An Ultimate Guide to Building a Parking App

9 min readMar 6, 2023

These parking apps are extremely popular. These apps help drivers save time and money. These apps can also be very helpful to city infrastructure as they reduce accidents and inner-city traffic and increase the use of space.

The smart parking market is growing rapidly. It is expected to grow to $11.13 million by 2027. This represents a 12.6% CAGR. There are many applications for high-end parking technology solutions. There are many options available, including robotic space holders and community-based systems with connected parking.

Apps cannot be substituted if there is a need to respond to parking problems. Apps are also required to provide top-quality solutions such as automated vault parking apps. Building a parking app can be a great way to help your city.

This is a guide that I created to help you create a parking app. Continue reading to learn more.

Different types of parking apps

When entering a new market, you must be aware of the strengths and weaknesses your competitors. There are many parking apps available:

1. By parking time

There are two categories of apps that target different parking needs. The app could have both

Parking on the Fly — A few apps can be used to find a spot for parking.

Parking in Advance — An app that allows users to pay ahead to reserve a parking spot before they park.

2. Geographical Coverage

A business should choose one of these two tracks when entering the market.

Concentrating on Geographical Spreading — Parking apps may be used to cover one city or the entire country. Some apps also offer international services.

A focus on localization — Parking apps can be developed for certain megalopolis to try and cover as many parking spaces as possible.

3. The Approach to Finding Available Parking Spaces

Parking applications often mark parking spots on the map. Others allow users to find a parking spot in a different way.

GPS navigation is an integral part of some apps, allowing users to find a parking spot closer to them. Parking does not have to be a single feature in an app. It can be an added feature.

4. Payment Methods

Maximum parking apps can be downloaded for free. These apps require an in-app purchase to reserve a space. You can pay with PayPal, Apple Pay or credit card. Some apps even allow drivers to pay for parking by phone.

Some parking apps allow users to filter their parking options by type of payment. For those who prefer cashless payments, this includes cash payment.

5. Parking Place

Parking on-street — These tools will allow you to park your car temporarily along the footpath or any other street.

Off-Street parking — This is both indoors as well as outdoors. It includes driveways, garages, and private areas.

You can use both on-street and offline tools to apply for accessible parking spots or offer additional features such as reservation and payment.

What is a Parking App?

Do you plan to develop a mobile parking app that is productive? First, consider how it will work for its users. Users of parking apps follow simple steps to reserve parking spots for their cars quickly.

Step 1: Start Searching

Parking app users can use GPS to enter their car’s location or manually type it. This allows them to find the nearest parking area for their cars.

Step 2: Compare

The app for parking offers a variety of parking options to choose from. You can choose from a variety of parking options depending on how far you are from your car and what the price is.

Step 3: Spot Reservation

The price and distance comparison determines whether the car owner can reserve their preferred parking space. Once the space is reserved, they will receive the passcode.

Step 4: Payment

You have the option to pay for spot reservations using cash or cards later.

Step 5: Driving Assistance

The parking app has an in-built navigation system that allows users to drive away from the parking lot.

Step 6: Car parking

Drivers can now park their vehicle in the reserved spot.

Let’s now get a better understanding of how mobile parking apps work. Let’s look at their business models to see how they operate.

Parking App Business Models

Parking apps can be multifunctional. They can include navigation based on GPS and online payments. A business strategy is essential if you are planning to create a parking app. These are the three basic business models you should follow:

1. Navigation

This is the most basic option, as it provides a major function: It will locate a parking space near your vehicle. Parking apps that are based on GPS cannot reserve parking lots for free. These are great for an MVP version of the app to start the business.

2. Navigation & Booking

This one is more complicated than the one before it. It allows users to search for and reserve the desired parking space. It can also be used to help the driver navigate to the designated area.

The app offers flexible payment options. Users can pay with cash or credit cards. There are also features such as navigation back to the parked car or additional parking time.

4. Complete Parking Solution

A parking app that has all the functionality you need can be more expensive than the ones mentioned. These apps solve all parking problems. These apps allow users to make reservations for parking spaces. You can also order door-to-door services. Valets are usually available to park and take the vehicle.

The user must book the parking space in advance and choose the time and place to give the keys to valet. The valet will then take the vehicle and park it. The service is completely secure because users can view the photos, reviews, as well as any other information about the valet.

For the development of a parking app, there are many features to consider.

A parking app requires a set of features. They can be divided into two types depending on their complexity: Advanced and Basic. An MVP can be built with basic functions, and then added more advanced features.

MVP allows you to release your application and receive user feedback. Based on this data, you can decide what features to add.

The Basic Features of a Parking App

Searching

The search process should be as easy as possible. The application may provide the closest area with just one click.

