More App Store Statistics
Yesterday I wrote about some App Store statistics I compiled which compare the breakdown of app apps submitted by category to those that make up the top 500 paid apps. It turns out a lot of people found this pretty interesting, but many also wondered what it would look like if the comparison was between all apps and the top 500 grossing apps. Getting on the top paid list is nice and all, but doesn’t necessarily mean those are the apps making the most money, and it turns out that developers are quite interested in where the money is going. That information is in the top grossing list. Well, I aim to please, so here goes.
Just to refresh your memory, here’s that category breakdown I’m using from 148Apps:
| Category | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Games | 16.7% |
| Books | 11.8% |
| Entertainment | 10.4% |
| Education | 9.3% |
| Lifestyle | 7.8% |
| Utilities | 6.0% |
| Travel | 5.4% |
| Music | 4.0% |
| Business | 4.0% |
| Reference | 3.7% |
| Sports | 3.1% |
| News | 2.7% |
| Productivity | 2.6% |
| Healthcare & Fitness | 2.4% |
| Photography | 2.0% |
| Finance | 2.0% |
| Navigation | 1.9% |
| Social Networking | 1.8% |
| Medical | 1.8% |
| Weather | 0.4% |
And this is the distribution of categories in the top 500 grossing apps versus those in the top 500 paid apps:
| Top Grossing | Top Paid | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Category | Percentage | Abs Diff | Rel Diff | Category | Percentage | Abs Diff | Rel Diff | |
| Games | 50.0% | +33.3% | +198.9% | Games | 40.2% | +23.5% | +140.3% | |
| Productivity | 6.6% | +4.0% | +155.9% | Entertainment | 9.2% | -1.2% | -11.4% | |
| Social Networking | 5.4% | +3.6% | +196.0% | Utilities | 7.8% | +1.8% | +29.7% | |
| Music | 4.8% | +0.8% | +18.9% | Photography | 6.8% | +4.8% | +234.4% | |
| Entertainment | 4.8% | -5.6% | -53.8% | Productivity | 5.2% | +2.6% | +101.6% | |
| Utilities | 4.6% | -1.4% | -23.5% | Lifestyle | 4.6% | -3.2% | -41.2% | |
| Navigation | 3.8% | +1.9% | +103.6% | Healthcare & Fitness | 4.2% | +1.8% | +74.1% | |
| Healthcare & Fitness | 3.0% | +0.6% | +24.4% | Social Networking | 4.2% | +2.4% | +130.3% | |
| Business | 2.8% | -1.2% | -30.5% | Music | 3.8% | -0.2% | -5.9% | |
| Photography | 2.6% | +0.6% | +27.9% | Education | 2.2% | -7.1% | -76.4% | |
| Lifestyle | 2.4% | -5.4% | -69.3% | Business | 2.0% | -2.0% | -50.3% | |
| Weather | 1.4% | +1.0% | +235.2% | Navigation | 1.6% | -0.3% | -14.3% | |
| News | 1.4% | -1.3% | -48.5% | Weather | 1.4% | +1.0% | +235.2% | |
| Books | 1.4% | -10.4% | -88.1% | Reference | 1.2% | -2.5% | -67.3% | |
| Sports | 1.2% | -1.9% | -61.8% | Sports | 1.2% | -1.9% | -61.8% | |
| Travel | 1.0% | -4.4% | -81.6% | News | 1.2% | -1.5% | -55.8% | |
| Reference | 0.8% | -2.9% | -78.2% | Books | 1.0% | -10.8% | -91.5% | |
| Education | 0.8% | -8.5% | -91.4% | Travel | 1.0% | -4.4% | -81.6% | |
| Medical | 0.6% | -1.2% | -66.3% | Finance | 0.8% | -1.2% | -59.2% | |
| Finance | 0.6% | -1.4% | -69.4% | Medical | 0.4% | -1.4% | -77.5% | |
Right away you can see games fare even better in the top grossing list that they do in the top paid list. 1/6th of app store submissions are games, but they represent half of the top 500 grossing apps. Half! And if you were to look at the top 100 grossing apps, 69 of them are games. I’ll sort the lists by relative difference so we can more easily see what else is going on.
