2020 has been a wild ride, all thanks to covid-19. The year presented a massive growth opportunity for mobile apps as everyone leaned on apps to learn, work, play, and connect with colleagues, family, and friends.
According to the latest report by App Annie, the pandemic has accelerated mobile adoption growth by 2 to 3 years.
The firm predicts the year’s total app downloads to stand at 130 billion, and consumer mobile app spend to hit $112 billion by year-end. Google Play Downloads dwarf those in Apple’s App Store as usual, and this year is by 160%.
However, both Google Play and the App Store recorded a 10% growth in downloads. The gaming industry boom has also been felt on mobile with game downloads increasing market share from last year to 40% — 45% on Google and 30% on App Store.
Total spend on mobile apps and games hit a new record of $112 billion, with iOS accounting for the majority. App Annie says 65 cents of every dollar went to iOS. However, the company notes that Google Play spend is increasing.
“iOS maintains the stronghold of global spend, but due to competitive Android devices and a growing device footprint, Google Play has seen sizable growth,” App Annie’s Lexi Sydow says.
App Annie also revealed its top apps of 2020, which ranks apps and games based on the number of downloads throughout the year, unlike what Apple and Google do with their lists.
TikTok was ranked first, followed by Facebook, WhatsApp, Zoom, and Instagram. The most honorable mention is Zoom, which is up 219 positions relative to last year’s “State of Mobile” report from App Annie.
Tinder lead in consumer spend from January to November, followed by TikTok, YouTube, Disney+, and Tencent Video.
Top apps in 2020 in consumer spend, downloads, and monthly active users
TikTok was the most popular app in 2020 but consumers still gave Mark Zuckerberg’s Facebook most of their time; Facebook had the most monthly active users.
Although keep in mind, these figures have not included third-party app stores in China and third-party downloads on Android devices.
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