How to Make A Social Media Application

There are only a few application formats that might compete with social media in exposure and sustainability. Even though the market has been saturated with major players’ products that cover the bulk of user needs, there is always a slot for a wild card of a product that can blow up and shake up the industry.

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Social media app features and development phases decide whether a new network keeps the people it attracts. The must-have features are sign-in through accounts people already have, profile customization, suggestions that connect users with shared interests, a relevant content feed, and in-app messaging. The work itself runs through scoping, wireframing, design, development, QA, and launch with ongoing maintenance.

Most of the social networks we use today started with web versions of their products, but the shift to mobile-first happened a while back. Social media apps can be built as native, cross-platform, or hybrid applications for iOS and Android, and the choice depends on the time/cost ratio. For a startup with limited funds, cross-platform gives about 90% of the native feel for half the cost and effort.

Below, we cover how to make a social media app, the must-have features with examples, each phase of custom mobile application development from scoping to launch, and why making a social media app is still worth it.

The first thing about any project is it starts with the definition and scoping as part of the exploration phase. The actual design and development are the two major parts of the manufacturing phase. All the testing and other verification jobs are done afterwards. What will follow is the mission control phase with the launch, maintenance, and support processes.

How To Make A Social Media Application | Shakuro

Here are the must-have features any social media website, let alone app has to have in order to even pass the threshold of user exposure.

User engagement

There are multiple social networks people are already on. It’s extremely hard to get people to register an account in your app, so a better way to engage them is connecting some other account to your app.

Example: Facebook sign-in to Tinder.

Customization

The ability to decorate your page in a style that fits your other pages is crucial for a brand and it also gives you an opportunity to speak to businesses and make their customers yours. People respond well to a profile customization options, including imagery, layouts, naming options, and etc.

Example: Medium publication page.

The binding power

The point of being on a social network is the same as being part of the social club – you can bind with the people you have a shared interest, outlook, mindset, or problem with. Binding with other users has to be as effortless as possible. The system has to identify your preferences and supply them accordingly.

Example: Instagram suggested users supply.

Relevance

Every social media is a constant flow of information, the more refined your flow, the bigger the appreciation users will have for your app. What makes social platforms stand out is the type and the quality of content they deliver. In order to be a platform that generates content first, and not just shares it, there has to be a strong user content feed with a unique flavor to it. Niche networks show how far this can go: social trading platforms are built entirely around a feed of investment ideas.

Example: Pinterest

In-app messaging

Every major social media app is struggling to retain users within their perimeter. For that purpose, every app is introducing the same features and compete with one another in their usability. Messaging is no different. You don’t want your users to fall back on other apps that have that functionality. This might not be the main feature and often times, people tend to stick to the messaging services they are used to, but it has to be present.

Example: Twitter

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Having defined the core features and the killer feature of your app, where do you take your idea from there?

Scoping

Obviously, one of the most important parts of social media application building process is putting it on schedule. This includes methodology selection, deadlines determination, and the creation of user stories.

Wireframing

Before visual design comes into play, there has to be a UI/UX projection. In order to map the features across the app, we have to plan interaction, see how the logic will work and create the architecture of the app without any visual anchors to distract us from structuring the experience.

Design

Once the information architecture is complete and the flow is created and tested, we can move on to putting some flesh on it. We put visual elements and skins on the wireframes according to the latest trends and best UX practices. The design stage has an objective of delivering a working model of the app – the prototype. It creates a first-hand understanding of the app logic and its usability. Editing the idea before it gets put to code is much easier and cheaper.

Development

Depending on the methodology selected for the project, the design and development processes might run side-by-side, or consecutively. After various features of the prototype are complete, we set up the back-end infrastructure of the application, deploy databases and APIs on the app servers. Due to the scoping stage, we know the exact size of technical resource involvement for the project.

QA/Testing

We always reserve the untouchable space for manual and automated testing done after the product is done. On top of testing features as they come out, we make sure the entirety of the application is correct and corresponds the definition of the project.

Launch and maintenance

The semi-final stage of the development cycle for your social networking app is the launch. We make sure we deliver the final build on time and everything works perfectly fine. We make sure the application s we deliver are safe, secure, and on par with App Store and Google Play requirements and recommendations. Prior to the launch, there has to be a bit of a media buzz as part of the marketing work.

We say semi-final because the app is not done after the launch. This is where it all begins actually. By using accurate metrics and performance analysis, we measure the impact your social media app makes corresponds the initial statement. For an app, it’s very important to stay fresh and relevant. For this, we’ll watch it closely and find ways to enhance its design and performance all for the sake of better usability and popularity of the app.

Social media platforms are still discovering their killer features. Memories, highlights, stories, live videos, new filters constantly popping up are an endless supply of user-engagement strategies. More times than not, they do work and become generally-accepted and appreciated.

Business tools within social media are not realized to the best of their potential so far, which means there is a room for better solutions. The same concerns pure entertainment value of social media. The rise of wearables and their availability will lead to more functionality being packed into them, and social media interaction will certainly gain from it.

Making a social media app does not mean duplicating and replicating what’s hot or what’s been unfairly forgotten. It means blending the familiar experiences and unifying all the best features under a sufficient, beautiful, and engaging application.

Still don’t know how to make a social media app? Reach out to us and let’s build your future app together.

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This article was originally published in December 2017 and was updated in July 2026 to make it more relevant and comprehensive.

FAQ

If you’re a startup with limited funds, build your social media app cross-platform with React Native or Flutter. You get 90% of the native feel for half the cost and effort. Native is only worth it if you’re doing heavy AR/VR features or need absolute peak performance. For most social apps, users won’t notice the difference.

Media storage and database reads. Social apps are heavy on images and videos, so use a CDN (like Cloudfront or Cloudflare) immediately and don’t serve assets from your main server. For the database, implement caching (Redis) aggressively, because read requests grow faster than anything else. Sharding comes later, but good indexing and caching will get you far.

Monetize a social media app through freemium models or exclusive features for subscribers, and avoid intrusive ads early on because they kill retention. Think of it as paying for convenience or status, not just removing annoyances. If you must run ads, make them native and relevant. Growth comes first: a large, happy user base is easier to monetize.

A social media app must follow data privacy rules: if you have users in Europe, GDPR applies, and if you have kids under 13 in the US, COPPA applies. Get a lawyer who specializes in tech. You need clear privacy policies, easy data deletion options, and robust consent management, which save you from massive fines down the road.

A social media app should launch with sign-in through existing accounts, since people rarely want to register again, profile customization, a system that suggests people with shared interests, a content feed with its own flavor, and in-app messaging so users don’t leave for other apps. Add one killer feature that sets your network apart from the rest.

Social media app development goes through scoping (methodology, deadlines, user stories), wireframing of the information architecture, visual design with a working prototype, development of the backend, databases, and APIs, manual and automated QA, and launch with maintenance. After launch, metrics and performance analysis show what to improve in design and usability.

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How to Make A Social Media Application