| Top Grossing | Top Paid | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Category | Percentage | Abs Diff | Rel Diff | Category | Percentage | Abs Diff | Rel Diff | |
| Weather | 1.4% | +1.0% | +235.2% | Weather | 1.4% | +1.0% | +235.2% | |
| Games | 50.0% | +33.3% | +198.9% | Photography | 6.8% | +4.8% | +234.4% | |
| Social Networking | 5.4% | +3.6% | +196.0% | Games | 40.2% | +23.5% | +140.3% | |
| Productivity | 6.6% | +4.0% | +155.9% | Social Networking | 4.2% | +2.4% | +130.3% | |
| Navigation | 3.8% | +1.9% | +103.6% | Productivity | 5.2% | +2.6% | +101.6% | |
| Photography | 2.6% | +0.6% | +27.9% | Healthcare & Fitness | 4.2% | +1.8% | +74.1% | |
| Healthcare & Fitness | 3.0% | +0.6% | +24.4% | Utilities | 7.8% | +1.8% | +29.7% | |
| Music | 4.8% | +0.8% | +18.9% | Music | 3.8% | -0.2% | -5.9% | |
| Utilities | 4.6% | -1.4% | -23.5% | Entertainment | 9.2% | -1.2% | -11.4% | |
| Business | 2.8% | -1.2% | -30.5% | Navigation | 1.6% | -0.3% | -14.3% | |
| News | 1.4% | -1.3% | -48.5% | Lifestyle | 4.6% | -3.2% | -41.2% | |
| Entertainment | 4.8% | -5.6% | -53.8% | Business | 2.0% | -2.0% | -50.3% | |
| Sports | 1.2% | -1.9% | -61.8% | News | 1.2% | -1.5% | -55.8% | |
| Medical | 0.6% | -1.2% | -66.3% | Finance | 0.8% | -1.2% | -59.2% | |
| Lifestyle | 2.4% | -5.4% | -69.3% | Sports | 1.2% | -1.9% | -61.8% | |
| Finance | 0.6% | -1.4% | -69.4% | Reference | 1.2% | -2.5% | -67.3% | |
| Reference | 0.8% | -2.9% | -78.2% | Education | 2.2% | -7.1% | -76.4% | |
| Travel | 1.0% | -4.4% | -81.6% | Medical | 0.4% | -1.4% | -77.5% | |
| Books | 1.4% | -10.4% | -88.1% | Travel | 1.0% | -4.4% | -81.6% | |
| Education | 0.8% | -8.5% | -91.4% | Books | 1.0% | -10.8% | -91.5% | |
Here again, Weather is at the top of the list. It only represents 0.4% of total apps, but 1.4% of the top 500. Although, there are no weather apps in the top 100 grossing apps for whatever reason.
The under represented apps mostly look pretty similar except Photography. It’s still under-represented, but not quite so much as it would seem by looking at the top paid list. Since “Top Paid” takes app usage into consideration, perhaps that means users tend to use their Photography apps more frequently than other categories? Elsewhere, Music and Utilities swap positions with Music faring better in the top grossing list. The middle and bottom also look pretty similar. Some thought categories like Medical might fare better when looking at top grossing since some of those apps tend to be more expensive, but that doesn’t really seem to have made a big difference, except in the Navigation category, which fares far better in the top grossing list. And of course Books continues to be a bad bet.
The others that really jumped out at me were Entertainment and Education. In the top paid list, Entertainment is sort of middle of the road with 9.2% of the top 500 paid versus 10.4% of overall submissions, but it really falls in the top grossing list representing only 4.8% of the top 500. And Education fares poorly in the top 500 paid apps and even worse in the top grossing lists. 9.3% of total submissions versus 0.8% of the top 500 grossing. For some reason this makes me sad. Pay to learn things!? Perish the thought!
And just to mirror the post from yesterday, here are the odds of cracking the top 500 grossing apps list for each category. This time, I will factor in free apps since there isn’t really a way to tell which free apps use in-app purchase. Again this just an illustration. If you make a great app and market it well, I believe you can succeed regardless which category it’s in.
| Category | Odds |
|---|---|
| Weather | 1 in 291 |
| Games | 1 in 327 |
| Social Networking | 1 in 330 |
| Productivity | 1 in 382 |
| Navigation | 1 in 479 |
| Photography | 1 in 764 |
| Healthcare & Fitness | 1 in 785 |
| Music | 1 in 821 |
| Utilities | 1 in 1,276 |
| Business | 1 in 1,402 |
| News | 1 in 1,895 |
| Entertainment | 1 in 2,113 |
| Sports | 1 in 2,555 |
| Medical | 1 in 2,897 |
| Lifestyle | 1 in 3,183 |
| Finance | 1 in 3,188 |
| Reference | 1 in 4,484 |
| Travel | 1 in 5,319 |
| Books | 1 in 8,225 |
| Education | 1 in 11,393 |
And the top 100:
| Category | Odds |
|---|---|
| Games | 1 in 1,183 |
| Navigation | 1 in 1,822 |
| Social Networking | 1 in 2,968 |
| Productivity | 1 in 3,147 |
| Photography | 1 in 3,309 |
| Music | 1 in 6,568 |
| Lifestyle | 1 in 12,734 |
| News | 1 in 13,266 |
| Utilities | 1 in 14,677 |
| Sports | 1 in 15,329 |
| Business | 1 in 19,659 |
| Entertainment | 1 in 25,354 |
| Travel | 1 in 26,594 |
| Education | 1 in 45,571 |
| Books | 1 in 57,578 |
| Weather | 1 in ∞ |
| Healthcare & Fitness | 1 in ∞ |
| Medical | 1 in ∞ |
| Finance | 1 in ∞ |
| Reference | 1 in ∞ |
So there you have it. Next up I’ll be trying to determine if there is a correlation between top 500 apps and usage of ★s in the app description.
Not really.
Though I seriously did think about it.