2023 was a period of high volatility for the business world, and now, the baton of economic turbulence has been passed to 2024. The mobile app ecosystem, however, bucks the trend. The mobile app store spending on iOS and Android platforms outside of mobile gaming has skyrocketed during the past ten years, hitting $64 billion in 2023 (that’s 11% year-over-year in 2023).
Surprisingly, in 2023, consumers downloaded fewer apps despite having more categories of apps overall — a 1% year-over-year increase. In 2023, 489,000 new apps were downloaded per minute. This figure means that users are still open to new experiences and services, but the competition among mobile apps is picking up steam.
Individual categories set new milestones for what is financially possible in the market. According to the State of Mobile 2024 report, six app categories have snatched leadership in terms of consumer spending.
Entertainment apps (OTT, short videos and video sharing, music, and live streaming), social media apps (dating and communication), books and references, and utility and productivity applications account for the largest share of consumer spending. Photo and video apps, as well as health and fitness applications, are also among the main drivers of consumer spending.
Of all apps, 219 earned $100 million in global consumer spending, while 13 apps surpassed $1 billion. The number of apps earning $10 million has slightly increased, from 521 in 2022 to 587 in 2023. In 2023, generative AI features — chatbots and art generators — helped mobile apps fuel consumer spending. In 2024, AI is expected to power up to 10% of app downloads on app stores.
As for the monetization approach, in-app purchases, subscriptions, and ads account for the majority of mobile app earnings. In 2024, ad spending is slated to fly past $400 billion.
With that said, we will now drill down into the most profitable app categories with the highest earning opportunities so that you're better aware of mobile app earning potential by category.
5 most successful mobile app types that generate revenue for businesses
In 2023, the daily time spent on mobile surpassed five hours, and the following mobile app types have learned how to capitalize on this increase:
Game apps
Games have always won the hearts and minds of app users by offering an exciting retreat from the real world. Over the last few years, the gaming app market has been invigorated with console-like graphics, gameplay experiences, and new titles. Mobile game consumer spending has been growing steadily since 2018. However, in 2023, consumer spending on mobile gaming dipped by 2% to $107.3 billion. In 2024, consumer spending is expected to rebound 4% year on year to $111.4 billion, reversing the trend.
Here's which game genres brought the big bucks in 2023:
- Role-playing games (RPGs) (the MMORPG and Team Battle subgenres) — spending inside these games stood at $24.5 billion.
- Strategy (4X march-battle games) — this genre grossed $10.7 billion from in-app purchases.
- Match — consumer spending for this category equaled $10.2 billion.
Let's highlight some of the most successful apps in the category.
Honor of Kings
Billed as the world's most-played game in the genre, Honor of Kings delivers the ultimate competitive experience to over 146 million active mobile users in China alone. Originally, Honour of Kings appeared after Chinese gaming giant Tencent failed to convince League of Legends' publishers to create a mobile version of the PC game. Today, this game makes it easy for players to set up competitions with colleagues in a multiplayer online battle arena.
This app uses the freemium model with in-app purchases. In 2023, the game raked in nearly $1.48 billion in global in-app revenues, making it one of the most bankable mobile games ever.
Roblox
One of the year's biggest blockbusters, Roblox, is a game creation system that landed in the mainstream. It combines gaming, social media, and social commerce, allowing users to earn and spend virtual money. The game rang out the year with $2.8 billion in global revenue, with 25.81% growth year-over-year.
Candy Crush Saga
Candy Crush Saga is a popular match-three puzzle game. The game's goal is to score as many points as possible by matching rows of candy. This game is free to play, but users can purchase gold bars to buy moves, lives, and more. According to Statista's estimates, the game accounts for over $956 million of revenue in the United States.
Social apps
In 2023, there were over 4.26 billion social media users worldwide, equating to over half of the global population. This number is poised to grow to almost six billion by 2027. No wonder, last year, Android users spent over 2.3 trillion hours on social apps. Consumer spending rose to nearly $9 billion, up 13% from the previous year.
As for microtrends, microblogging apps such as X struggle to maintain momentum as users gravitate towards video-based platforms like TikTok. But the X’s tumble doesn’t stop companies from launching text-based applications: in 2023, we saw BlueSky and Threads gaining popularity. Social apps are also in for new monetization models: more apps are looking into the ‘tip’ model exemplified by TikTok, as well as subscriptions and in-app purchases.
That said, here are some social media apps that bask under the sun in a challenging market of 2023.
TikTok
Built as a short-form video-sharing platform, TikTok has morphed into a full-blown video service with content for every user type. TikTok's business model leans on ad revenue and in-app gift purchases (through in-app currency) as the primary revenue source.
In 2022, TikTok became the second non-gaming app to amass $6 billion in all-time consumer spending. In 2024, this impressive figure is slated to become even more impressive as TikTok is on its way to $15 billion.
Threads
The new text-based social sharing app by Meta received a very warm welcome from Instagram users. As of February 2024, it has more than 130 million monthly active users. However, the future of the app is still uncertain as Meta banked on Instagram's large base of users to port over easily.
Still, the rapid climb of Threads contributed to Meta’s overall revenue growth. Analysts at Evercore ISI estimated that Threads could contribute $8 billion to Meta’s bottom line by 2025.
Twitch
Being one of the trending video streaming platforms, Twitch serves a wide array of content genres, with the most focus on game broadcasting and esports streaming. The platform continues its streak as the global streaming audience with a 74% market share. Its revenue-sharing model for broadcasters also adds to the piggy bank, bringing many talented gamers to the platform. In the second quarter of 2023, Twitch made $29.95 million in app revenue.
