Mobile games are a huge part of the app ecosystem, accounting for 60% of in-app purchase revenue across iOS and Google Play. They are also the most popular genre of app, with more than one third of all apps being games.
With so many developers working on apps, there are many strategies in place to retain users and keep them engaged. Some methods are taken from other app categories, such as long onboarding, while others come from the gaming world, such as free power ups and beginner lobbies.
Even with these systems in place, the vast majority of users that install a game will leave before 30 days. Even though this is the same as all app categories, games typically need a long shelf life to get a return on investment, as not many have upfront subscriptions.
This is why it’s important for mobile games to keep a user interested and coming back for more. Some of the most popular single player games continue for hundreds of hours, if not indefinitely, with several ways to keep drawing users back.
We have collected data and statistics on mobile game retention. Read on below to find out more.
Key Mobile Game Retention Statistics
- iOS has 35.7% retention rate for games on day one, to the 27.5% of Android. By day 30, iOS has 5% to Android’s 2.6%
- Match games have the highest retention rate across all game genres, at 32.6% for day one and 7.1% for day 30
- Strategy games have the lowest retention rate by day one, at 25.3%, while hypercasual has the lowest at day 30
- North America has the highest game retention rate by region, while Latin America has the lowest
Mobile Game Retention by Platform
Mobile games have higher retention rates on iOS than Android across all time periods, according to AppsFlyer’s app retention benchmarks report.
Mobile game retention rate by platform 2023 (%)
Mobile Game Retention by Genre
Match games have the highest retention rate after day one and day 30 across all gaming genres, while strategy games have the lowest day one retention and hypercasual have the lowest at day 30.
Mobile game retention rate by genre 2023 (%)
Mobile Game Retention by Region
North America has the highest game retention at day one and day 30 across all regions covered in Appsflyer’s report. Latin America has the lowest at both time periods.
Mobile game retention rate by region 2023 (%)
Actions Users Performed in First Week
An in-game event or challenge is the most likely action to be performed in the first week of install, according to Mistplay’s growth report.
Actions performed in first week of mobile game install (%)
Reasons to Continue Playing
Enjoyment of the gameplay and good progression are the two main reasons gamers stick with a mobile game after the first few sessions.
