App Spending Soars to $288 Billion by 2030, 2.9 Trillion Downloads Expected

According to a new report by Data.ai, the app spending in app stores will grow about 267% in this decade (2020-2023) and there will be an increase in app downloads too. The data shows that $288 billion are going to be spent on apps in 2030 alone which suggests that 2.9 trillion apps and games are going to be downloaded within these ten years. This will ultimately result in advancement and usage of mobile devices. Consumers all over the world spend an average 16 billion hours on mobile phones but these numbers are going to reach 58 trillion in this decade.

The apps on mobile phones have direct spending revenue of $2.2 trillion, excluding the amount earned by in-app spendings, which was $362 billion in just 2023. The report shows that the app economy has declined by 2% in the last 15 years and there are various factors that became the reason for it. Inflation, limited income, privacy changes and global pandemic are some to name. Even with this slight decline, apps generated $171 billion in consumer dollars in 2023. This is because the mobile users are increasing and apps are making the experience of users on mobile phones more useful and interesting.

If we talk about what the rest of this decade is going to bring to the app market, it is expected that apps are going to earn more than games. Previously, games were the top contributors in the app market but by 2030, apps are going to contribute 50.3% to the market as compared to 37% in 2023. The apps containing streaming and short video will make 18% of the annual apps spend by 2030. These apps will grow 120% from 2023 to 2030. Streaming app called IQIYI surpassed $3 billion in player spending globally in 2023 and made it to the $3 billion club alongside Max, Tencent Video and Disney+. But even these streaming apps cannot compete with video apps like TikTok, Instagram and YouTube. The social and entertainment apps including these three are expected to reach 4.8 trillion hours in 2030.

Countries like the United States, Japan, China and Korea will make two-thirds of consumer spending by 2030 but major growth is expected to be seen from other countries from Central America (12.0%), South America (10.9%) and Africa (10.8%). In conclusion, this decade is going to be the turning point for the app market all over the world.

Read next: How Much Do Tech Workers Earn? Here’s How It Varies From City to City
by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World