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Custom Chat & Call Features in Mobile Apps: From UX Design to Scalable Architecture
In-app communication has evolved from a nice-to-have to a core feature for modern mobile applications. Seamless, real-time communication is now essential. Whether users are chatting with a seller, coordinating with a delivery driver, scheduling a telehealth consultation, or joining a live class.
At MobileXapps, we’ve spent over 10 years building and scaling mobile solutions with integrated chat, audio, and video calling features. In this article, we share our approach to designing and implementing in-app communication systems, covering chat UX, real-time call technology, backend architecture, and more.
Why Build a Custom Chat in a Mobile App?
That’s a valid question. After all, the software market offers many ready-made modules that provide chat functionality. But in our experience, nearly all of these solutions fall short of meeting our clients’ real-world requirements. Let’s break down the key problems:
- Off-the-shelf solutions don’t allow for truly unique design. Typically, customization is limited to choosing colors, fonts, and a few layout tweaks. That’s far from enough when a developer is aiming to deliver a high-end, distinctive user experience that matches the product's brand identity.
- Another major drawback of pre-built chat modules is their limited scalability and room for further development. You’re locked into the vendor’s roadmap and can’t implement new features as needed. Flexibility suffers, and in product development, that’s a serious issue.
- In the long run, third-party chat modules become increasingly expensive. You pay continuously, either by subscription or based on traffic volume. Chat SDKs are often monetized via traffic: the app owner is charged, for example, per 1,000 messages exchanged. While this might seem affordable at launch, it quickly becomes a financial burden as your user base grows.
After dealing with several requests for chat functionality in mobile apps, we came to a clear conclusion: the best path is to build a custom chat tailored to the app from the ground up. In this model, the client pays once at the development stage, and avoids ongoing subscription or traffic-based fees. More importantly, they gain full control over a chat system tailored precisely to their business needs, with the freedom to develop and evolve it as they see fit. Technically, such a solution can be built as a microservice and embedded seamlessly into the app.
Where Can This Approach Be Applied?
Almost anywhere. Custom chat development is useful across industries: eCommerce apps, online services, dating platforms, remote learning systems, corporate CRM and ERP platforms, and more. All of these products benefit from reliable, user-friendly, and secure chat functionality.
At MobileXapps, we focus not only on developing apps but also on app optimization and CRO. If you’re looking for ways to generate income from your hard work and sustain the app's future development, reach out. Leave a message for our experts and book a free consultation.
Key Benefits of Adding Chats To Your App
- Increased Engagement: Users spend more time in apps when they can interact in real time.
- Higher Retention: Real-time support and responses build trust, which reduces churn
- Monetization Opportunities: Chat can drive upsells, paid consultations, and live support offerings
Industry Examples
Healthcare: Instant patient-provider messaging and secure video calls for remote diagnosis.
Logistics: Driver-dispatch coordination and delivery issue resolution.
Social & Dating: Live messaging and video chat to create stronger user bonds.
EdTech: Real-time student-teacher interactions and group study sessions.
Logistics: Driver-dispatch coordination and delivery issue resolution.
Social & Dating: Live messaging and video chat to create stronger user bonds.
EdTech: Real-time student-teacher interactions and group study sessions.
In each case, speed, reliability, and user experience define the success of communication features.
Chat Functionality: What You Need to Know
When implementing chat in a mobile app, you must go beyond simply sending text messages. The expectations today are high: messaging should feel instant, intuitive, and feature-rich.
Types of Messaging
- 1:1 Personal Chats: For direct user communication (e.g. support or peer-to-peer).
- Group Chats: Multiple users in shared threads, often used in social or collaborative tools.
- Support Chat: Admin panels or bots to assist users in-app.
Must-Have Features
- Message History (sync across sessions/devices)
- Typing Indicators
- Read Receipts & Delivery Status
- Push Notifications
- Media Sharing (images, documents, video)
- Emoji/GIF Support
- Reactions & Mentions
UX Considerations
User experience plays a critical role in how chat functionality is perceived and adopted. The interface should feel frictionless, with intuitive input fields, quick-reply options, and seamless scrolling behavior that automatically focuses users on the most relevant part of the conversation. Accessibility is equally important: features like voice typing, screen reader support, and dark mode ensure the interface is inclusive and user-friendly for all. Real-time responsiveness, such as instant updates to the chat window and visual feedback when messages are delivered, helps users feel acknowledged, contributing to overall satisfaction and trust in the app.
At MobileXapps, we design chat interfaces that mirror user behavior patterns rather than forcing generic layouts.
Design-First Approach
Too often, chat and call features are added as an afterthought. Let's break down the steps we take to prepare for the development stage:
Steps We Follow
By designing first, we avoid redundant development cycles and create interfaces that feel native and human.
Technology Stack & Architecture
What does it take to create an in-app chat from scratch? The right technology and a team that knows how to use it effectively.
Technology Stack
For building in-app functionality in one of our apps, we used several frameworks and libraries specifically chosen for mobile development:
- Flutter – a cross-platform development framework based on the Dart programming language. It combines JIT and AOT compilation capabilities and offers developers Hot Reload for a faster and more efficient workflow. We used Flutter on the mobile side.
- NestJS – a progressive framework for building server-side applications on Node.js using JavaScript and TypeScript, ideal for implementing a microservice architecture. We used it for processing data received by the app.
- PostgreSQL – a powerful object-relational database system offering a broad range of tools for development, data management, and security. We used PostgreSQL for storing chat data on the server.
- Socket.io – a JavaScript library for real-time communication that selects the most efficient connection methods between client and server with minimal latency. We used this library to enable instant message exchange.
What Kind of Specialists Are Needed?
To create such a product, a small but highly qualified team is sufficient.
- Backend Developer – a specialist capable of building the server-side of the microservice from scratch. In our case, it’s a developer well-versed in PostgreSQL and GraphQL.
- Frontend Developer – a developer responsible for the client-side of the chat who can establish its interaction with the server. In this project, the frontend specialist worked with NestJS tools to streamline data handling and exchange with the backend.
- Mobile Developer – since this is a mobile application, a mobile developer is essential to integrate the new microservice into the final product. In our case, it’s a Flutter developer building cross-platform mobile apps.
It’s crucial that the team has hands-on experience building real-world business products and understands current market trends. Without that, it’s difficult to make optimal architectural decisions for the product.
Let's sum it up
Building a custom chat or call feature isn’t just about technical functionality - it’s about owning the user experience, maintaining security, and having the flexibility to grow your product on your terms.
Our team at MobileXapps has over 10 years of experience building digital products for businesses. Today, we build full-scale business management systems, as well as mobile and web applications of any complexity.
The ability to build a custom chat for a mobile app can be valuable in virtually any industry where human communication is essential. Whether you’re building a dating app, a logistics dashboard, or a telehealth platform, real-time communication is a strategic asset, not just a feature.
The ability to build a custom chat for a mobile app can be valuable in virtually any industry where human communication is essential. Whether you’re building a dating app, a logistics dashboard, or a telehealth platform, real-time communication is a strategic asset, not just a feature.
Need a custom chat or call solution? Let’s talk
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2024 © All Rights Reserved. MobileXApps MB.
2024 © All Rights Reserved. MobileXApps MB.