Over the past five years, the global app industry has seen revenue and downloads more than double, with mobile apps reaching more people than ever. Last year, app developers grossed $428bn, with people worldwide making over 235 billion downloads. In 2023, mobile apps are expected to become a $490bn industry with room for more growth.
According to data presented by Sports Lens, global app revenues are expected to grow by another 10% and hit over half a trillion dollars in 2024.
Revenue and Downloads to Grow by 10% Year-over-Year
With roughly 6.6 billion mobile phone users worldwide, or 82% of the world’s population, the mobile app industry continues surging with no signs of stopping any time soon. In 2022, global app revenues grew by 7% year-over-year and hit $428.1bn globally, according to a Statista survey. This year is set to witness even more impressive growth, with revenues rising by 14% to $490.8bn.
Statista expects users worldwide to increase their app spending by an impressive $53bn or 10% in 2024, with total revenues rising to $541.1bn.
Mobile games will remain the largest revenue stream bringing $343.2bn in 2024, up from $307bn this year. Social media apps, the second highest-grossing app category, will bring $53.2bn, $4.7bn more than in 2023. The two app categories will make up 73% of total app revenues next year.
The downloads are also expected to continue growing. Last year, people worldwide made roughly 235.2 billion downloads. However, 2023 is set to witness far more downloads, with their total number jumping to 262.5 billion. Mobile games will make more than half of that figure with 135 billion downloads. Photo and video apps, the second most-downloaded app category, will see 29 billion downloads this year, followed by social media apps and their 12 billion downloads.
Statistics show the total number of downloads is set to grow by another 10% in 2024 and hit almost 288 billion worldwide.
People Spend more than Two Hours a Day on Gaming and Social Media Apps
As the two highest-grossing app categories, mobile games and social media apps also top the total time people spend using them. According to a Statista survey, social media apps like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok had the most engagement, with global users spending 55 minutes daily on these apps.
Casual games ranked second with 24 minutes of use per day. Social casino, hardcore, and midcore games follow, with 17.1, 17, and 16.2 minutes, respectively.
Statistics show that an average smartphone user spends more than two hours daily on gaming and social media apps.
