Website Vs. Web Application: Which One Is Better?

Did you know how many websites are there in the world? Well, the number of websites may impress you. Currently, there are around 1.17 billion websites in the world. And to be specific, 200,674,843 websites are active 252,000 new websites are created daily. Undoubtedly the website is a must-have for your business. 

But many companies struggle to choose between building a website or a web application when considering whether to launch a website on the internet. This topic is very divisive in the world of technology, and it makes sense why it’s so challenging. Both are responsive, can be viewed from your browser, and need an internet connection. What sets them apart, and how can you tell which is better?

We have much expertise because we focus on various web development as a software development company. We often discuss the advantages of each option with our clients and show them how to make a decision. 

Since it is not particularly challenging, we anticipate that you won’t have any problems after reading the article below.

1. What is a Website?

According to Techopia, a website is a collection of interlinked webpages pulled together under a single domain. In other words, a website is a collection of the content displayed on several web pages that share the same web address. Users may access a website from various platforms such as phones, PCs, laptops, and tablets by opening their browser and entering the domain name or clicking on a link.

Websites are, in essence, informative and static, meaning that their web pages are not dynamically updated. A homepage, navigation bar, and footer are standard features of websites, and they might be blogs, landing pages, portfolios, etc.

Websites can bear identifiable domains:

• .gov (Government agency websites)
• .edu (Educational institutions’ websites)
• .org (Nonprofit organizations’ websites)
• .com (Commercial websites) 
• .info (Information sites)

2. What is a Web Application?

A web application is an online tool that can be used through a browser and saved on a server. You’ll need an active internet connection to use it. Unlike mobile apps or desktop software, which appear similar to web apps, you can access it via a link rather than downloading and installing it on your device.

A web application is a website with more interactive elements aimed at user engagement. Web applications work by responding to a user’s request sent to the web server. Instead of merely displaying material or transmitting information, web apps perform specific functions.    

Examples of web apps are YouTube, Twitter, Google Analytics, Plai, etc

Web applications use the webserver to process complex user requests. As a result, web apps can do a multitude of activities:

• Account verification 
• Shopping
• Messaging; 
• Making money transactions
• Booking hotels
• Managing content 
• Food ordering

3. What are The Features of Website?

One of the most important responsibilities you’ll have as a developer is to create a user-friendly website. This is because most people rate websites based on their appearance, and the appearance of your site is a significant influence in determining how long a person will stay on it.

• It should be user-friendly so that users can quickly understand what the site does, where things are, etc.
• It should have high-quality content. Remember that visitors will come to your website for the content, so ensure it meets their needs.
• It should be attractive. Simple design guidelines should help you create a professional layout and style for your website while providing high-quality content.
• It should be easy to navigate, and users will have an easier time finding what they’re looking for. You can do this, for example, by adding a menu that links to various parts of the site.
• It should load quickly. Make sure your sites load rapidly to attract more visitors. Visitors will have a great experience as a result of this.
• It should be responsive. Make sure your website is usable on any device. Remember that most users do not use PCs but rather mobile phones.

Pros of a Website

• The development process is super easy. As it is often made just from HTML code, it can be made by a single developer.
• Its simplicity means that there is little room for errors. That is why websites are known for their reliability.
• It’s certainly much less expensive than a web app.
• The website is exceptionally multi-platform accessible. Adapting it to many types of devices is not difficult, and various devices have no problems opening the page, even if it is not suited to them.

Cons of a Website

• Simplicity has both benefits and drawbacks. The uncomplicated website structure creates big limitations. Users can not interact with the website. Its activity mainly comes down to browsing.
• Due to the need to manually update the data, there is a chance that some information on the website will be outdated.
• If you use pre-made contact forms without filtering capabilities, you may receive a lot of unwanted spam messages.
• Web apps often don’t need any additional intervention, but if one of your business goals is to rank your website high in the rankings, you need to update it regularly.

4. What are The Features of Web Application?

• They are scalable and cloud-hosted.
• They are cross-platform applications, which means they may run on any OS, including Mac OS X, Windows, and Linux.
• They should be easily tested with automation.

Pros of a Web Application

• SaaS applications can be used with most browsers and run uniformly on any operating system regardless of the update or version.
• Content in web applications can be easily customized for use on various devices such as mobile phones. This makes the application user and developer-friendly.
• It’s easy to launch and deploy web apps across the company. Once the application is installed on the host server, access is granted.
• Unlike mobile or desktop applications, the user does not have to update the software of web applications manually. By entering the web app, the client receives the most up-to-date version of the tool.

Cons of a Web Application

• The web app, in comparison to a website, takes more time and is typically more expensive. It all depends on the specific demands of the situation and the level of advancement of each solution.
• If you need an advanced web application, you need to know that its development time will be much longer than building a simple, static website.
• It requires a lot of effort. In developing web applications, you’ll need strong developers with experience in both the frontend and backend.
• They may appear different and not function as intended on older web browsers. The application developers must thoroughly test it to prevent this.

