Key Takeaways:
- MBaaS provides a cloud-based backend infrastructure to power mobile applications and handles all the server-side components needed for mobile apps to work, such as databases, push notifications, API services, authentication, hosting, and file storage.
- The MBaaS provider manages, scales, and maintains all the mobile app backend services, servers, and databases that enable the mobile app to function.
- Mobile backends provide storage capabilities to host both structured and unstructured data for mobile apps. Developers can build mobile apps that save, retrieve, and sync user data without managing backend infrastructure.
Mobile apps have become an essential part of our daily lives and the way we connect, communicate, shop, and stay entertained. With over 7.1 billion smartphone users currently worldwide, businesses need reliable and scalable ways to support the mobile experiences they provide to users.
Looking for Mobile App Development Companies? Check out SoftwareSuggest’s list of the best Mobile App Development Companies solutions.
This is where Mobile Backend as a Service or MBaaS comes in. MBaaS removes the need for businesses to build and maintain complex backend infrastructure and allows them to focus their resources on developing great mobile customer experiences.
Statistics show the MBaaS market is booming. The Global Cloud Mobile Backend As A Service (BaaS) Market size will reach $7.3 billion USD by 2030, growing at a compound annual growth rate of over 22% as more companies leverage MBaaS solutions to power innovative new mobile apps and digital services.
This blog post will explore what MBaaS is, what its benefits are, and examine key players in the MBaaS industry.
What Is MBaaS?
MBaaS stands for Mobile Backend as a Service. It provides a cloud-based backend infrastructure to power mobile applications. MBaaS handles all the server-side components needed for mobile apps to work, such as databases, push notifications, API services, authentication, hosting, and file storage.
With MBaaS, mobile developers don’t have to build these complex backend systems from scratch. They integrate the MBaaS provider’s SDK (software development kits) and API into their apps. The MBaaS provider manages, scales, and maintains all the mobile app backend services, servers, and databases that enable the mobile app to function. This allows faster mobile app development since backend code doesn’t need to be written.
By leveraging MBaaS, developers can focus on building the best user experience for mobile apps without the heavy lifting of managing infrastructure.
Understand your project's unique needs before selecting a provider. Assess the scalability, reliability, and feature offerings each platform provides, aligning them with your application's requirements. Look for seamless integration capabilities, real-time data synchronization, robust security measures, and responsive customer support. Additionally, prioritize providers that offer a clear pricing structure and scalability options, ensuring a cost-effective and efficient backend solution as your application grows.
How Does MBaaS Work?
How does mobile backend as a service platform work? The process is not a complicated one at all. The MBaaS platforms have already created software that can let you utilize ready-to-use events that your application needs from the server backend.
Some common functions include cloud storage, databases, user authentication, email verification, push notifications, sending messages, remote updates, GPS-based services, and more, which your application may need.
Developers can use MBaaS platforms to integrate these services into their applications with no or low code options. They can spend most of their time handling frontend functionalities or client-side logic to bring users the best and most effective and inspiring interface.
The entire process will not only let the developers save much of their time, effort, and energy, but this can also make the application development process affordable for you by reducing development costs. At the same time, the project timeline can easily be scaled extensively.
However, it is important to consider that multiple MBaaS platforms are available out there. So, when buying the best Mb platform for your next application development project, it is always highly recommended to perform proper research.
Check out features, benefits, costs, and customer experience with the MBaaS tool to make sure you will choose the right MBaaS platform. As many options are available, you can easily find out the best mobile backend-as-a-service for you.
What Are The Key Benefits Of Using MBaaS?
Although mobile applications have become one of the most important aspects of business value, developing and maintaining one can become exhausting sometimes. But the situation is not the same anymore. Because MBaaS is here to save you from the hassle of messing up with application development processes. Look at the following benefits of MBaaS solutions to know how these can help you more effectively.
1. User-Friendly
MBaaS can help you streamline the application development process by taking charge of backend development. It will let you focus more on your application’s front end or user interface to offer an enhanced user experience with your application with ease.
