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📱 When Does SaaS Need a Mobile App?

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Does every SaaS product need a mobile version?

For some products, mobile feels essential.
For others, it feels like forcing a desktop workflow onto a smaller screen.

We’re building a mobile version for RunEvr - mainly to stay up to date, chat with the team, check project progress, and quickly respond when you’re away from your desk.

A few things I’m curious about:

  • Do you expect the SaaS tools you use to have a mobile app?

  • What do you actually use mobile for - checking, approving, messaging, or doing real work?

  • Have you ever stopped using a product because it had no mobile version?

  • And for founders: when do you decide it’s finally worth building?

Do you build mobile from the start, or wait until users ask for it ?

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For me mobile is mostly just checking and approving stuff, actual work still happens on desktop. I'd say I've abandoned tools that had no mobile at all though, mainly for the "quick check while away" use case, not for doing actual work on my phone. I think for RunEvr, the approach of keeping it to chat/progress checks/quick responses rather than trying to cram full desktop workflows onto mobile seems like the right call

 what’s the biggest thing that still keeps you tied to the desktop when you’re working?
We’re now building the mobile review flow to let you do a complete review from your phone. Would that be useful for you?

 biggest thing that keeps me on desktop is anything that needs actual focus, multiple tabs open, comparing stuff side by side, that just doesn't work on small screen. and yeah, a full review flow on mobile would actually be useful, there's usually a window between checking on my phone and getting back to my desk where i just can't act on it yet

 Thanks for sharing your experience! That’s a really good point about the gap between checking something on mobile and actually being able to act on it.

Having an app on the App Store can increase user trust, but it’s not necessary for success. The real question is not “does everyone have an app?” but “does an app actually improve the user experience?” Build one if it creates real value for users. Don’t do it just for credibility or because others are doing it. Following the crowd isn’t always a good strategy.

 Agree! I think makers should rely on the specifics of their own product.

In our case, since we manage and coordinate our production in RunEvr, we feel the gap of not having a mobile version ourselves. That’s why it’s on its way =)

What are you working on? Is it a SaaS?

In my point of view, building a mobile app as complementary to the SaaS product, I only do in case the product is a right fit. Looking at your product looks very web based that require large screens to work with the system.

Answering your questions:

  • I don't expect any web app to have mobile, I'm expecting that they have support for mobile view when I try to access via the browser - that most web apps already do.

  • For a quick check of summary reports or stats, yes, that would be great. I find a daily report by email a great option too. With the amount of apps now in the market, during daily work the phone gets clutered of notifications and may get missed. I would go with email notifications or in-app notifications for the web app

  • I don't think so

  • When there is demand from the users that justifies the investment in a mobile app

 In our case, though it’s really a web-based product, we can’t afford to miss important messages and updates. That’s why we’re working on a mobile version right now.
Thanks for sharing your experience.

Interesting point about preferring email over notifications!

What are you working on?

 Building a platform called where eCommerce brands can connect their store - in our initial version, we're working with Shopify- and the brand can build a customised survey (white-label view) to gather information about their products instead of just being a generic survey, like "Rate our product/experience".

Then we're extending to other platforms like WooCommerce, ticketing and delivery systems, etc.

The end goal is to give full visibility to a brand over their product and how they position themselves in the market to detect issues earlier before they scale and become a bigger issue.

 And how does TrueSignal collect all that information? How does it build that clear picture?

Is there any AI model involved, or is it mainly based on real customer reviews and feedback?

 It's done through the collection of survey responses and display on dashboards. We're working on an analysis that tracks the metrics and, depending on each business's goals, shows alerts and suggestions on how to fix the problem.

At the moment, we don't have any AI model involved; in the next iteration, it will be included to assist the businesses in better understanding the results.

The primary goal of the project was to go to market ASAP so we can validate the idea and take feedback from the users to guide the next version.

Quick approvals and team updates are probably where mobile adds the most value. I don't always need the full desktop workflow on my phone.

 We all know it’s not necessary to have the entire workflow on mobile...

but that’s a big challenge ! With complex SaaS, you have to make the right decisions about what to bring to mobile. Sometimes it feels like you can’t leave anything out =D


I would probably build mobile around the away from desk jobs first rather than trying to recreate the whole SaaS. For RunEvr, the check → chat → approve flow sounds like the right starting point.

 Thanks for sharing your opinion!
What are you building? Does it have a mobile version?

Honestly, I have built a few SaaS Web applications and mobile rendering from web app (PWA) works in mobile browsers just not the best on every mobile device. Users can actually install the PWA just like a real mobile App. I think most SaaS don't need a mobile app and could be a waste of resources.

Having said that, having a mobile version of the application can help your growth especially when it's distributed on App store or Play store since most people trust anything listed on these platforms.

 I think for products with daily updates, changing data, and ongoing communication, having a dedicated app can be really useful - you always have a place to quickly check updates, chat, and review things.

I agree that PWA can be a good middle ground for many SaaS products, especially when a full mobile app doesn’t add enough value. But in our case, we feel a dedicated app makes more sense because staying up to date and acting on things quickly is an important part of the workflow.