Most Popular Apps (2024)

David Curry

Updated: January 30, 2024

The pendulum swung in 2022 with app downloads stagnating, after two years of solid growth under the pandemic. In 2023, some categories saw growth while others continued to stagnate, as users shifted their interests and preferences to a “post-Covid” world.

The five most downloaded apps mirrored the previous year, although Instagram surpassed TikTok in total downloads for 2023. Meta’s Facebook and WhatsApp came in third and fourth, with TikTok’s video editing app CapCut rounding out the top five.

Temu broke into the top 10 off the back of huge interest in North America and Europe, with it being the most downloaded app in over 20 countries in 2023. WhatsApp Business, a popular app in India and South America, also broke into the top 10 this year.

Games saw less downloads overall in 2023, with the industry struggling to reach the heights of the pandemic. No game made it into the top 10 most downloaded this year, with Subway Surfers and Stumble Guys falling out the chart.

Apps had a better time, especially some sectors such as artificial intelligence, shopping, and subscription services.

We have collected data and statistics on the most popular apps by country and by category. Read on below to find out more.

Most Popular Apps Key Statistics

  • Instagram was the most downloaded app globally in 2023, with 696 million downloads
  • Subway Surfers was the most downloaded game in 2023, with 218 million downloads
  • Temu was the most downloaded app in the US, UK, Germany, France, and Italy in 2023
  • Four of the ten most downloaded apps of 2023 were published by Meta

Most Popular Apps by Country

In this section, we take a look at the most popular apps in each country. We cover global, Brazil, China, India, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Most Popular Apps 2023

Instagram was the most downloaded app of 2023 with 696 million downloads. TikTok, which was the most downloaded the three previous years, had 654 million downloads.

AppDownloads (mm)
Instagram696
TikTok654
Facebook553
WhatsApp475
CapCut389
Telegram355
Snapchat343
Temu274
WhatsApp Business267
Spotify248

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Apps in United States 2023

Ecommerce app Temu was the most downloaded app in the United States, with over 100 million downloads.

AppDownloads (mm)
Temu103
TikTok52
CapCut42
Instagram37
Shein35
Monopoly Go33
WhatsApp32
HBO Max29
Facebook27
Telegram26

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Apps in United Kingdom 2023

Temu was the most downloaded app in the United Kingdom as well, with 15 million downloads. Tesco shot up the rankings as well, after tying Clubcard to all in-store offers.

AppDownloads (mm)
Temu15
Tesco 11
Vinted8
TikTok7
Shein6.7
WhatsApp6.6
CapCut6.6
Microsoft Authenticator5.5
Instagram5.1
Monopoly Go5.1

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Apps in China 2023

Superapp WeChat is the only app in China with over one billion users. Alibaba’s payment solution AliPay is second with 903 million users and its ecommerce platform Taobao is third with 795 million users.

AppsUsers (mm)
WeChat1012.4
Alipay901
Taobao795.2
Pinduoduo728.2
Douyin694.9
QQ583.2
Baidu Map538.8
Baidu 490.6
Kuaishou480.3
iQIYI470.5

Note: Only covers Android MAUs. Source: AppInChina

Most Popular Apps in India 2023

Instagram was far ahead of all other apps in India in total downloads, at 245 million. Snapchat and Facebook vied for second with 137 million downloads each.

AppDownloads (mm)
Instagram245
Snapchat137.3
Facebook137
Meesho122
WhatsApp 112
JioCinema111
Flipkart109
PhonePe106
Ludo King101
WhatsApp Business97

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Apps in Brazil 2023

Shein has been embraced fully by Brazilian mobile users as the fashion retailer of choice. TikTok and Instagram are competing heavily for the short-video market.

AppDownloads (mm)
Shein49
TikTok48.9
Instagram48.6
gov.br45
NuBank37
CapCut33.8
Shopee33.7
Mercado Libre32
WhatsApp31
Roblox23

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Apps in Germany 2023

Temu was the most downloaded app in Germany with 13 million downloads. TikTok, WhatsApp and Instagram were closely tied for second.

AppDownloads (mm)
Temu13
TikTok7.7
WhatsApp7.4
Instagram7.3
Shein6
Telegram5.8
CapCut5.2
PayPal5
ChatGPT5
Kleinanzeigen4

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Apps in France 2023

Like most other European countries, Temu was the most downloaded app in France in 2023.

AppDownloads (mm)
Temu12
TikTok8
WhatsApp7
Shein6.5
Monopoly Go6.4
CapCut6.3
Telegram6.3
Instagram6
Snapchat5
Waze4

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Apps in Italy 2023

Italy follows the same trend of other European countries with Temu as the most downloaded app of 2023 in the country.

AppDownloads (mm)
Temu9
Shein6
TikTok5
CapCut4.3
Monopoly Go4.2
Vinted4
Telegram3.6
WhatsApp3.6
Instagram3.5
CieID3.5

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Apps in Spain 2023

Spain had a few of its homebrewed apps reach the top 10, including Cl@ve, Miravia, and Wallapop.

AppDownloads (mm)
Temu9
Shein6.7
TikTok6
Cl@ve4.5
CapCut4.4
WhatsApp3.9
Telegram3.8
Miravia3.7
Spotify3.2
Wallapop3.1

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Apps in Canada 2023

Outside of the usual top four, Canada is unique in its business tool usage, with Microsoft Authenticator, Teams, and ChatGPT all hitting the top 10.

AppDownloads (mm)
Temu7
TikTok5
WhatsApp3
Shein2.9
Microsoft Authenticator2.8
ChatGPT2.6
Instagram2.6
Microsoft Teams2.5
Uber2.4
Amazon Prime Video2.4

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular App by Platform

In this section, we will cover the most popular apps on the two most popular mobile app stores: iOS and Google Play.