2. Quick App Development
MBaaS offers a ready-to-use infrastructure for your application and will let you save the time, effort, and resources required to line resources in place. Ultimately, the development time will be reduced significantly.
Consequently, you can roll out resources, develop an application, and add new features quickly. This can also let you exploit seasonal trends to generate more sales effectively. You can also get better opportunities to find ways to boost engagement. Last but not least, you can perform smoother upgrades without bothering with the issue of scaling server infrastructure.
3. Cost Savings
This is another important benefit of using MBaaS. It will not only save you from hiring backend developers for your mobile application development, but you can also save costs required to line up infrastructure resources. You don’t need a handful of IT specialists to perform different application development jobs. Ultimately, you can keep enough amount in your account using an effective MBaaS solution.
4. Scalable Services
Most of the MBaaS solutions offer much flexibility and scalability. Because these solutions can let your business access a huge range of service options. Even more, some MBaaS providers also offer free and premium services. So that you can easily go with the options you need, while with the growing need for your application, you can also scale your resources whenever required.
Most small and medium-sized businesses can’t afford enough capital to invest in technical teams and server infrastructure. MBaaS solutions can come into action for them easily and will help them get the best applications without even spending much.
Interesting read: Top 7 Mobile Application Development Tools
What Features Does An MBaaS Typically Provide?
MBaaS platforms typically offer a range of features to support mobile & web app development. Here are six common features provided by MBaaS platforms:
1. User Management
Most MBaaS platforms offer user management services to handle user registration, login/authentication, account recovery, and authorization/roles. This includes social login integration as well as passwordless login options. They provide APIs to easily add authentication to mobile apps without worrying about security aspects.
2. Data Storage
Mobile backends provide storage capabilities to host both structured and unstructured data for mobile apps. This includes support for SQL/NoSQL databases in the cloud to store application data. Developers can build mobile apps that save, retrieve, and sync user data without managing backend infrastructure. Features like real-time data replication across devices are common.
3. Push Notifications
Push notifications capabilities allow sending messages and alerts to users even when apps aren’t active. Platforms offer simple APIs and web apps dashboards to send notification messages based on various conditions. This is used for everything from new chat messages to transaction alerts. Push services are available across all major platforms like iOS, Android, Web, etc.
4. Analytics and Reports
Gathering analytics on app usage is crucial for product improvements and marketing strategies. MBaaS solutions collect detailed metrics on events occurring within mobile apps. They provide analytics dashboards where developers can access engagement indicators, monitor crashes, and view usage patterns. Integrations with third-party analytics tools are also commonly available.
5. API Services
API services handle backend logic and data processing away from mobile apps. Common examples include image/file manipulation, geocoding, payment processing, etc. MBaaS platforms expose these as reusable APIs that apps can integrate easily. This avoids iterating the server-side code for every feature change and helps stay focused on the mobile experience.
6. Server-Side Logic
In addition to traditional backend databases and APIs, some MBaaS platforms also support hosting server-side application logic written in languages like Node.js. This allows including custom server code like scripts running cron jobs, complex business logic, or connection with third-party systems. The hosted servers can also perform compute-heavy tasks and data processing.
Interesting read: 9 Hidden Risks in Mobile Application Development Industry
Our selection of these Mobile Backend As A Service (MBaaS) Platform is based on thorough research and analysis. We have listed these softwares based on usability and satisfaction score that include features, ease of use, customer support, ratings, and number of reviews from SoftwareSuggest. Our goal is to help businesses select the right softwares that can help them optimize their business processes.
5 Mobile Backend As A Service (MBaaS) Platforms
When it comes to developing feature-rich mobile apps, choosing the right Mobile Backend as a Service platform is an important decision for both business owners and developers. Below is a brief overview of 5 leading MBaaS platforms on the market today:
1. Back4App
Back4app is an open-source, low-code backend to accelerate building web and mobile apps. It improves developer productivity by handling server-side APIs and infrastructure. Back4app reduces time-to-market by speeding backend development with pre-built components. It also scales apps without Complex server management.