5. Differences Between Website and Web Application

You’ll need a website to promote your market and offer things to the general public. You’ll need a web application if you want an online tool to help you automate various procedures.

If you plan to sell a web application, you’ll almost certainly need both because a website helps you promote the product you just built.

Because a website is typically just a collection of globally accessible, interconnected web pages, if you want visitors to register on your site, you’ll need a website with web application functions, such as user authentication.

It’s better to begin comparing and understanding the distinctions between a website and a web application by describing how they work and what makes them different.

 

	Websites	Web App
Compatibility with devices	Compatible across devices	Separate versions for native apps need to be made for different types of devices
Time and cost for development	Take less time and cost to develop	Takes more cost, especially if you need a cross-platform presence
Support and maintenance	Less support and maintenance	More help and maintenance needed (frequent upgrades, testing, compatibility checks)
Personalization	Not required	more influential when you need to access a user’s camera or processing power an app
Offline availability	Offline access to content can be available without a network connection	Connection is required

 

6. What to Keep in Mind When Choosing Between Web Application and Website?

What are You Building For: Website vs. Web app?

• A website is helpful when you want to inform your user about your product. Let’s imagine launching a mobile app, but you want to promote it with a basic landing page.

For example, Savvycom, our website, uses a one-page landing with a subscription form to engage users and promote its product.   

• A web app, on the other side, is more interactive, allowing users to engage with the displayed content. Web applications may be better if you want to engage your users more deeply.

Google Apps, which includes Gmail, Google Docs, Google Sheets, and Google Slides, is an example of a web application. These dynamic and updatable office work apps allow the entire team to access important files and adjust accordingly.

How Much Effort are You Ready to Invest?

• Websites are the most cost-effective, faster, and more straightforward solution in development. Simple style sheet languages – HTML, CSS, and possibly some JavaScript, or even ready templates – are used to create static and purely informative webpages. As a result, developing them does not require much time or money.
• Web apps require a more comprehensive approach, including the discovery stage, UX building, front-end, and back-end development, etc. Many complex programming languages, such as Ruby on Rails, Python, and React, can be utilized to accomplish this. As a result, web app development proves to be a challenging task for a team of experts. Product managers, front-end and back-end developers, QA engineers, web designers, and other team members tasked with developing web apps are expected.

How do you see your product?

What do you think your product’s long-term prospects are? What kind of features will be included? The answers to these questions will impact the vision of your product and your decision between a web app and a website. So, before making your decision, keep the following considerations in order:

• Instant updating

Instant page updating appears to be limited to web apps at first sight. On the other hand, websites can have their pages updated, but only by a website administrator using a website builder like Webflow.

Web applications are the only way to go regarding automatic web page updates.

• Complex calculations

A web app is better if you want your app to perform complex calculations. Because a web app needs a web server to process user requests, this is the case. If a user requests the server to make a calculation, it may easily do so. In the case of a website, the calculations would have to be done on the device, which would take up a lot of storage and power.

• Push notifications

Push notifications are available on websites and web apps. Push notifications are clickable messages that encourage the user to take action. While push notifications are more of an app feature, websites may use them to increase user interaction without constructing an entire app.

7. Examples of Websites and Web Applications: What Websites and Web Apps Should I Know?

Sometimes we may not know it, but we encounter both the website and the web application on a daily basis. It may be at work, school, or just browsing the internet on a mobile device. It is worth getting to know the possibilities of those we use in order to use them effectively and more productively.

Examples of Websites

• Savvycom – Leading software development company – This is our website where you may learn about our specialties and how we can help you. You can also browse our blog, where we write articles on IT, business, and technology on a consistent schedule. You are cordially invited.
• Techopedia – includes one of the Web’s most extensive dictionaries, as well as articles and guides on software development, network administration, databases, IT management, and just about any other current topic in technology.
• Wikipedia – Because anybody can generate information, this is an online encyclopedia with an incredible amount of knowledge; as a result, it is worth double-checking some factual information.

Examples of Web Applications

• Google Docs – It’s a remarkable Google application that allows us to create text documents, spreadsheets, presentations, forms, and drawings, among other things. All of the information may be saved to your Google Drive, which you can then share with other colleagues.
• Netflix – One of the most famous streaming services. It allows us to search for and watch our favorite shows, movies, and programs.
• Meta – Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp are all included. All of these web apps were designed to be helpful. You can change the content, such as adding photographs or videos.

8. Conclusion

Developing a web application is a game for IT entrepreneurs, but having a website is almost essential for any business at this moment. Because the world of web development can be complicated at times, we hope that our thorough guide has given some insight into the dilemma of websites and web apps.

If you have a business idea but are having trouble deciding whether or not to develop it, we can assist. Don’t hesitate to contact us to discuss your project; this may be the start of something extraordinary.