Key Insights
Consumer App Revenue Is Growing, but Budgets Remain Concentrated in Google and Meta
Consumer apps—defined in this report as all mobile app categories outside of gaming, such as entertainment, finance, and delivery and food—experienced significant global revenue growth in 2024, with in-app purchase (IAP) and subscription revenues rising 25% to reach $70.5 billion. This growth trajectory is accelerating, and for the first time, consumer app revenue is projected to surpass gaming revenue within the next two years.
Despite this momentum, consumer app marketing budgets remain disproportionately concentrated on just two platforms: Google and Meta. In 2024, walled gardens (Google, Meta, and others) captured 88% of the $45 billion consumer mobile app advertising market—an imbalance that does not accurately reflect where users are actually spending their time.*
In collaboration with Sensor Tower and Singular, this report highlights the substantial growth opportunities available to consumer app marketers within the Independent App Ecosystem. Through detailed analyses of the incremental lift from marketing channel diversification, insights into app user behavior, and an understanding of how users convert within mobile apps, the findings demonstrate the opportunity for marketers to diversify beyond walled gardens to uncover new areas of growth for incremental and scalable performance.
*Source: Moloco internal estimates | 2024
Consumer app revenue is set to overtake gaming for the first time
Line chart: Yearly IAP and subscription revenue for consumer apps and gaming apps | 2014-2024
Bar chart: YoY IAP and subscription revenue growth by consumer app category | 2023-2024
Select country
App category
VIZ 1 GOES HERE
Marketers Are Leaving Money on the Table by Overlooking the Independent App Ecosystem
The Independent App Ecosystem—an ecosystem of millions of diverse mobile apps that are developed, published, and monetized by independent companies rather than by the major technology giants—represents a substantial yet underutilized opportunity for consumer app marketers. While gaming marketers have recognized this potential, directing around 35% of their advertising budgets to independent apps, consumer app marketers have been slower to adopt.
Consumer app marketers allocate just 12% of their ad spend outside of the major walled gardens. This is further underscored by a 2025 Moloco/Marketing Dive study, which found nearly 50% of consumer app marketers have never explored advertising beyond Google and Meta.
This gap highlights a critical disconnect: Many consumer app marketers have yet to align their budgets with the diverse ways users actually engage across the broader app landscape.
Consumer app marketers lag in embracing the Independent App Ecosystem
Estimated global mobile app ad spend for consumer apps and gaming apps by channel | 2024
Note: Other Walled Gardens: Apple (Apple Ads), TikTok, X, Snapchat, Reddit, and OEM app stores
Diversifying spend to the Independent App Ecosystem significantly improves D30 ROAS
In collaboration with Singular, a meta-analysis was conducted across Singular’s client base to examine how return on ad spend (ROAS) is impacted by focusing the majority of advertising spend on Google and Meta versus diversifying budgets across both major platforms and the Independent App Ecosystem. The results clearly demonstrate the advantage of diversification: All gaming and consumer marketers who expanded beyond Google and Meta saw an average increase of 48% in Day 30 ROAS.
For consumer app marketers, the average increase was even higher, reaching 116%. Among the categories with statistically significant data, consumer app marketers in shopping, education, and health and fitness saw some of the strongest performance, with average Day 30 ROAS improving up to 214%.
The analysis at a glance
apps
ad spend
Apps included in the study were divided into two groups:
Majority of spend on Google and Meta (80%+)
Diversified spend (<80% on Google and Meta)
We’ve consistently seen that consumer app marketers who move beyond the walled gardens unlock stronger ad performance. Our meta-analysis backs that up with hard data: a Day 30 ROAS lift of up to 214%. It’s a clear signal that consumer app growth is accelerating in the Independent App Ecosystem. That’s where sustainable, measurable scale is coming from.
Consumer marketers see significant ROAS gains with a diversified strategy
D30 ROAS lift of apps that diversify spend to the Independent App Ecosystem | 2025
VIZ 4 COMBINED
Brands such as Nestlé Purina and Turo are already capitalizing on these benefits, achieving incremental performance gains by diversifying their media strategy to include the Independent App Ecosystem alongside established platforms.
