Festive shopping in India extends beyond Diwali, AppsFlyer report finds

New Delhi: India’s festive season has shifted from a single Diwali peak to a nine-week sequence of performance opportunities for mobile marketers, according to AppsFlyer’s 2025 India Festive Report. The study highlights changes in campaign timing, extended consumer engagement beyond Diwali and a rise in fraud risk across categories.

The analysis, based on 20.5 million app installs and more than 576 million US dollars in user acquisition and remarketing spend, found that high-intent behaviour now continues well after the festival week. Gaming and Food and Drink apps registered post-Diwali install growth of 29% and 16% respectively.

Travel on Android saw remarketing spend increase by 40% after Diwali, while iOS Shopping recorded a 20% rise in session volume, supported by extended offers and gift redemption cycles.

The report noted that Gaming led post-festival install growth but experienced limited remarketing activity, pointing to missed retention and monetisation opportunities. iOS Shopping saw a 20% increase in sessions after Diwali, underlining untapped potential in reactivation and engagement. On Android, remarketing spend rose by 40% in Travel and 26% in Shopping, while iOS re-engagement declined despite strong user acquisition levels. The top ten Shopping apps grew their Share of Paying Users by 32% year-on-year, supported by smoother transaction flows and higher brand trust. At the same time, fraud rates climbed sharply after Diwali, with Food and Drink on iOS reaching 60%, up 176%, while Android Entertainment rose 74%.

“India’s festive season is no longer a one-week race to Diwali,” said Sanjay Trisal, General Manager INSEA and ANZ at AppsFlyer. 

“It has evolved into a sustained momentum period that requires marketers to think beyond peak-week spikes. To win across this extended window, brands need to pace budgets by platform, invest in post-Diwali remarketing, and prioritise re-engagement touchpoints beyond Day 7. Android offers long-tail value when remarketing is timed right, while iOS demands sharper sequencing and early conversion. Lifecycle strategies and fraud protection must be tailored to these moments if marketers want to maximise both growth and efficiency.”

Commenting on the findings, Rishad Chindamada, Vertical Head of Gaming, Tech, Health & Education at Meta, said, “The festive season drives a significant surge in consumer demand and purchase intent, offering a prime opportunity for brands to accelerate growth by leveraging mobile and digital strategies. Mobile platforms drive rapid acquisition and re-engagement, enhanced by digital penetration and AI tools optimising campaigns. Full-funnel marketing across channels like Business Messaging and Reels ensures engagement from awareness to retention. As brands leverage data-driven insights and targeted segmentation, they can maximise festive growth and build lasting loyalty.”

According to the study, marketers should consider reallocating budgets to the post-Diwali period, when intent remains strong but platform competition lessens. Campaign sequencing by platform is recommended, with Android offering longer-term potential while iOS requires tighter, front-loaded acquisition strategies. Sustaining engagement beyond Day 7 was identified as a challenge, with segmented push campaigns and reactivation flows between Days 10 and 14 seen as critical. Fraud protection was also highlighted as particularly important during gifting and regional peaks, when attribution controls are more relaxed and campaign pressure intensifies.

The India Festive Report 2025 is based on anonymised and aggregated data from Android and iOS apps that met volume and install thresholds between October and December 2024. The study covered more than 20.5 million installs, 419 million US dollars in user acquisition spend and 157 million US dollars in remarketing investment. Metrics included retention, session activity, Share of Paying Users and fraud exposure across Gaming, Shopping, Travel, Food and Drink, Finance and Entertainment.