App downloads declined again in 2025, but consumer spending soared to nearly $156B

The subscription system helped boost mobile app revenues successful 2025, adjacent arsenic app downloads declined for the 5th consecutive year, according to app quality steadfast Appfigures‘ yearly report. In 2025, planetary downloads of each mobile apps and mobile games via the App Store and Google Play reached an estimated 106.9 billion, 2.7% little than the twelvemonth prior. Consumer spending, meanwhile, climbed 21.6% to scope an estimated $155.8 cardinal during the aforesaid period.

The information indicates that app developers, marketers, and publishers person been palmy successful getting their users to marque in-app purchases oregon activate subscriptions, adjacent arsenic the fig of caller users downloading apps has been falling.

The study besides reflected the continued displacement distant from mobile games arsenic the superior gross operator for the app economy. In 2025, consumers spent $72.2 cardinal connected mobile games, accounting for astir 46% of each spending wrong mobile apps. While that fig is up 10% year-over-year, spending connected non-game mobile apps besides increased. In fact, non-game app spending is up 33.9% year-over-year and reached $82.6 cardinal successful 2025, Appfigures said.

While consumers whitethorn not similar that astir each app present has in-app purchases oregon a subscription exemplary built in, this has offered a much sustainable way for app developers. Plus, the displacement toward ongoing payments for apps has helped substance an ecosystem of businesses serving the mobile app ecosystem. This includes subscription absorption level RevenueCat, which raised a $50 cardinal Series C this past year, and Appcharge, a startup helping mobile games improve their monetization, which announced a $58 cardinal Series B backmost successful August. This week, Liftoff Mobile, which helps marketplace and monetize apps, filed for an IPO.

As gross rose, downloads dropped again successful 2025.

After reaching an all-time precocious of 135 cardinal successful 2020 during the pandemic, downloads person been connected the decline. This year’s fig of 106.9 cardinal installs was down from 109.8 cardinal successful 2024, and follows slowed download maturation betwixt 2023 and 2024, erstwhile installs were down 3.3%.

Mobile crippled downloads saw a larger diminution this year. In 2025, mobile games were downloaded 39.4 cardinal times, down 8.6% year-over-year, aft a 6.6% diminution from 2023 to 2024. Non-game app downloads were fundamentally level — they lone saw a flimsy summation of 1.1% year-over-year, reaching 67.4 billion.

The afloat study besides takes a look astatine the U.S. marketplace specifically. Here, consumers spent an estimated $55.5 cardinal crossed each mobile apps, up 18.1% year-over-year from $47 cardinal successful 2024. Downloads reached 10 billion, down 4.2% from the 10.4 cardinal successful 2024. U.S. consumers spent $33.6 cardinal connected non-game apps, up 26.8% year-over-year, and spent $21.9 cardinal connected games, up conscionable 6.8%.

U.S. non-game app downloads were an estimated 7.1 cardinal successful 2025, portion games were downloaded 2.9 cardinal times.