properly. Well, the basic thing to understand here is to manage the application for both of the platforms as per their needs and compatibility to make it more effective in the best possible way.

Final thoughts

Without any doubt, the procedure of developing an instant messaging application is complex. Therefore, it is recommended to put your hands in this process only if you are an experienced or highly-skilled developer. Even more, these applications also need extensive testing before launching them properly. Extensive testing is also adding to the complexity of this application. Therefore, make sure to choose the right platform and programming language, too, while developing this application. This is also essential to make it more flexible and scalable without degrading the existing features of this application.

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