The intuitive drag-and-drop interface enables quickly composing business logic, workflows, and database schemas. Back4app supports various frameworks and languages like React Native, so apps integrate seamlessly. It confers developer-friendly capabilities like GraphQL APIs, SDKs, and sandboxes, too.
The backend platform manages hosting, security, compliance, and more. These capabilities allow focusing on the frontend UI. For both novice and expert coders, Back4app simplifies app creation.
Key Features
- Data storage (Relational)
- Cloud code functions
- APIs (GraphQL and REST)
- File storage
- Authentication
- Push notifications
Pricing
- Free Plan
- Basic Plan – $25/month
- Standard Plan – $50/month
- Pay as you go Plan – $100/month
- Silver Plan – $250/month
- Gold Plan – $400/month
- Platinum Plan – $1,000/month
- Back4app simplifies data management by providing a spreadsheet-like database solution, enabling developers to effortlessly create, update, and sync their application data.
- Importing or exporting JSON/CSV files is made easy with Back4app’s Parse dashboard, streamlining data control and management with just a single click.
- Back4app offers an intuitive tool within the Database Hub, allowing users to conveniently publish datasets and share them with others.
- Developers are empowered by Back4app’s REST and GraphQL APIs, enabling them to convert their logic into APIs through SDKs and REST API, providing flexibility and ease of integration.
- If your mobile app sends queries directly to collections or columns, renaming them could cause disruptions in the query flow.
- When the package limit is reached, the data viewer becomes unavailable, restricting access to view data within the system.
- At times, logs may not appear in the system, potentially affecting the monitoring and tracking of events or activities.
2. Firebase
Firebase is a mobile and web application development platform owned by Google. It provides tools to help build high-quality apps faster and grow successful businesses around them. Firebase removes backend complexities by handling functionality like databases, analytics, messaging, crash reporting, and more.
Its SDKs integrate these services so apps can directly access them without custom server code. Core products support building, releasing, monitoring apps, and engaging users. So, beyond assisting developers to program the backend, Firebase powers the entire app lifecycle.
Its build tools accelerate workflows, while capabilities like remote config and A/B testing optimize applications post-launch. By eliminating backend headaches, Firebase lets developers concentrate on crafting amazing user experiences.
Key Features
- Real-time database
- Cloud messaging
- Cloud storage
- Firebase authentication
- Crashlytics
- Performance monitoring
Pricing
- Custom pricing model
- Back4app offers an extensive array of services and features catering to diverse needs.
- It provides a free basic plan, making it accessible for users to explore and test the platform.
- The documentation is clear and concise, facilitating a smooth understanding of the system.
- Integration and setup with Back4app are quick and straightforward, saving valuable time for developers.
- Back4app has limitations regarding data migration, which could be a drawback for users dealing with substantial data transfers.
- The platform’s dependency might pose challenges for users looking for more flexibility in their development environment.
- It leans towards an Android-centric approach, providing comparatively less support for iOS, potentially affecting iOS-focused developers.
3. AWS Amplify
Amazon Web Services (AWS) Amplify is a robust development platform from Amazon for building and hosting full-stack web and mobile apps. It provides the complete infrastructure needed to scale apps globally on AWS. Amplify meets the surging demand for cloud-based application development. The on-demand model offers easy access to shared computing resources without managing hardware.
Amplify supports the entire app lifecycle from building to deploying, with services like hosting, APIs, notifications, analytics, machine learning, chatbots, and more. The toolset streamlines building secure, high-performance apps that leverage AWS. Amplify’s libraries, UI components, and cloud APIs reduce complexities for developers. By handling provisioning, scaling, monitoring, and more, it enables focusing on app functionality and user needs.
Key Features
- DataStore
- Authentication
- Analytics
- Amplify studio
- Full-stack CI/CD workflows
- Redirects and custom headers
Pricing
- Custom pricing model
- Common functionalities like user authentication, push notifications, message management, and subscriptions are effortlessly integrated.
- AWS Amplify utilizes GraphQL for simplifying data processing enhancing efficiency.
- Generating application components swiftly to gain insight into their functionality is made convenient through easily executable commands.
