Kiosk Software Development: Practical Insights and Lessons Learnt

The kiosk software market is booming. In 2024, it was valued at $16.99 billion. And, according to recent market predictions, it’s projected to grow at 20.5% annually and reach $92.45 billion by 2033.

But what’s driving this exponential growth?

Industries such as logistics, warehousing, healthcare, retail, and entertainment are increasingly adopting kiosk solutions to reduce the load on staff and eliminate manual or paper-based workflows with real-time digital alternatives. In retail alone, 84% of U.S. consumers now prefer self-service kiosks, with 66% opting for them over traditional checkout counters.

Importantly, modern kiosk application development is no longer limited to specialized hardware. Thanks to advancements in mobile platforms, it’s now possible to run kiosk-mode apps on standard Android and iOS smartphones or tablets. This opens the door to lower hardware costs and greater flexibility, especially for companies looking to scale or prototype quickly.

In this article, we’ll break down the key types of kiosk applications, discuss platform-specific development challenges, and highlight real-world examples from Leobit’s hands-on experience.

But first, let’s define what stands behind kiosk development.

A kiosk system is a specialized type of application designed to run on locked-down devices. It serves a single purpose or offers a limited set of functions in a controlled environment.

At their core, electronic kiosk systems run in a restricted-access mode, commonly known as kiosk mode, which prevents users from exiting the application, accessing the operating system, or launching other apps. You can achieve this by using native platform controls such as Android’s Lock Task Mode, iOS’s Guided Access or Single App Mode, and Mobile Device Management (MDM). These solutions help developers enforce restrictions and remotely configure devices.

While kiosk applications are usually associated with dedicated terminals or touchscreen kiosks in malls, airports, and hospitals, they are increasingly deployed on general-purpose devices such as Android and iOS smartphones and tablets. In these cases, the device is locked into a kiosk mode to deliver a consistent, tamper-proof interface.

Beyond consumer devices, kiosk software is also deployed on specialized hardware such as Zebra scanners, rugged tablets, and industrial handhelds. Such devices, commonly used in logistics, manufacturing, and field operations, often require integration with hardware peripherals like barcode scanners, NFC readers, and mobile printers.

Kiosk applications can vary significantly depending on their target use case, hardware platform, and deployment environment. Despite these differences, most fall into a few broad categories based on their functional goals and user interaction models.

Such kiosks present data or multimedia content in a read-only format. Information kiosk software usually acts as self-service touchpoints in public or semi-public environments such as airports, malls, hospitals, museums, corporate lobbies, and tourist information centers.

These applications don’t require users to input personal data or engage in complex sessions. Interactions are limited to viewing content, such as maps, directories, product catalogs, or educational material, through a touchscreen interface, but cannot modify any data.

Informational kiosks represent the simplest form of kiosk applications from an interaction standpoint, but they still require careful planning in terms of performance and UX design.

These kiosk applications allow users to complete various types of self-service operations involving data entry, identity verification, or payment transactions. Transactional kiosk apps are widely used across industries such as retail, healthcare, transportation, hospitality, and government services to reduce wait times and minimize the need for staff interaction.

Transactional kiosks often involve guided, step-by-step processes. Each screen must clearly guide the user through the operation to avoid input errors or abandoned sessions. Examples include self-checkout systems in retail, self-registration terminals in healthcare, or ticketing kiosks in public transport.

Interactive kiosks go beyond providing information or processing transactions. These apps enable two-way communication between users and the system. Interactive kiosks may offer dynamic, task-oriented user experiences tailored to specific workflows. Such interaction can involve a variety of components such as user authentication (via PIN, QR code, or biometric scan), form completion, document uploads, or printing. These capabilities allow the kiosk to act as a virtual service point and replace or supplement human assistance.

Use cases include self-service banking, photo-booth kiosks, customer feedback stations, as well as airport and hotel check-in kiosks.

Instead of buying and setting up stationary kiosks, companies can use smartphones and tablets. When set up in kiosk mode, the apps can run in a locked-down or restricted environment. It means that users can only access the tools, information, and workflows they need to perform specific actions. This, in turn, prevents misuse of the device.

Field service kiosk apps can be used in logistics, retail, or healthcare to facilitate specialized workflows, like inventory scanning, delivery tracking, maintenance checklists, asset inspections, or patient data collection. For example, couriers can use digital signage kiosk solutions on rugged smartphones to capture proof of delivery and sync data with a central system.

These applications are deployed on rugged, often purpose-built devices (e.g., Zebra scanners, Honeywell handhelds, touchscreen terminals) that operate in harsh or controlled environments. Such kiosks are designed to streamline operations like inventory control, production line monitoring, quality assurance, workforce check-in, and equipment diagnostics.

Each type of kiosk application has distinct technical and UX requirements. Understanding the context in which the app will operate is crucial to selecting the right architecture, platform, and development strategy.

Kiosk software can run on a diverse range of platforms, from general-purpose smartphones and tablets to rugged industrial scanners and terminals. Each platform comes with its own implementation model, hardware constraints, and configuration challenges.

