35+ App Download and Usage Statistics

As technology advances, the way we access information is changing. Today, 81% of Americans own a smartphone.⁰¹ This means that the majority of Americans now have access to unlimited information in the palm of their hand, wherever they go (with a cellular or internet connection!). 

As a result, more individuals are turning to their phones when they want to search online or download an app. 

Mobile apps are also changing the way we interface with the world around us. From hailing a ride, to booking a room for the night, the mobile app usage statistics are strong indicators of an industry in the midst of another growth spurt. 

Mobile App Download Statistics: Macro Trends 

In the past year, Gen-Z usage soared, the Google Play Store dominated, in-app subscriptions surged, and fast-growing app categories displaced the trends according to the most recent data. 

In 2019, the data shows: 

• Google Play has 167% more free apps than the App Store with more than 6.6 million free apps compared to the App Store’s 2.4 million.⁰²
• More than 62% of paid apps are priced between $0.99 and $2.99.
• There are more than 940,000 free Android apps with less than 100 total downloads.⁰³ 
• Only 83 paid apps in the Google Play store have more than 1 million downloads.⁰³ 
• 9% of apps in Google Play have in-app subscriptions enabled.⁰⁴
• Google’s suite of apps have been installed a combined 90 billion times. Compare this to Facebook’s total app installs of 9 billion.⁰⁵ 
• Of all premium apps, the Finance category has the highest average price of $17.06, compared to the Educational category’s average price of $3.37.⁰⁶ 
• 78% of Gen Z reports mobile devices are the most important for accessing the internet.⁰⁷

Data also indicates that monetization opportunities for mobile apps are increasing as mobile markets mature. 

When app markets are new, they tend to see strong download numbers — mainly due to new users discovering and experimenting with these newfound apps. 

As their mobile habits solidify and users identify their go-to apps, mobile app engagement starts climbing. With increasing engagement comes the opportunity to capitalize on consumer mindshare and monetize the apps they’re engaging with. 

Mobile App Monetization Stats  

Here are some stats about apps that are seeing some monthly recurring revenue (MRR) to go along with their app download statistics: 

• In 2018, Uber brought in more than $50 billion in gross bookings across all platforms.⁰⁸
• Grubhub processes more than 488,900 orders per day with gross food sales in 2018, exceeding $5 billion.⁰⁹
• Spotify’s revenues in 2018 exceeded $5 billion, up 28% from 2017 revenues.¹⁰ 

But is this the norm? 

In the Google Play Store, 95.5% of all apps are free and 4.5% of all apps are paid.¹¹ 

Taking a closer look at all free apps in the Google Play Store, we can see that most free apps fall into the following app categories: 

• Education 
• Tools 
• Personalization
• Health & Fitness 

On the other hand, 90% of the apps in Apple’s App Store are free. The following app categories contain the most free apps in the App Store:

• Games 
• Education 
• Utilities 
• Food & Drink 

In fact, the gaming category is responsible for 74% of all consumer spending in the App Store.¹² 

When it comes to paid apps in the App Store, most apps are relatively inexpensive — more than 50,000 paid apps are under $1. On the other hand, the majority of paid apps in the Google Play Store are still economical, but usually range from $1 to $2. 

And it seems the less expensive or free apps are the ones to snag impressive download numbers. Looking at the download distribution of Android apps in the Google Play Store, we can see that:

• Over 700,000 free apps were downloaded 100 times  
• Over 500,000 free apps were downloaded 1,000 times 
• Over 200,000 free apps were downloaded 10,000 times  

Gen Z Leads the Charge with Mobile App Usage

According to a report from Snap, Gen Z is the most mobile-centric generation, with 97% of Gen Z owning a smartphone.¹³ 

Gen Z not only own the most smartphones of any generation, they also use them the most. Mobile usage has increased 36% since 2015, reaching 4 hours and 11 minutes per day in 2019. Here are some notable takeaways about Gen Z and mobile: 

• 92% of Gen Z use a social networking mobile app every month.
• 91% of Gen Z use a chat or instant messaging app every month.
• 67% of Gen Z use a music streaming app every month.
• 21% of Gen Z purchased a mobile game last month.
• 11% of Gen Z report making an in-app purchase last month.
• 57% of Gen Z feel more insecure without their mobile phone than their wallet. 

Mature Mobile App Usage Stats

When looking at some of the veterans in the mobile app industry, we see some staggering usage numbers tallying beyond billions of downloads. You could venture a guess that  downloads are no longer the primary concern for these titans of the mobile industry: 

• Facebook has 2.41 billion monthly active users as of June 2019, an 8% increase year-over-year.¹⁴ 
• Baidu’s app has 188 million daily active users, an increase of 27% from 2018 to 2019.¹⁵  
• Uber’s monthly active users have grown by 30% from June 2018 to June 2019 to 99 million.¹⁶
• Lyft has grown quarterly active riders by 41% from June 2018 to June 2019, a total of 21.8 million riders.¹⁷ 

Mobile App Usage Stats by Age

ThinkNow’s Mobile App Trends Report of 2018 uncovered that younger users are more likely to engage with their apps compared to older users. But, the data also showed that while there are distinctions among the various cohorts, there are also some commonalities of mobile usage across all ages.¹⁸ 

The data indicates that:

• More millennials (18–34) download apps to share or use with others (59%) compared to Gen X users (41%) or Baby Boomers (24%).
• Millennials ages 18–34 access their apps more times per day (10.5) than Gen X users (7.7) or Baby Boomers (5.5).
• 77% of teens (13–17) apps are social networking apps.
• App usage peaks between 6PM and 9PM across all ages.
• 66% of teens (13–17) say their apps are an important part of their daily life.

Active User Statistics for Mobile Apps 2019

One of the holy grail metrics of mobile app marketing is DAU/MAU. 

DAU (daily active users) over MAU (monthly active users) is the ratio of users that return every day compared to those returning on a monthly basis. Looking at some of the industry-wide benchmarks you can see trends in what apps are being used most often: 

• Baidu DAU/MAU = 69% 
• Facebook DAU/MAU = 65%
• Snap DAU/MAU =  65%
• Bytedance DAU/MAU = 46% 

These numbers are quite impressive given the industry average is between 10-20%.¹⁹ It’s also interesting to note that the most downloaded and used apps seem to come from two countries: the US and China. 

Standout Mobile App Markets 

Dating apps are on the rise, becoming the new standard for dating and displacing traditional and even online dating practices. Tinder has remained the number one app by worldwide consumer spend from 2016 through 2018.

Global consumer spend in the top ten dating apps grew by 180%—from just under $500 million in 2016 to well over $1 billion in 2018. 

Beyond dating apps, health and fitness apps, like MyFitnessPal and Headspace, saw serious growth. From 2016 to 2018, global consumer spend in health and fitness apps grew three times. Downloads of medical apps have also grown in the US, UK, and France by 35% in the last two years. 

Your App’s Download Statistics 

When you play in the mobile app space, there are lots of opportunities. Users are increasingly taking to their smartphones to access information online and download apps. To leverage this trend, you need to invest in a sophisticated mobile marketing strategy. 

CleverTap offers mobile marketing tools to not only convert new users, but drive retention and growth for your app. With behavioral segmentation, detailed audience analytics, and omnichannel engagement, CleverTap can help take your mobile app to the next level.

Get started by taking this three-minute interactive quiz to find out how your growth strategies stack up. 

See how today’s top brands use CleverTap to drive long-term growth and retention

Schedule a Demo Now!