What Is The Difference Between An App And A Website?
Technology has advanced greatly in the last few years, especially when it comes to using the internet. Most people know that if you want to find something on the internet you search for its website. Many of today’s businesses have their own app, but not all apps can be used only on a phone. Laptops and desktop computers can use apps, too, and many of them look very much like a website and can be mistaken for a website. So just what is the difference between a website and a web app? And which one would be better for your business than the other?
The differences between the two aren’t really all that much and comes down to basically just one thing: user interactivity.
First of all, a website is generally associated with content. It is usually thought of a collection of web pages viewed with a browser. The pages are typically static and provide information to viewers. Think of it like a brochure that has limited to no interaction capability with the viewers. They can see the information it offers (hours of operation, a brief overview of the business, contact information, etc.), read the content and see the images and videos offered, and navigate from page to page, but that’s about it.
Now, if your website offered the above static content, but also offered, say, an online menu (if you’re a restaurant) that people can use to place online orders with or can make reservations or order gift cards, then you would have a site that is more interactive, and that user interactivity would make your site be considered a web app. Web apps can be something as simple as a website with minor interactivity as in the restaurant example, or something a bit more involved, like Facebook or Wikipedia.
Those are the basic differences, but sometimes the line can become blurred. For example, what about a company’s website that has a small online store on the site where people can purchase things? It can be seen as a basic, standard website with informational content about the company and its products, yet the store element can give it aspects of a web app. So then, which is it? This blurring of lines can make it debatable, and many might refer to it as more of a hybrid.
There appears to be a growing trend of seeing more of the hybrid being used today. Seeing just a basic website with no user interaction capability is becoming a rare thing now, and many companies are not looking to use a full-blown web app like Facebook.
Whether a website or a web app would be better for you is up to you and what your goals and needs are for your online site. It would be best to discuss the details with your web developer or consult one. But as hybrids of the two are becoming more popular, you may want to consider that option.
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