Self-attributed performance from your partners can get you into a sticky spot as a performance marketer, as it doesn't allow you to see the full picture of what could be causing incremental lift across the full user journey. That can come at an expense to a brand because it might prevent diversifying into channels that may actually be more cost-effective or incremental.
Since expanding our channels beyond social partners, we’ve seen an increase in platform bookings that we have been able to validate through incrementality modeling. We’re excited to push performance further by increasing our creative velocity.
User Behavior Has Changed, but Most Media Strategies Haven’t
Consumer app marketers can only fully unlock growth potential when their advertising strategies align with real user behavior, reaching them directly in the diverse range of apps where they actively spend their time and attention. Understanding these usage patterns is essential to driving meaningful engagement and scalable ROI.
In-app time spent has peaked in mature markets, but keeps rising in emerging ones
Mobile apps continue to be the primary channel for digital engagement, yet growth patterns vary significantly across markets. In developed regions such as the U.S., the U.K., Germany, and Japan, mobile app usage has reached high levels of saturation, leading to a notable slowdown in growth rates. In contrast, time spent surged in emerging markets such as South Africa, India, and the Philippines, driven by continued smartphone penetration and expanding digital access.
For marketers, this means future growth won’t come simply from increased app usage. Instead, sustainable growth will require engaging users in new and diverse ways, meeting them within the many apps where they already spend their time outside of traditional walled gardens.
Growth in mobile app time spent is slowing in developed regions but accelerating in emerging markets
Total hours spent on mobile apps and compound annual growth rate by country | 2021-2024
Select region
Year
Growth
Vis6 Growth Legend Placeholder
VIZ 6 GOES HERE
Note: Top 10 mobile app markets are defined by countries with the highest total IAP and subscription revenue
User attention is shifting from social and entertainment to more diverse app categories
A closer look at user behavior across different app categories reveals a notable shift. User attention is becoming increasingly fragmented, particularly in developed markets, with audiences moving away from traditional social media and entertainment apps towards a broader range of apps such as casual gaming, productivity tools, and emerging categories such as generative AI.
Deeper emotional and psychological factors are driving the change in how users spend their time on traditional social platforms. According to a recent Moloco/YouGov survey, 53% of app users say they want to spend less time on social media. That number climbs even higher among younger audiences, with 63% of 18-24 year olds and 65% of 25-34 year olds expressing a desire to cut back. The reason? Emotional fatigue. In fact, 42% of 18-24 year olds report feeling negative emotions—such as envy, anxiety, distrust, or being overwhelmed—when using social platforms like Facebook or TikTok.
As mobile user attention continues to spread across a wider range of app categories, it's become more important than ever to understand where and how users are spending their time. There are clear shifts in user behavior, with app engagement plateauing in mature markets while rising steadily in emerging markets. For marketers, this means they need to capture attention on the diverse apps where users spend their time.
.svg)
These sentiments offer a compelling signal that today’s users are actively reevaluating their digital habits, seeking more purposeful and multifaceted experiences across a broader range of apps. Many users also report a growing sense of not only emotional fatigue but ad fatigue, with 66% of respondents saying they feel like they see the same ads repeatedly on social media apps.
Time spent in social and entertainment apps is declining, especially in developed markets
YoY change in total hours spent on mobile app categories | 2023-2024
Select country
VIZ 7 GOES HERE
Each generation has distinct app preferences marketers can’t ignore
Time spent in apps varies significantly by age group and category. Younger users (18-24) gravitate towards games, education, and graphic design apps, while adults aged 25-44 are more active in business, finance, and delivery and food apps. Meanwhile, users over 45 typically spend more time in medical, weather, and news apps, as well as in puzzle, word, and social casino games.
This means that there is no one-size-fits-all channel for reaching diverse mobile users. Success requires accessing a wide array of apps to connect with users in their preferred digital environments.