Let’s take a look at the most common platforms and discover the peculiarities of kiosk software development.

Android is the most flexible and widely used platform for kiosk engineering due to its open architecture and extensive customization options. Another benefit is that Android is supported across a wide range of hardware, from low-cost consumer tablets to rugged enterprise-grade devices.

Android offers three approaches to implementing kiosk mode.

• Device Owner mode (enterprise-managed). ​​This is the most secure and comprehensive method for deploying kiosk applications. The kiosk app (or a Device Policy Controller app) is granted device owner privileges during the initial provisioning of the device, which typically requires a factory reset. You can implement it using Android Enterprise APIs and QR code enrollment, NFC bump, or zero-touch provisioning (ZTP). This approach is best suited for corporate-owned devices used in logistics, healthcare, or field operations.

• Lock task mode (app-level kiosk). This approach allows a single app (or a small set of apps) to pin itself on the screen. Unlike Device Owner mode, lock task mode can be initiated at runtime by the app, although with some limitations. The user must manually approve permission prompts. The major limitation is that kiosk mode can potentially be exited by holding the back and overview buttons. However, this behavior can be overridden via a Deferred Procedure Call (DPC), a mechanism used by operating systems to defer lower-priority tasks for later execution.
• Third-party Mobile Device Management (MDM) tools. MDM platforms allow you to configure, monitor, and manage kiosk devices remotely. Many MDMs, like Microsoft Intune, VMware Workspace ONE, or Esper, offer kiosk mode as a pre-configured policy. This approach is best suited for companies that need to manage a fleet of devices across multiple locations and require real-time control over device behavior and updates.

Each of these approaches can be enhanced further by combining them with:

• Hardware-level integrations (e.g., barcode scanners, NFC, printers)
• Auto-updating mechanisms (e.g., Firebase App Distribution, Play Store)
• Background sync services (e.g., WorkManager, JobScheduler)

These integrations can ensure you deliver resilient, always-on kiosk solutions.

Implementing kiosk mode on iOS devices is more restrictive compared to Android. This is primarily due to Apple’s controlled ecosystem and focus on security and standardization. The core method for deploying kiosk functionality on iOS is through Single App Mode. This feature locks a supervised device into a specific application and prevents users from switching to other apps or accessing system settings.

Supervision is a mandatory prerequisite and must be enabled during device setup using Apple Configurator or an MDM solution. Once the device is supervised, administrators can configure Single App Mode remotely via MDM profiles or locally during provisioning.

Developers cannot directly control kiosk locking behavior through app code, as they do on Android. Instead, they need to ensure the app is fully self-contained and optimized for kiosk use.
This includes several important aspects:

• Designing a touch-friendly UI that avoids gestures tied to system navigation
• Handling session resets or inactivity timers
• Using technologies like Guided Access APIs, Autonomous Single App Mode (ASAM), and background task handling

Despite the limitations in system-level customization, iOS kiosk apps benefit from high performance and tight integration with Apple’s ecosystem.

While Android and iOS dominate mobile-centric kiosk deployments, Windows also has its share in kiosk application development, especially in enterprise environments and public-facing terminals.

Windows kiosk mode is typically implemented using Assigned Access, a feature that allows IT administrators to configure a Windows device to run a single Universal Windows Platform (UWP) app or multiple apps in a restricted user environment. For more advanced setups, Shell Launcher can replace the default Windows shell with a custom app interface, often used for POS systems, check-in stations, or industrial workstations.

One of the key advantages of using Windows for kiosk software is its support for x86-based software and compatibility with a wide range of peripherals, including printers, scanners, biometric devices, and cash drawers. However, development must account for system stability, security hardening, touch-friendly UIs, and remote device management, often with the help of tools like Microsoft Intune or custom update systems.

In logistics, warehousing, healthcare, and field operations, general-purpose smartphones and tablets may be insufficient due to harsh or highly specific environments. That’s why many companies rely on ruggedized and purpose-built devices from manufacturers like Zebra, Honeywell, or Panasonic.

Most often, such rugged devices are Android-based. They come equipped with integrated barcode scanners, NFC readers, physical buttons, hot-swappable batteries, and custom firmware capabilities. Developing custom kiosk software for these platforms involves integration with proprietary SDKs for hardware-level access.

Kiosk applications on these platforms typically run in a locked-down mode using Android’s Device Owner capabilities or are provisioned and managed through the device manufacturer’s ecosystem. Many specialized devices ship with their own MDM or Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) frameworks, which allow developers and administrators to enforce kiosk behavior.

Developing kiosk software differs significantly from building conventional mobile or desktop applications due to the unique operational context and technical constraints these systems must address. Kiosk apps are typically designed for dedicated, task-specific use with minimal user distraction, no access to unrelated functions, and maximum reliability.

Based on our experience, we have gathered several critical areas you should pay attention to when building kiosk software.

