A mini app or a native app from a store
A mobile app has to be found in a store, downloaded and updated; a mini app opens in a messenger that is already installed. But a native app can do things a mini app cannot do at all.
| What is compared | Mini app | Native app |
|---|---|---|
| How people get access | They open it in the messenger: nothing downloaded, nothing installed. | They search a store, download, install and grant permissions. |
| Updates | Publish, and everyone has the new version at once. | Store review, then waiting for users to update. |
| Who can use it | Anyone with Telegram or MAX. | Separate builds for iOS and Android, each with its own release. |
| Store commissions | None: payment goes through your own merchant account, straight to you. | A store commission on digital purchases and its settlement rules. |
| Device capabilities | Limited to what the messenger allows: camera and files through forms, but no background work and no sensors. | Full access: background work, notifications, Bluetooth, sensors. |
| Time and cost | An evening from a template and a monthly plan fee. | Months of development and a team to maintain it. |
Choose a mini app when
- The task is to sell, to book, to show: a catalogue, a timetable, requests.
- The audience will not install anything for a one-off purchase.
- An idea has to be tested quickly and cheaply.
Choose native when
- You need push notifications, background work or sensor access.
- It is used daily and earns its place on the home screen.
- You need offline use or heavy graphics.
Other questions
- Can we move to native later?
- The data and the logic stay yours, but the app has to be written again: it is a different technology. By then, though, you will know what people actually need.
- Are there push notifications?
- No. The bot writes to the app owner, not to visitors, and broadcasting to your audience does not exist in the product yet.
- What about offline?
- The app opens over the network. Full offline use, as in a native app, is not available here.