GPS Tracking

To create an intuitive app for parking, you will need to add a GPS tracking function. This technology allows you to locate your car and determine the distance to the nearest parking area.

Parking Apps — Price comparison

This basically allows you to compare prices. It’s easy for users to locate the most affordable place in their area.

Booking

You can book a parking space. You can search for a spot according to your budget and then pay in advance, either daily, weekly or monthly. It allows you to avoid booking every day.

Different Payment Options –

Users should have different payment options to feel secure and comfortable. You should therefore integrate services such as PayPal.

Advanced Features of a Park App

While basic features can be sufficient to create an app for parking, it is important to add complex functionality to attract more users and make your app unique. These are some of the advanced features you can add to a parking app.

Different Cities

It is important to be able to choose parking spaces in different cities when you travel or on business trips.

Push Notifications

This feature is crucial for engaging users. You can send notifications about app updates and discounts, as well as other information. It’s a good idea to notify users 15 minutes prior to the parking lot expiry. Users have the option to extend their parking space or return to their cars immediately.

Heatmap

The app displays the busiest routes in real-time mode. Users can make a booking based on this data.

Waiting List

Each driver can choose a preferred parking spot. Users will be notified when a parking space becomes available.

You can save your vehicle’s location by using the tag location feature. Users can also share the location via messengers and social media.

How to Create a Parking App

The steps for creating a parking app are simple and well-explained. These are the steps to follow for developing a parking app.

1. Decide your Objective

The basic interest in an application is the first step. What specific problems will you solve? Is it going to be parking assistance? Will it have the ability to find a parking spot and then pay for it? Is it going to be able to detect a completely different problem?

2. Market study

It is important to know your competition. Your application will work locally, or will it be able to reach a global market? What makes your app unique? This is the time to determine the best marketing strategy and how to monetize your app.

3. Find an App Development Team

If you have your own app development team, everything is easy. Only you need to direct them and monitor their progress. If you don’t have the resources to hire a team, you can outsource it. You should choose a experienced app development company.

4. Get Your Technical Needs Prepared

The purpose of your app is what will determine its technical requirements. You can begin to think about the overall concept and then prioritize the features of your app. Search, booking and payment features must be described in user stories, or a functional specification.

5. Create a great design

Once you have sorted out all technical specifications, it is time to start designing, developing, and testing. In the design phase, you will see features and concepts merged into a more clear picture. This is a plan to build a roadmap that will show you the connections between all screens and how drivers navigate through the app.

App design is a big focus. Make sure it’s easy to use and simple. A great design can help you gain more loyal users.

6. Think about how your app’s technology stack will look

For your future parking app, you must consider the technology stack. This is what will determine the stability and scalability of your project. Apps can be native, cross-platform or hybrid. Each one has its peculiarities, which you should consider in advance.

Here’s a list of technology stacks you will need to build your parking app:

Swift for iOS
Kotlin Android
Apple Push Notification Service iOS
Google Cloud Messaging Android
SQL or MongoDB
Nginx
Amazon CloudFront
Google Maps

7. Create and test your app

Now your team will create both the front-end as well as back-end. They will also set up databases, storage solutions, and APIs. You will then complete your original app concept and test it to see how it feels and looks.

8. Launch the App

App marketplaces have different policies when it comes to the release of a new app. This is why you should prepare for the next phase as soon as possible.

Your marketing efforts will ultimately help you launch your app. Don’t forget to reach out to all early adopters so that you can get feedback about the app for car park parking.

9. Keep Your App Updated

Your app maintenance helps to fix every bug and improve the app’s version.

What is the cost of developing a parking app?

It is difficult to give a precise cost for developing a mobile app that allows car parking. It is difficult to give a precise amount for a mobile app that allows car parking. The cost will vary depending on the client’s needs, the app’s model and features, as well as the tech stack you will use.

Cost estimations also depend on how many hours are needed to develop the app. This hourly rate will vary depending on where you plan to build your app.

However, the cost estimate for a parking app development is between $30K and $40K.

How to make your parking app monetizable

You must consider four main ways to monetize your parking application. The type of your software and the local regulations will determine which options you choose. These methods of app monetization are worth considering:

Users should not spend money but invest their time and attention. Place advertisements in your app to make money, as the global ad market is steadily growing.

Commissions

Parking applications can be subject to additional charges for reservation or payment, as well as for booking a parking spot.

Paid App

You will need to provide unique or highly-valued services in order to make a paid app.

Premium Features

A Freemium app can be built with advanced paid features.

Last Note

This is all you need to know about creating a parking app. It is important to prepare for the development process beforehand. There are many things to focus on and features you should add. Your app idea and your development team will determine the final result.

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