Global App Downloads Decline for the Fifth Consecutive Year, Says Appfigures Report

The annual report released by Appfigures, a company specializing in app data analytics, has revealed that global app downloads have declined for the fifth year in a row. In 2025, total downloads of mobile apps and games across the App Store and Google Play reached approximately 106.9 billion, marking a 2.7% decrease compared to the previous year.

Despite being one of the main revenue drivers in the app market, mobile games also experienced a decline in downloads during 2025. Consumer spending on mobile games amounted to $72.2 billion, accounting for about 46% of total mobile app spending.

On the other hand, spending on non-gaming apps rose significantly, increasing by 33.9% year over year to reach $82.6 billion in 2025, according to Appfigures. While revenues continued to grow, overall downloads declined once again in 2025, as explained below.

Annual Decline in App Downloads

According to the Appfigures report, app downloads peaked in 2020 at 135 billion installs, largely driven by the global spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since then, downloads have gradually declined. By 2024, total installs had fallen to 106.9 billion, down from 109.8 billion the previous year.

Mobile gaming apps, which once attracted millions of users worldwide, were particularly affected. In 2025, mobile games were downloaded 39.4 billion times, representing an 8.6% year-over-year decline, following a 6.6% drop between 2023 and 2024. In contrast, non-gaming apps did not experience the same downturn and instead recorded a slight 1.1% annual increase in downloads.

Building Apps Using Artificial Intelligence

At the same time that traditional app downloads continue to decline, a new trend is emerging: users are increasingly creating their own apps, even if they are small or “mini” applications, to serve personal needs using AI-powered tools.

According to TechCrunch, a user named Rebecca created her own app to help choose restaurants without the usual indecision when going out with friends. She named it “Where2Eat.”

This trend highlights a growing movement in which individuals, empowered by rapid advancements in artificial intelligence, can easily build their own applications for personal use. Most start by developing web apps, but many are increasingly moving toward creating mobile apps designed exclusively for their own devices, signaling that the app development world may be entering a new era.