The market for app development services hit US$20.5 billion in 2011, according to analyst firm research2guidance. With application download revenues of US$6.8 billion, the app development service market – which encompasses application creation, management, distribution and “extension” services – generated more than three times the total revenue.

The majority of the app development service revenue was generated by concept creation, design and coding. Newer services – such as app libraries, white-label solutions and multi-platform app development tools –– became more popular but weren't major revenue generators in 2011.

research2guidance also found that on average, UK developers charge US$626 per day compared to US$138 charged by developers in India. However, the cheaper prices are often offset by the extra time needed by offshore app developers, according to the analyst firm.