Mobile apps are software applications built to run on mobile operating systems like iOS or Android.
Sharetribe doesn’t offer a mobile app out of the box, but you can turn your marketplace into a mobile app in three ways. Each requiring a different level of effort, cost, and customization:
Use our partner Twinr's no-code mobile app wrapper and turn your marketplace website into an app without coding.
Use a third-party template by Sharetribe Expert Journeyhorizon to launch fast, and enjoy infinite customizability down the line.
Build a mobile app from scratch and connect it to Sharetribe's backend.
We'll go into the differences between these approaches below, but they have one key thing in common: you can run both your mobile app and marketplace website in Console, and the app and website sync seamlessly.
When to build a mobile app?
Some marketplaces need a mobile app from launch—others can start with a responsive website and add a mobile app later. Some marketplaces won't need a mobile app at all. Your approach depends heavily on your audience, industry, and niche.
Your Sharetribe marketplace website is fully responsive and works seamlessly in mobile browsers. Mobile apps are native to smartphones, meaning that instead of navigating to a marketplace through a web browser, mobile users can download the marketplace from an app store and access it through their home screen directly.
Technical considerations
Mobile apps have a frontend and backend component, just like websites. When using Sharetribe to build your mobile app, you already have the backend; Sharetribe can serve as the backend for both a website and a mobile app thanks to its technical infrastructure. Building a mobile app on Sharetribe, then, is about building the frontend mobile application.
The backend in Sharetribe refers to the system that runs behind the scenes of your marketplace. You can think of it as the marketplace engine or database. It handles important processes, like creating user accounts or processing payments, and storing your data like listings or reviews. The backend isn’t something your users see directly; they interact with the "frontend" (your website or mobile app), which communicates with the backend to show the right information, store data and keep everything in sync.
Hosting mobile apps works differently. Whereas websites need a server to load them to a browser, mobile apps are downloaded directly onto a device through an app store. While the app itself lives on the user’s phone, many apps still connect to an online system in the background to keep information updated.
App stores, like the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store, have strict requirements for apps to become published and available to device users. Mobile apps must comply with much more specific and strict rules than websites.
Mobile wrapper: Launch without coding with Twinr
The quickest, simplest, and least expensive option for launching a mobile app is to use a mobile wrapper. A mobile app wrapper, also known as hybrid app or web-wrapper, is a tool that “wraps” your existing marketplace website and makes it accessible as a mobile application. The wrapper uses your marketplace website, placing it inside an app container that can be published to the iOS App Store and Google Play Store. With this approach, you can build certain (though not all) mobile native features, without needing to create a separate codebase.
Sharetribe has a built-in third-party integration with Twinr, a no-code mobile app solution that you can use to wrap your Sharetribe marketplace into an app. Learn more about turning your marketplace into a mobile app with Twinr. You can use Twinr with any live Sharetribe plan (Lite, Pro, Extend). Also, Sharetribe customers get a lifetime 25% discount from all Twinr plans!
Using a mobile wrapper has limitations. Because wrappers use your marketplace website as the base, the user experience mirrors exactly how your marketplace site will look like on mobile browsers. While this is completely fine for many marketplaces, some will want a completely unique mobile design and user experience. Another limitation is that certain mobile-native capabilities may not be available or may be more limited.
Mobile app template: Easy to launch and customizable with code
The second quickest way to launch a mobile app is to use a third-party mobile template. Sharetribe is headless software, and a mobile app template is a pre-built application that comes with the core design, features, and technical connections already in place.
Using an existing template build the app can speed things up and make building more affordable—while retaining the ability to customize with code.
How much is pre-built and how modifiable a third-party template is depends on the developer. Certain developers may have building blocks to speed up development, while others may have fully built apps that only need to be branded to be taken into use.
For example, veteran Sharetribe Expert Journeyhorizon has created a third-party mobile app template that you can use to launch your mobile app. It can be used as-is and is already integrated with Console (which means you can continue to use your no-code tools to set up configurations in your mobile app).
Modifying an existing third-party mobile template can happen using the Dev environment included in all plans. You need to subscribe to the Extend plan to use this mobile app with the Live environment.
Build from scratch
Building a mobile app from scratch means that a software developer (with mobile development skills) creates the entire mobile app frontend from the ground up. This includes designing and coding every screen or page the end user will see and interact with, as well as creating all the buttons, menus, and functionalities that make the app work.
The developer also needs to build the connection between the app and the Sharetribe backend, so that core actions like signing in, creating listings and initiating a transaction work correctly. The app has to communicate with Sharetribe's backend, display the right information, and store your marketplace data properly. If your marketplace is also accessible as a website, the same information is used on web and mobile.
Because nothing is pre-built, the app’s design, user experience, and functionality are defined entirely by you and your developer. This gives you full flexibility and control over how the app looks and works, but it also requires more time, resources, and technical expertise compared to the other approaches discussed below.
You can build a completely custom, from scratch mobile app using the Dev environment included in all pricing plans. You need to subscribe to the Extend plan to use this mobile app with the Live environment.
Conclusion
In summary, building from scratch gives you the most control, mobile app templates balance speed and customization, and mobile wrappers are the quickest but most feature-limited option. The approach that is best for you marketplace depends on your budget, timeline, and how much you want to customize the app experience.