Demographics shape where users spend their time
Time spent vs. general population of app categories by age group | 2025
Select country
Time spent vs. general population
VIZ 8 GOES HERE
The Independent App Ecosystem reaches as many users as TikTok and Instagram combined
Users are scattered across millions of specialized apps that cater to specific interests, activities, and daily routines. This fragmentation means that relying solely on walled gardens limits a brand’s potential reach and engagement. Through the Independent App Ecosystem, marketers can engage with their ideal users wherever they spend their time by accessing more than three million of these specialized apps that reach more than two billion daily active users (DAU)—comparable to TikTok and Instagram combined. ⓘ
At M+C Saatchi Performance, we actively guide clients to expand beyond the walled gardens not just to lower acquisition costs, but to unlock fresh growth by tapping into new digital moments. Successful growth strategies follow user behavior. Ad spend should reflect where consumers actually engage, rather than being limited by legacy media habits.
Director, Programmatic Strategy and Planning
The Independent App Ecosystem captures significant mobile attention
Daily active users (DAU) vs. total hours spent in mobile apps | 2024-2025
Select country
VIZ 9 GOES HERE
The Independent App Ecosystem captures attention in every app category
User behavior and engagement patterns differ significantly across app categories such as finance, education, travel, health, utilities, and beyond. This diversity is also evident across different countries, where app engagement trends reflect distinct local preferences and behaviors. The Independent App Ecosystem effectively captures this varied user attention, reaching users wherever they choose to spend their time.
There are notable differences in app usage and growth patterns across regions
YoY growth in mobile app time spent and share of total mobile app time spent | 2023-2024
Select up to 3 countries to compare
Select up to 2 countries to compare
Time spent in-app (% of total)
VIZ 10 GOES HERE
The Independent App Ecosystem Is Where Mobile Advertising Performance Happens
Given that user attention is now spread across diverse apps, marketers face an increasingly fragmented landscape. Each user is unique in the apps they engage with, as different apps serve distinct purposes and address specific moment-to-moment needs.
This behavioral diversity is particularly evident within the Independent App Ecosystem. Here, app usage isn't confined to predictable patterns or specific app categories. Instead, app usage reflects who the users are, what tasks they’re trying to accomplish, and the specific times of day they turn to different apps. To achieve real results, marketers need to access diverse publisher inventory to reach their ideal users precisely when and where they're most receptive.
High-value users act with more variety and frequency than most marketers realize
Today’s high-value users interact with a diverse range of apps. For each app category, there are power users who have their unique fingerprint across seemingly unrelated apps.
E-commerce app users in the U.S., for example, over-index on time spent in casino games and news apps compared to the general population. This pattern perhaps reveals how shopping enthusiasts fill waiting moments with quick entertainment while staying current on trends and events that may shape their buying decisions.
Finance app users exhibit their own equally diverse profiles. For example, finance users in Japan spend significantly more time on travel and sports apps than the average user. These finance users may be planning their next business trip in a travel app while engaging with sports content during market downtime.
This diversity explains why limiting campaigns to “relevant” categories leaves money on the table. The Independent App Ecosystem captures these complex user journeys, turning every app into a potential conversion point.
Distinct and unexpected app usage patterns emerge by persona
How to read this chart for each persona: The first row shows the number of apps used in a month and ad opportunities encountered, which are defined as unique bid requests on the Moloco Ads platform. The second row shows the 3 highest categories in time spent difference vs. the general population and example global apps for those categories. The last row shows the distribution by gender and age group.
Select country
Select app user persona
VIZ 11 GOES HERE
The power of context in reaching ready-to-act users
To maximize ROI, targeting the right users is just the beginning. Marketers also need to consider timing and context. Different users rely on different apps depending on the time of day, and each app session presents a distinct emotional or functional context. For example, finance apps are often checked in the morning for market updates, while sports apps see a traffic spike in the evening when games are live or scores are updated. These moments influence how receptive users are to certain types of ads—and how likely they are to take action.
