Lean Startup author Eric Ries gives a commonly accepted MVP definition, describing “a version of a new product which allows a team to collect the maximum amount of validated learnings about customers with the least effort.” In mobile app development, your minimum viable product includes the feature or features required to solve a core problem for a set of users and be released to market.

A central tenet of lean methodology, MVP development follows a build-measure-learn process; the goal is to provide immediate value quickly while minimizing development costs and using data to learn what users want and need. The lean startup MVP method helps you to release a product that can be continually improved as you validate (or invalidate) assumptions, learn what users actually want, and build future iterations of your app that better serve your customers. The goal is to provide immediate value, quickly, while minimizing development costs.