Global consumer spending in apps grows to $127b in 2024 with download decline

SAN FRANCISCO -- Global consumer spending in mobile apps and games in 2024 reached $127 billion across the App Store and Google Play, up 15.7 percent from the prior year, according to new data from mobile analytics and intelligence firm Appfigures.

However, global app downloads were down by 2.3 percent this year compared with 2023, reaching nearly 110 billion. This downward trend was seen across both app stores, the data indicates.

Of the total 110 billion downloads in 2024, iOS downloads accounted for 28.3 billion installs, a decline of 1.1 percent year over year. Android app downloads on Google Play were down 2.6 percent to 81.4 billion.

US iOS downloads declined 5.3 percent to 6.1 billion and US Google Play app downloads dropped 0.7 percent to 4.4 billion. In total, US app downloads declined by 3.4 percent in the year, reaching approximately 10.6 billion.

Only 5 percent of apps worldwide offered subscriptions last year, but they accounted for 48 percent of the app revenue across both app stores, Appfigures found.

The top 10 earning apps globally generated 13.7 percent of all consumer spending, up 1.2 percent from 12.5 percent in 2023.

Temu was the most downloaded app in the United States with 48 million installs, Appfigures found. Apple recently also confirmed it was the most-downloaded app in the United States on its App Store.

Of the $127 billion in total consumer spending globally in 2024, $91.6 billion came from the App Store, up 24 percent year over year. Google Play consumer spending declined by 1.5 percent year over year to reach $35.7 billion globally.

By consumer spending, the top app globally was TikTok, with an estimated $2.5 billion across iOS and Android, not counting app stores in China.

TikTok was also the top app in the United States, drawing in nearly $1.3 billion.