What are the Types of Software Development Lifecycle Models (SDLC)?: Explained

Building software without a clear plan is like building a house without a plan. It might work, but it won’t last long.

That’s where:

The software development Lifecycle model is a step-by-step process teams use to plan, build, test, and keep software working. Different models give different ways to do the different steps in the process.

The global software development market grows by over 22% each year. Using the right SDLC model helps deliver good products on time and on budget.

Let’s start with the blog and learn about it in detail.

What Are Software Development Lifecycle Models?

Software development lifecycle models help your team go from “What if we build this?” to “Wow, customers love this!” Software process models show how key steps connect. These steps include getting requirements, design, coding, testing, launch, and upkeep.

By using a clear process model, teams can

• work better
• reduce risks,
• make sure quality is good while matching development with business goals.

Top 6 Software Development Lifecycle Models (With Advantages and Limitations)

Picking the right model is very important for making software or apps. The development and testing process depends on which model you pick.

Different companies choose different models based on their software or product needs. Let’s see those models below:

1. Waterfall Model:

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The Waterfall Model is one of the first and most classic models in the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC). It has a straight line and step-by-step flow. Each step must finish before the next starts, like a waterfall flowing down steps.

When to use Waterfall:

• Projects with clear and stable needs.
• Places with strict rules or compliance needs.
• When your client wants a clear, written roadmap and milestones.
• Smaller or less complex projects where changes are small during development.

Best suited for:

• Projects where needs are very fixed and unlikely to change
• Software that must follow strict rules, like in healthcare or banking
• Projects with fixed budgets, where adding extra features could cost too much

Advantages:

• Clear project progress with well-defined deliverables.
• Lots of documents provide a formal contract between clients and developers.
• Easy to manage due to its rigid structure and step-by-step flow.

Limitations:

• Hard to change requirements once the project moves forward.
• Late finding of problems happens as testing occurs after building.
• Customers do not see the product until the very end, which risks not matching what they want.

Best for	Fixed requirements, compliance nightmares
Timeline	6-24 months
Team size	15-50+ people
Success rate	29%

2. Agile Model:

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Agile is a flexible and iterative way to develop software. It focuses on continuous delivery, working with customers, and adapting to change. Work is broken into small time-boxed cycles called sprints, usually lasting 1-4 weeks.

When to Use:

Projects with changing or unclear needs, quick business environments, SaaS products, etc.

Best suited for:

Modern SaaS applications, startups, and projects need frequent releases with rapid adaptation.

Advantages:

• Fast delivery of usable software.
• Frequent customer feedback aligned development.
• Higher team happiness and productivity.
• Early finding of problems and risks.

Limitations:

• Needs disciplined teams skilled in self-management.
• Can suffer from scope creep without proper controls.
• Hard to predict exact release timelines.

Real-world case study: Spotify changed teamwork by forming small groups called squads. Each squad owns one feature and works like a mini Start-up.

The result? Spotify keeps the uptime at 99.95% and ships code 1,000 times a day. This model even lets them move fast, is flexible and keeps on improving.

Timeline	Continuous sprints, typically 2 weeks per sprint
Team size	Small to mid-sized, often 5-9 team members
Success rate	42% (way better than Waterfall)

3. V-Model:

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The V-Model builds on the Waterfall model. It connects each development step on the left with a matching testing step on the right. This approach highlights the importance of early testing and checking.

When to Use:

Good for projects needing strict quality controls, regulatory compliance, and where requirements are well understood upfront.

Best suited for:

Safety-critical systems, financial applications, and systems with rigid development processes.

Advantages:

• Early finding of problems during development.
• Clear connection between requirements and tests.
• Strong quality checking through structured testing.

Limitations:

• Rigid and less adaptable to changing requirements.
• Testing costs can be high due to exhaustive processes.
• Not suitable for projects with evolving scopes.

Timeline	6-12 months for medium-sized projects
Team size	Medium to large teams, 10-30 members
Success rate	Estimated rate 35% to 45%

4. Spiral Model:

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The Spiral Model combines iterative development with thorough risk analysis in each cycle (“spiral“) to manage large, complex projects where risks are significant.

When to Use:

When handling high-risk projects, large systems with unclear requirements, or new technology integration.

Best suited for:

Enterprise applications, government projects, and multi-year initiatives with heavy risk concerns.

Advantages:

• Continuous risk identification and mitigation
• Allows for iterative refinements and customer feedback
• Flexible to changes in requirements

Limitations:

• Requires expert risk management skills
• More expensive and time-consuming
• Management overhead can be significant

Timeline	Varies, often multi-year for large projects.
Team size	Large, cross-functional teams (20+ members)
Success rate	50% to 60% for large, complex projects

5. Incremental Model:

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The Incremental Model develops software in smaller, working units known as increments. Each increment offers a usable part of the system, helping to build a complete solution over time.

When to Use:

When quick delivery of functional software is needed, or requirements are understood but can evolve with time.

Best suited for:

• Getting to market before competitors
• Teams with more ideas than money
• When you need revenue yesterday
• Testing if anyone actually wants this thing

Advantages:

• Early delivery of valuable features
• Reduced risk as parts can be tested individually
• Easier to accommodate requirement changes incrementally

Limitations:

• Architecture must support incremental growth
• Integration challenges between increments
• It can be more costly than a one-shot build if not well planned

Timeline	Multiple incremental releases over months
Team size	Small to medium, 7-15 members
Success rate	50% to 60%

6. DevOps Model:

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DevOps combines development and operations into a collaborative, automated process to enable continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD), shortening release cycles and improving reliability.

When to Use:

Ideal for cloud-native, microservices-based SaaS products with frequent releases and high operational demands.

Best suited for:

• Any SaaS company that wants to survive next year
• Microservices architectures
• Cloud-native everything
• Teams shipping multiple times daily

Advantages:

• Faster release cycles and feedback loops
• Improved stability with automated testing and deployments
• Enhanced collaboration between development and operations teams

Limitations:

• Requires significant cultural and process change
• Complex toolchains and automation setups
• Need for skills spanning development and infrastructure

Timeline	Multiple releases per day or week
Team size	Small, agile teams enabled by automation (5-12 members)
Success rate	70%

Which software development lifecycle model Wins or is the best?

When it comes to building SaaS products, Agile and DevOps are the clear winners. Over 90% of SaaS companies succeed by using these flexible, fast-moving, and customer-focused approaches.

• Agile helps teams adapt quickly to changing needs and deliver useful features every few weeks.
• DevOps works alongside Agile by automating releases and combining development with operations to keep improvements coming smoothly and reliably.

The traditional Waterfall model still works, but only when your project requirements are set in stone and strict regulators are watching closely. Even then, mixing a bit of Agile into Waterfall usually gives better results by adding flexibility without losing control.

Conclusion

By now, you know SDLC models are not the same. Each model has its own strength, but which model to choose depends on your team, projects, and goals.

The best part?

You don’t have to overcomplicate it. Use the model that matches where you are today, then adjust as per your needs grow.

Want to go deeper? Then compare models like Agile, waterfall, and spiral side by side to see which fits your reality.