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EMARKETER

Mobile App Monetization 2023

In-App Purchases Resume Growth but Still Trail Advertising

Report by Yoram Wurmser  |  Aug 28, 2023
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Executive Summary
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Table of Contents
Executive Summary
Despite continued strength in mobile advertising, app publishers look for alternatives.
A yawning gap opens between IAA and IAP spending.
After a tough 2022 for gaming, in-app spending swings back to positive growth.
What do these monetization trends mean for marketers?
Sources
Media Gallery
About This Report
In-app purchases rebounded in 2023 after a down 2022—but they still lag far behind in-app advertising as revenue-generating products.
Topics
Mobile Apps
US
Table of Contents
Executive Summary
Despite continued strength in mobile advertising, app publishers look for alternatives.
A yawning gap opens between IAA and IAP spending.
After a tough 2022 for gaming, in-app spending swings back to positive growth.
What do these monetization trends mean for marketers?
Sources
Media Gallery

A drop in US virtual goods sales in games dragged in-app spending down overall in 2022, but growth is set to return in 2023. Even so, sales of subscriptions and virtual goods—together, in-app purchases (IAPs)—will still bring in barely a quarter of what in-app advertising (IAA) earns. And the gap in revenue generation will only grow in the future.

Key Question: Which app monetization methods are poised to grow—and what does that mean for advertisers and app publishers?

KEY STAT: IAP sales volume will remain barely a quarter (26.6%) of the size of IAA spend in 2023, with the ratio dropping every year through our forecast.

Here’s what’s in the full report

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Exportable files for easy reading, analysis and sharing.

Table of Contents

  1. Executive Summary
  2. Despite continued strength in mobile advertising, app publishers look for alternatives.
  3. A yawning gap opens between IAA and IAP spending.
  1. After a tough 2022 for gaming, in-app spending swings back to positive growth.
  2. What do these monetization trends mean for marketers?
  3. Sources
  1. Media Gallery

authors

Yoram Wurmser

Contributors

Ross Benes
Senior Analyst
Chris Keating
Director, Research
Andrew Spink
Forecasting Analyst
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