This matters because advertising within diverse inventory enables marketers to connect with users during leaned-in, high-attention moments. It also highlights how the Independent App Ecosystem offers marketers more contextual flexibility compared to walled gardens, which often follow consistent, less dynamic patterns of use.
Users turn to different apps based on time of day
App usage by time of day based on ad opportunities | 2025
Select country
Select categories to compare to social
VIZ 12 GOES HERE
If marketers aren’t evolving their strategies to meet users in new environments, they’re not just missing reach—they’re missing relevance. This is why it is so important for us to have our ad strategies reflect where users actually spend their time.
High-value users convert from unexpected places
New app users can come from surprising places. A finance app's next high-value user might convert from a gaming, weather, or recipe app, not just from other finance apps. This is the hidden power of the Independent App Ecosystem: conversions happen across every category, often in unexpected places.
Traditional marketing logic suggests targeting similar apps—finance apps advertising in other finance apps, and shopping apps targeting other shopping apps. But conversion data reveals a different pattern. Delivery and food marketers acquire paying customers from utility apps. Travel app marketers get conversions from productivity apps. Shopping app marketers find buyers in gaming environments.
This happens because users are multidimensional. Delivery and food users check weather apps before deciding to venture out or order in. Travel bookers juggle spreadsheets and flight searches simultaneously. Shoppers play casual games during lunch breaks. Each of these touchpoints represents a conversion opportunity.
The data is clear: Campaigns limited to “relevant” categories miss potential customers in the hundreds of other apps where they spend time. The Independent App Ecosystem provides access to all these touchpoints, multiplying opportunities to reach ready-to-buy users wherever they may be. Success comes from embracing this diversity rather than fighting it.
Diverse inventory is key to maximizing performance
Indexed cost per payer (CPP) by publisher inventory. Higher number equals cheaper relative CPP for each advertiser category | 2025
Select publisher inventory category
VIZ 13 GOES HERE
Unlocking the Opportunity of the Independent App Ecosystem With Moloco
Given today’s fragmented mobile landscape, marketers can no longer rely solely on traditional walled gardens to effectively engage consumers. Users now leverage an increasingly diverse array of mobile apps, making it essential for marketers to evolve their strategies to reach users wherever they are.
This is exactly why Moloco Ads was built—to help app marketers drive incremental performance on the Independent App Ecosystem:
AI-Powered Performance
Based on an app’s first-party data, Moloco automatically finds, acquires, and re-engages high-value users wherever they spend their time on the Independent App Ecosystem.
Using Moloco’s AI-powered platform, we activated our first-party data to acquire and re-engage high-value users across independent apps—boosting engagement, increasing DAU by 7%, and driving incremental growth beyond walled gardens.
Single Buying Door
Through a single access point, Moloco simplifies media buying by offering access to over three million independent apps that reach more than two billion DAU.
Moloco has transformed our performance marketing through one powerful platform. We've driven high-quality bookings and strong user engagement in an extremely competitive travel market.
High-Quality, Brand-Safe Placements
Moloco Ads maintains strict quality standards aligned with Google and Apple's app store requirements. We use real-time monitoring and exclusion lists to continuously improve inventory quality. These efforts have earned TAG and IAB Gold certifications.
Moloco helped us protect our players and uphold brand safety by delivering high-quality impressions within trusted, app store-approved environments.
Industry-Leading Transparency
Moloco Ads gives clear visibility into where ads run, which creatives, placements, and publishers drive performance, and how every marketing dollar is being utilized.
With Moloco, the level of reporting granularity—whether it’s top-performing creatives or publisher-level insights—gives us exactly what we need to test and scale with confidence. We’ve been able to identify which creative formats and placements drive the most conversions and long-term retention.
What matters to marketers is real-world proof of the Independent App Ecosystem’s incremental impact. Here, Mistplay shares how they validated Moloco’s unique ability to drive incremental results beyond their Google and Meta campaigns by reaching users across a broader range of apps.
Ready to diversify your media mix and capture incremental growth on the Independent App Ecosystem? Contact us to get started.
