Asia’s app economy sees 150% growth amid evolving marketing strategies

New Delhi: Asia’s mobile app ecosystem has expanded rapidly, with app installs tripling and market size growing by 150% over the past six years, according to AppsFlyer’s 2025 State of App Marketing in Asia report. 

Based on billions of app interactions across 14 Asian markets, the study highlights the region’s increasing dominance in the global app economy, now accounting for more than half of all mobile activity worldwide. This growth is being driven by rising smartphone adoption, the development of digital economies, and more sophisticated performance marketing strategies.

“Asia’s app economy has entered a transformative phase characterised by exceptional complexity alongside sustained growth, and the region now hosts the world’s most dynamic mobile markets and sophisticated marketing ecosystems,” said Ronen Mense, President and Managing Director of APAC, AppsFlyer. 

“Beyond sheer scale lies a fundamental evolution: the decisive shift from volume-driven acquisition to strategy-led performance optimisation. India, Indonesia, and the Philippines have emerged as critical growth engines, each requiring precisely calibrated creative, pricing, and product strategies to unlock value at scale. ”

According to the report, app marketers in Asia spent $14.77 billion on user acquisition. Most of this investment came from finance, food and drink, and shopping apps. Both mature and emerging markets are now focusing more on performance-based strategies.

In the gaming sector, monetisation models have changed. Hybrid approaches, using both in-app ads and purchases have grown 3.4 times since 2023. Non-gaming apps mostly depend on in-app purchases for revenue. Gaming apps, however, continue to combine ads and purchases to increase earnings.

Spending on remarketing campaigns has also gone up. A total of $4.47 billion was spent in this area. This shows that marketers are moving towards full-funnel strategies. The trend is especially strong in fast-growing markets such as India, Indonesia, and the Philippines.

The report also points to ongoing challenges with fraud. In 2024, bots were behind more than 80% of all fraudulent app installs. Fake publisher fraud was seen mainly in re-engagement campaigns on iOS. However, install hijacking appears to be on the decline across the region.

The report distinguishes between emerging and mature markets in Asia. In emerging markets, led by India, advertisers prioritise high-volume and cost-effective user acquisition to capitalise on rapid smartphone adoption. In contrast, mature markets focus on user quality, compliance, and long-term profitability.

Food & drink and shopping categories have shown strong recovery post earlier market slowdowns. Meanwhile, the gaming sector continues steady expansion, supported by evolving monetisation models.