Kiosk users are often untrained customers, patients, or field workers, so the interface must lead them through tasks with minimal friction or cognitive load. To do that, you should pay attention to linear, touch-optimized interfaces with large buttons, clear feedback, and no access to system navigation. It’s also essential to eliminate any potential confusion, limit the number of steps, and use visual or audio cues to guide actions.

Developers must also account for edge cases such as session timeouts, abandoned interactions, or hardware disconnections. To ensure consistent behavior in such situations, you need to implement features like automatic reset to the home screen, inactivity timers, and session isolation.

Many kiosk systems involve peripherals such as barcode scanners, receipt printers, NFC readers, external cameras, or even diagnostic hardware. These components must be tightly integrated and reliably managed via vendor-specific SDKs. For example, Android developers may use the Zebra EMDK or Honeywell SDKs to access hardware-level features, while iOS apps might connect to external accessories through the ExternalAccessory framework or Bluetooth.

Sometimes, integrating with specialized hardware requires manual setup. For instance, in one of Leobit’s projects, the team had to manually configure a Zebra printer using Zebra Programming Language (ZPL). This was necessary to ensure receipts were printed in the correct format, with proper size and alignment, based on the specific paper type.

In addition to restricting user actions within the kiosk interface, developers must ensure that any data collected or processed by the kiosk, such as personal, medical, or payment information, is fully protected. This goes beyond UI limitations and involves enforcing multiple layers of security at the system, app, and data levels.

To do that, you should encrypt sensitive data both at rest and in transit, using industry-standard protocols (e.g., AES for storage, TLS for communication). It’s also important to enforce session isolation, so that user data is cleared after each session, preventing unauthorized access by the next user.

Developers should also disable system-level features that could expose data or device settings. For example:

• USB debugging must be turned off to prevent unauthorized access to device internals or app data via ADB (Android Debug Bridge).
• Screen capture should be disabled to avoid sensitive screens being recorded or screenshotted, especially in healthcare or payment use cases.
• External storage access must be restricted to prevent data leaks or injection of malicious content from removable drives.

All these actions ensure the user’s data is safe and the kiosk software can meet strict security and compliance requirements, especially in regulated industries like healthcare and finance.

A kiosk application may need to operate in environments with unstable internet connectivity. To maintain uninterrupted functionality in such cases, you may need to implement caching mechanisms or local queuing of transactions. Caching allows the kiosk to store frequently used data (e.g., product catalogs, user profiles, check-in forms) locally, so the app can continue displaying content or handling operations without needing a constant connection.

For tasks that involve user interaction or data submission, such as form entries, orders, or check-ins, a local queueing system temporarily stores transactions on the device. Once the internet connection is restored, the kiosk automatically syncs the queued data with the server. This process ensures no input is lost and the system remains up to date.

Unlike consumer apps distributed via public app stores, kiosk applications may often need to be deployed in controlled environments. In such cases, public distribution channels like Google Play or the Apple App Store are not practical or even possible. To ensure smooth delivery and version control across devices, developers must implement custom app updates and storage mechanisms.

In one of our projects, Leobit developed a custom update system for a Flutter-based kiosk app that wasn’t distributed through the Google Play Store. Instead of relying on standard marketplace updates, Leobit engineered a self-contained update workflow. We uploaded app binaries to a private, scalable Azure Blob Storage environment and managed them via a custom-built web-based admin panel developed with Angular and .NET.

On the client side, the app routinely checked for new builds via API calls. When an update was detected, the application downloaded the new version in the background and automatically replaced itself without requiring user interaction.

Leobit specializes in developing kiosk applications for Android, iOS, Windows, and specialized hardware like Zebra and Honeywell scanners. Our software engineers have successfully implemented secure kiosk environments using Android’s Device Owner mode and iOS’s Single App Mode and built custom integrations with specialized hardware.

Across multiple projects, we’ve implemented advanced features such as QR code-based device provisioning, AI-powered image capture, barcode scanning, secure user flows, and custom over-the-air update systems managed via private infrastructure.

Leobit has delivered kiosk software for clients in healthcare, retail, and the events and entertainment industries, each with its own regulatory, operational, and UX requirements. From diagnostic apps running on Android tablets in clinical settings to inventory management solutions on rugged handhelds and interactive photo booths for live events, we ensure that every kiosk solution is robust, scalable, and aligned with industry-specific needs.

Here’s what our clients say:

Kiosk applications continue to gain momentum across industries, driven by the demand for self-service and streamlined operations. However, kiosk software development requires a specialized approach that goes far beyond building standard mobile or desktop applications. It demands in-depth knowledge of platform-specific capabilities, secure device lockdown methods, hardware integrations, offline support, and remote device management.

Leobit brings deep technical expertise and hands-on experience in developing robust, secure, and scalable kiosk solutions for a wide range of industries, including healthcare, logistics, and field operations. Whether you’re building a customer-facing self-service station or a locked-down mobile app for internal use, our team can guide you through the entire development lifecycle — from concept to deployment and ongoing support.