- AWS Amplify enables the development of both native Android and iOS apps, as well as offers support for cross-platform frameworks.
- AWS, in general, possesses a steeper learning curve compared to mastering AWS Amplify specifically.
- The AWS Amplify CLI tool generates extensive data, making it occasionally challenging to derive meaningful insights from it.
- Collaboration issues can arise, particularly concerning deployment collisions, causing some frustration in the process.
4. Backendless
Backendless simplifies mobile app backend services using a visual, low-code platform. It combines a customizable UI builder with pre-built APIs and automation to accelerate programming app backends. Backendless handles provisioning, databases, authentication, messaging, and more to reduce coding time.
The intuitive visual interface lets developers with any skill level assemble application logic, workflows, schemas, and UIs faster. Backendless works with any frontend codebase and features developer-friendly APIs like GraphQL, too. Its robust toolset manages hosting, scaling, security, and compliance. By automating complex backend tasks, Backendless empowers developers to build full-stack apps better and faster.
Key Features
- Backendless database
- Cloud code
- File security
- User management
- Real-time data
- Pub/Sub messaging
Pricing
Backendless Cloud Pricing –
- Free Plan – 0$
- Scale Plan – 15$+/ month
Backendless Pro Pricing –
- Single Server – $10k per year
- Clustered – $50k per year
Managed Backendless –
- Custom pricing model
- Back4app accelerates development, saving valuable time in creating applications.
- Back4app offers an intuitive user interface, making navigation and usage easy for everyone.
- With Back4app, organizing and managing data is streamlined, enhancing overall efficiency.
- Back4app provides a full-fledged solution for developing diverse web and mobile applications.
- Back4app can experience sluggish performance at times, affecting user experience.
- Users may face a moderate learning curve while getting accustomed to Back4app’s functionalities.
- Back4app is relatively expensive, which may be a deterrent for budget-conscious users.
5. Kinvey
Kinvey provides tools to develop multi-platform apps spanning mobile, web, and more. Its backend serves businesses across industries looking to build secure, scalable apps with compliance built-in. Kinvey supports all major device platforms and development frameworks. Templates and automation accelerate the assembling of apps tailored to user feedback and requests.
Governance and access controls provide enterprise-grade data security. Flexible environments from local to cloud deployment suit diverse infrastructure needs. Kinvey enables cross-functional teams to collaborate smoothly on the app lifecycle. Whether building standalone apps or integrating with existing systems, Kinvey powers productivity and innovation.
Key Features
- Serverless backend
- Code sharing
- Authentication
- Angular and native script
- Data pipeline
- Front-end agnostic
Pricing
- Starts at $2500
- The platform is remarkably efficient and saves a significant amount of time during development.
- Kinvey allows you to swiftly create, test, and enhance applications, facilitating rapid learning and iteration.
- The flexibility and multi-utility of Kinvey’s features are great for complex projects.
- Kinvey offers excellent scalability, allowing applications to grow seamlessly with increasing demands.
- While using Kinvey, users have experienced a reduction in control over certain aspects of the application’s backend.
- The platform has limitations on the number of operations one can perform, affecting the flexibility and scope of my projects.
- Customer service with Kinvey has been a concern, occasionally requiring improvement for a more seamless user experience.
Interesting read: 12 Best Mobile Testing Tools & Apps
How Do I Choose The Right MBaaS Provider For My Project?
With the numerous mobile app development companies on the market, deciding which MBaaS provider is best suited for your specific project needs can be challenging. It’s important to thoroughly evaluate each platform to understand its strengths and weaknesses.
To choose the best mobile backend-as-a-service that fits your technical needs and budget, keep these points in mind to make an informed choice that sets your mobile app project up for optimal success.
1. Secure Storage and Infrastructure
It is important to evaluate the security measures implemented by the MBaaS provider to safeguard server-side application code, files, databases, and other assets stored in the cloud.
Key aspects to check include data encryption options, identity and access management controls, physical infrastructure security, support for compliance standards like ISO 27001, etc. Hands-on experience with their security capabilities is recommended.
