Global mobile in-app purchase revenue reached $167 billion in 2025, according to Sensor Tower’s State of Mobile 2026 report. The data shows that the mobile app economy continues to grow, even as download momentum slows compared to previous years. Total global downloads hit 149 billion, averaging more than 280,000 installs per minute, underlining how central mobile platforms remain to gaming, entertainment, productivity, and emerging web3-enabled services.
Consumer spending on in-app purchases increased 10.6% year over year, while overall app download growth rose by just 0.8%. The gap highlights a market that is no longer driven mainly by scale, but by how effectively apps convert attention into revenue.
Mobile Usage Keeps Climbing Worldwide
Sensor Tower reports that total time spent across mobile apps reached 5.3 trillion hours in 2025, a 3.8% increase year over year. Mobile continues to command a larger share of consumer attention compared with other digital platforms.
On average, users spent 3.6 hours per day inside mobile apps and engaged with roughly 34 apps per month, both metrics rising compared to the prior year. For gaming and live-service developers, this sustained usage is important, as longer session times often translate into higher retention and stronger in-app purchase performance.
The data suggests that mobile remains the default interface for entertainment, social interaction, payments, and AI-driven utilities, reinforcing its role as a primary distribution channel for both traditional games and newer service-based apps.
Revenue Growth Shifts Away From Download Volume
One of the report’s central takeaways is that the mobile market has entered what Sensor Tower describes as a monetisation-first phase. Instead of chasing raw install numbers, leading publishers are focusing on engagement depth, recurring spending, and long-term user value.
Revenue growth is increasingly driven by how much time users spend in apps rather than how many new users arrive. This shift mirrors trends seen in console and PC gaming, where live-service mechanics, subscriptions, and ongoing content updates matter more than launch-day sales alone.
For mobile developers, the change places greater emphasis on retention systems, live operations, and content pipelines that keep users active across months instead of days.
Non-Game Apps Outperform Mobile Games in Spending
For the first time, non-game apps generated more total mobile revenue than games in 2025. While mobile games remain one of the largest categories by engagement, spending growth is now being led by generative AI tools, social platforms, video streaming services, and productivity apps.
This reflects how the mobile economy is expanding beyond traditional gaming loops into broader digital lifestyles. Users are increasingly willing to pay for AI assistants, creative software, and subscription-based media alongside their usual gaming purchases.
The result is a more competitive attention economy where games are no longer the only major driver of in-app purchase revenue, even though they continue to dominate usage in many regions.
Generative AI Expands the Mobile Ecosystem
Sensor Tower also points to generative AI as a defining force in 2025’s mobile growth. AI-powered assistants, image tools, and writing apps scaled quickly, adding new use cases to the mobile ecosystem and creating fresh monetisation paths.
These tools benefit from the same engagement mechanics that power successful games, including daily usage loops, subscriptions, and premium upgrades. As AI continues to blend with gaming, productivity, and web3 services, mobile is positioned as the main access layer for consumer-facing AI experiences.
For publishers, AI-driven features are becoming another lever for increasing session length and lifetime value across both game and non-game products.
Regional Strategy Still Shapes Performance
Despite the global reach of mobile platforms, Sensor Tower emphasizes that local market conditions still matter. Regulation, tariffs, platform rules, and regional spending behavior all shape how apps perform in different territories.
While global trends in monetisation and engagement are converging, execution still depends on understanding regional player habits, payment preferences, and content expectations. For mobile game developers and app publishers alike, success increasingly comes from balancing global scale with localized strategy.
What the Data Signals for Mobile Gaming and Apps
The 2025 figures suggest that mobile is transitioning from a growth-at-all-costs phase into a more mature optimisation cycle. Download growth is slowing, but spending and engagement continue to rise.
For gaming in particular, this means a stronger focus on live-service design, player retention, and meaningful progression systems rather than simple install acquisition. As AI, streaming, productivity, and web3-style integrations continue to expand, mobile’s role in the wider digital economy looks set to remain central.
What was global mobile in-app purchase revenue in 2025?
Global mobile in-app purchase revenue reached $167 billion in 2025, according to Sensor Tower’s State of Mobile 2026 report.
How many apps were downloaded worldwide in 2025?
Total global downloads hit 149 billion, averaging more than 280,000 downloads per minute across app stores.
How much time do users spend on mobile apps per day?
Users spent an average of 3.6 hours per day using mobile apps and engaged with about 34 apps per month.
Are mobile games still the top revenue category?
In 2025, non-game apps surpassed games in total mobile revenue for the first time, driven by generative AI, social media, streaming, and productivity apps.
What is driving mobile monetisation growth now?
Growth is increasingly driven by user attention and engagement, not just download volume, marking a shift toward a monetisation-first mobile market.
How is AI influencing the mobile app market?
Generative AI apps expanded rapidly in 2025, increasing engagement and introducing new subscription and in-app purchase models across mobile platforms.
Why do regional markets still matter in mobile?
Regulation, tariffs, platform rules, and consumer behavior differ by region, meaning local strategy remains critical even in a global mobile economy.