Entertainment apps
Over-the-top (OTT) services and content-based platforms also ruled in 2023. The entertainment app category accounts for growing consumer spending that surpassed $8 billion in 2023.
The US, Chinese, and Korean markets stand behind this spending growth, having one of the most saturated OTT landscapes. Conversely, European markets became more concentrated. This is partly due to EU regulations requiring 30% of foreign TV streaming content to come from European countries.
Disney, Max, Hulu, Crunchyroll, and Paramount dominated almost 50% of the market in 2023, up from 45% in 2022. Notably, in 2023, top streaming platforms launched budget-friendly subscription options, trying to poach users from free TV streaming services like Tubi and Pluto TV.
So, what apps are doing well in this category? It's a no-brainer.
YouTube
YouTube continues to take the reins of consumer spending worldwide. The app generates revenue through advertising and monthly subscriptions such as YouTube Premium. Google's advertising revenue from YouTube accounted for approximately 10.25% of its total revenue in 2023. The video platform's annual ad revenues reached $31.5 billion, up from the $29.2 billion in 2022.
Disney+
Home to popular entertainment services from Pixar and more, Disney+ is available in 59 countries. In the fourth quarter of 2023, Disney+ added nearly 7 million subscribers, with a total number of paid subscriptions generating a revenue of $8.4 billion in 2023. Moreover, exclusive releases and the global audience place it among the most profitable mobile apps in the entertainment category.
HBO Max
A bright spot in the Warner Bros. Discovery portfolio, HBO Max also enjoys the limelight of having among the largest profits. However, in 2023, the streaming service lost 1.8 million subscribers due to the launch of its new combined streamer Max. The company now has around 97.7 million users, with quarterly DTC revenues of $2.53 million.
Finance apps
Although the finance category was somewhat under the radar in 2022, it was back in the game in 2023. By 2030, the revenue of the category is expected to grow sixfold from $245 billion to $1.5 trillion by 2030. The first part of the fintech journey was led by crypto apps, but in 2023, consumers flocked to loan apps. Mobile banking and digital wallets are traditionally among other users’ darlings.
Also, super apps continue to blur the lines between different subgenres. All core mobile app markets, including the US, UK, and China, have at least one fintech app with four or more complimentary features. In 2023, these super apps accounted for over 20% of the finance monthly active user base in China (47%) and the US (32%).
Now, let's look at app revenue in this category using popular finance apps as examples.
Alipay
Alipay is one of the flagship products from the Chinese e-commerce giant and a fine specimen of super apps. Alipay boasts a global user base of 1.3 billion consumers who benefit from over 100 services included in the app. Alipay’s transaction fees vary from 0.55% to 3%, giving us a broad idea of the revenues generated by the app.
NuBank
According to data.ai, this crypto trading simulator ranks ninth in the world by downloads in 2023. NuBank is the largest fintech bank in Latin America, with almost 90 million customers. In 2023, the app’s monthly active users increased by 22% year-over-year, bringing the company a record revenue of $1.9 billion.
PhonePe
Another super app on our list, PhonePe, is a Walmart-owned Indian payment and financial services app. PhonePe pledges to be an all-in finance app, combining an app store with financial services and digital commerce. India’s booming digital payments market promoted the success of the app. As a result, the company has clocked an impressive revenue of $210.8 million, which is a 77% year-over-year increase.
Health and fitness apps
Health and fitness applications have been on a growth curve since the pandemic. The trend persisted through 2023, with all top health and fitness subgenres experiencing strong consumer spend growth. Fitness programs, weight loss, and calorie trackers have a leading position in the market. Mental health, telehealth, and women’s health apps have also captured the hearts and minds of many users in 2023 and at the beginning of 2024.
In the US, almost half of all consumer spending in 2023 went towards the health and fitness category, making it the top market. In the United States alone, mobile fitness apps are expected to generate nearly $1.8 million in revenue by the end of 2024.
As for top monetization models, most apps bank on subscriptions and in-app purchases. In APAC markets, one-time purchases account for a great share of consumer spend.
Now, let’s see what apps are making the headlines in the category.
Flo
Flo is a popular women’s health application with a user base of over 300 million users. As a one-stop solution for all things female health and well-being, this subscription-based app boasts a wide range of features to help women track their cycle and get extensive knowledge about pregnancy. In 2023, Flo's annual revenue grew to over $140 million – a 40% increase from 2022.
MyFitnessPal
A habitue of top charts, MyFitnessPal delivered solid results in 2023. This health and fitness tracking app was one of the top-grossing applications on the Google Play Store, collecting monthly revenues of over $2 million. For the monetization model, MyFitnessPal relies on its premium service subscriptions.
Calm
With over $83 million in revenue, Calm is among the leading meditation apps in the market. Among the app's features are meditation and breathing exercises, mindfulness programs, and soundscapes that assist users in getting to sleep and relaxing. The app works on a freemium business model (with some revenue generated from an EAP model), allowing users to download the app and discover core features for free.
Summing up
The rationale and statistics prove that the last year was lucrative for the mobile app scene despite the global snafus. Entertainment and gaming apps snatched the leading positions, with finance and health & fitness applications catching up. Video-streaming services also pared well in 2023, thus enjoying increased consumer spending and higher revenues.
However, only a few mobile applications make it to the top of the heap and rake in unbelievable revenues; even the most popular mobile app categories don't inherently have a giant user base and a wealth of in-app purchases.
Therefore, before building your mobile solution, you must factor in far more criteria than the trending app types. So whether it's a fitness app or a live streaming platform, a successful project requires meticulous planning, analysis, and a winning tech stack to score the optimal product-market fit.
We at Orangesoft offer a full cycle of tailored app development services to take your project from an app idea to a release. Hit us up, and we'll rock app markets together.