2. Database Architecture and Scalability
The database architecture and transaction processing capabilities of the MBaaS must be suitable for your app’s data needs. Check database types and schema supported, query languages, scaling limits, replication strategies, built-in transaction management features, etc.
Consider both current and future projected data volumes to ensure the infrastructure can scale efficiently. Real-time performance under heavy loads should also be validated.
3. Functional APIs and Integration
MBaaS platforms should expose user management, file/data storage, push notifications, and other required APIs through well-documented SDKs and libraries. Evaluate API coverage, limitations in functionality, error handling approach, etc.
Test various integrations to understand the ease of incorporating cloud capabilities within mobile applications. Pre-packaged UI modules are also a plus for common processes like user signup.
4. Data Management Processes and Tools
The MBaaS provider must offer the right set of processes, methods, and tools to make server-side data management easy on an ongoing basis.
This includes features for data modeling, migrations, backups, access controls, monitoring, versioning, and debugging databases in production. Sufficient documentation and support options for these activities must be in place.
5. Communication Security
Wireless connections between mobile apps and backend services need to be encrypted properly. MBaaS must support industry standard protocols like HTTPS and TLS/SSL with secure configurations.
Additional capabilities like real-time data encryption, network firewalls, and intrusion prevention should also be evaluated. Comprehensive monitoring of network traffic adds another layer of security.
6. Technical Support Quality
Responsive customer support is crucial for cloud services that applications depend on. Assess the MBaaS provider’s support commitments, response times, expertise of engineers, availability of online resources, and documentation quality.
Active community forums for peer-to-peer help can be a plus. Overall, the support structure must be sufficiently robust to handle issues seamlessly.
7. Ease of Doing Business
Beyond core features, MBaaS providers must enable painless account setup, billing transparency, flexible pricing schemes, resource usage visibility, and optimal legal contracting.
Simplified provider relationships translate to reduced administrative overhead – an important consideration for mobile products.
Interesting read: 14 Best Free and Open Source Mobile App Development Software
Conclusion
MBaaS solutions can bring valuable resources for businesses in application development processes. The benefits of mobile app backend services range from reducing development time and cost to focusing more on the core functionalities of any application.
MBaaS can help you manage any mobile apps backend easily and conveniently. These solutions can bring innovative and highly effective features that let you easily manage your application’s backend functionalities.
These platforms are more commonly scalable flexible, and offer a user-friendly management interface. Overall, these platforms can bring bleeding-edge technology to their users, which can help them gain a competitive advantage in the market.
MBaaS (Mobile Backend as a Service) is a cloud-based platform that provides ready-to-use mobile app backend services for mobile applications, focusing on specific features like authentication, data storage, & push notifications. In contrast, a traditional backend is a custom-built server infrastructure tailored to the specific needs of an application, providing more control and flexibility but requiring more development effort.
Yes, you can integrate an existing backend with an MBaaS by utilizing APIs and SDKs provided by the MBaaS platform. This allows you to combine the features and cloud services offered by the MBaaS with the functionalities of your existing backend.
Yes, an MBaaS typically supports multiple platforms, including iOS, Android, web, & more. It provides a consistent set of mobile app backend services and APIs that different client platforms can access.
An MBaaS handles user authentication & authorization by offering pre-built authentication mechanisms, such as email/password, social logins, or OAuth. It manages user credentials, validates access, and authorizes actions based on defined permissions and roles.
An MBaaS manages data storage by providing APIs and interfaces for storing and retrieving data in the cloud. It typically utilizes databases or storage solutions in the backend, allowing developers to interact with these resources through simple API calls for efficient data management in the application.
Paras Kela is a highly skilled SaaS content writer with over 7 years of experience in the IT field. His expertise lies in simplifying complex technical concepts for easy comprehension. With a portfolio of over 100 high-quality blogs covering various SaaS topics, Paras’s writing style is engaging, informative, and SEO-friendly, ensuring maximum effectiveness. He continuously updates his skills and knowledge to stay current with industry trends, making his writing relevant and reliable.
