30 App Monetization Statistics You Need to Know

Looking to try some new monetization strategies in your apps? Before you get started, it’s important to know the latest stats and trends in the industry.

Here’s a solid list we at Appsaholic put together of some of the best stats out there about app monetization, including in-app purchases, rewarded ads, and the state of apps and smartphones. Hope you find it useful!

Monetizing with Apps

• 72% of consumers expect ads on mobile devices to allow them to consume free content.
• Only 2% of users will ever make an in-app purchase.
• Consumers prefer rewards over other all other incentives for interacting with ads, like free entertainment, making new friends, etc.
• 3 out of 4 people expect apps to be free.
• Only 0.15% of mobile gamers account for 50% of all in-game revenue.
• More than two-thirds of US smartphone owners said that if they had to see in-app advertising, being offered a reward for viewing or engaging with an ad was their top preference.
• Smartphone owners’ respect for a brand goes up 22% when they’re exposed to a rewarded ad as opposed to a non-rewarded ad.
• On average, a user who makes an in-app purchase will do so 12 days after first launching an app.
• 59% of all mobile gamers have never made an in-app purchase.
• 4 out of 5 consumers accept the value exchange of “advertising supporting free apps and content.”
• 90% of app installs generate no revenue whatsoever.
• 59% of consumers will be interested in branded activities on their smartphones that allow them to win rewards.
• It costs 6-7x more to acquire a new customer than to retain an existing one.
• 48% of people agree that they “would like to engage with loyalty programs through my mobile device.”

App Facts

• 58% of app users churn in the first 30 days after download, and 75% churn in three months.
• 26% of new customers who install an app only use it once.
• 90% of app installs may lead to disengaged users within three months.

• 82% of app launches happen on smartphones, while 17% occur on tablets.

• 75% of users who log just one session in the first 30 days will churn, but only 14% who complete 11+ sessions in the first 30 days will churn.

Smartphone Stats

• There are 2.6 billion smartphone subscriptions globally (36% of the population). By 2020, there will be 6.1 billion smartphone users (70% of the population).
• US adults spend 68 minutes each day playing games, up from 44 minutes in 2011.
• 29% of people’s daily screen time is spent looking at smartphones.
• 68% of US adults own a smartphone. 45% own a tablet.
• More than half of smartphone users have 40-70 apps, but most (71%) use only 1-6 per day.
• Apps represent 54% of the time spent consuming digital media.

The Mobile Ad Landscape

• Mobile ad spending will hit $100 billion in 2016.
• Mobile advertising spend grew 65% last year, and now represents 30% of all digital ad spend.
• 77% of the time, consumers prefer ads they can choose or personalized ads.
• Mobile video ads realized on average 5x the engagement when compared to standard banners.
• Mobile CPMs were 34% higher than desktop CPMs in Q3 2015.

Lots of great things are happening in the app monetization space! Any big stats we missed? Share them with us in the comments.