Most Popular iOS Apps 2023

TikTok’s video editing app, CapCut, was the most downloaded iOS app in 2023, with 140 million downloads.

AppDownloads (mm)
CapCut140
Temu132
TikTok128
YouTube121
Instagram119
Google118
Google Maps117
WhatApp113
Gmail95
Telegram88

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Google Play Apps 2023

Instagram’s dominance in the Indian market propelled it ahead of TikTok in total downloads. Facebook also edged out TikTok for second place.

AppDownloads (mm)
Instagram521
Facebook469
TikTok460
WhatsApp363
Snapchat282
Telegram269
CapCut249
WhatsApp Business238
Spotify193
Subway Surfers181

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular App by Category

In this section, we take a look at the ten most popular apps of the year by app category. All values are global unless stated otherwise.

Most Popular Games 2023

Subway Surfers was the most downloaded game for another year running, with 218 million downloads.

AppDownloads (mm)
Subway Surfers218
Roblox198
Candy Crush Saga149
Ludo King143
Royal Match140
8 Ball Pool129
Block Blast 3D127.8
Free Fire127.6
My Talking Tom 2111
EA Sports FC108

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Social Apps 2023

Instagram was the most popular social app in 2023 with 696 million downloads, followed by TikTok with 654 million downloads.

AppDownloads (mm)
Instagram696
TikTok654
Facebook553
WhatsApp475
Telegram335
Facebook Messenger234
Pinterest173
Threads151
X142
Discord96

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Business Apps 2023

WhatsApp Business was the most downloaded business app in 2023, beating out Zoom and Microsoft Teams. The majority of its downloads are from India.

AppDownloads (mm)
WhatsApp Business267
Zoom149
Microsoft Teams105
Microsoft Authenticator73
Google Meet69
LinkedIn66
Indeed Job Search39
Uber - Driver33.8
Adobe Scan PDF33.6
GlowRoad31

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Entertainment Apps 2023

Netflix was the most downloaded entertainment app of 2023, with 169 million downloads. YouTube Kids came second, with 131 million downloads.

AppDownloads (mm)
Netflix169
YouTube Kids131
Amazon Prime Video128
JioCinema111
Disney+ 103
Disney+ Hotstar73
MX Player70
Pluto TV56
Twitch48
HBO Max42

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Music & Audio Apps 2023

Spotify continues to hold the top spot by some margin, although it should be noted that Apple Music is preinstalled on all iOS devices and YouTube on almost all Android devices.

AppDownloads (mm)
Spotify248
StarMaker71
YouTube Music65
Wynk Music60
Shazam58
Lark Player53
JioSaavn52
DDMusic42
PocketFM41
Amazon Music36

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Shopping Apps 2023

Shein accelerated ahead of Shopee and Meesho in 2023 with 277 million downloads, but a new challenger, Temu, climbed to second with 235 million downloads.

AppDownloads (mm)
Shein277
Temu235
Shopee129.9
Amazon 129.5
Meesho122
Flipkart111
Shopsy94
AliExpress90
Alibaba88
Mercado Libre72

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Food & Drink Apps 2023

McDonalds remained the most downloaded food & drink app of 2023, with 92 million downloads across all its regional apps. Indian food delivery app Zomato came in second.

AppDownloads (mm)
McDonalds92
Zomato43
Uber Eats41
Meituan37
Swiggy31
DoorDash25
Dominos23
Too Good To Go22
Ele.me19
foodpanda18

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Travel Apps 2023

Google Maps and Uber retained their positions at 1st and 2nd, with 125 million and 115 million downloads, respectively.

AppDownloads (mm)
Google Maps125
Uber115
Booking 73
Where is my Train69
Waze62
inDrive59
Airbnb56
Google Earth44
Railway 1230643
Moovit38

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Education Apps 2023

Duolingo continues to tower above all other education apps, with triple the downloads of the second place app Brainly.

AppDownloads (mm)
Duolingo 148
Brainly46
Photomath39
Baby Panda's School Bus34
Google Classroom28.9
Baby Panda World - BabyBus28.7
Coloring Games28.3
PictureThis20
Kahoot! 17.8
Aha World17.5

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Dating Apps 2023

Tinder remains the most popular dating app worldwide with 55 million downloads. LitMatch has seen its downloads rise significantly in Southeast Asia in 2023.

AppDownloads (mm)
Tinder55
LitMatch34
Bumble30
Badoo23
SweetMeet22
Omi18
FRND16
TanTan14
Hinge14
happn10

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Health & Fitness Apps 2023

India has become a brightspot for smartwatch and fitness tracker sales, so it’s no surprise that influence is starting to be seen with app downloads. Both fitpro and Da Fit saw a majority of their downloads come from India.

AppDownloads (mm)
fitpro45
Flo37
Da Fit36
Home Workout - No Equipment27
Blood Pressure App23.8
Sweatcoin23.7
Impulse - Brain Training22
Mi Fitness21
Period Calendar Tracker App19
Strava18

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Finance Apps 2023

The three most popular finance apps saw most of their downloads come from India, where UPI has created huge interest and competition in the mobile payments market.

AppDownloads (mm)
PhonePe108
Google Pay76.9
Paytm76.3
PayPal67
Airtel Thanks57
AliPay42
NuBank36
Google Wallet34
Binance32
Mercado Pago28

Sources: Appfigures, AppMagic

Most Popular Apps of Previous Years

We have collected statistics of the most downloaded apps and games of previous years as well.

Most Popular Apps (2022)

AppDownloads (mm)
TikTok672
Instagram548
Facebook449
WhatsApp424
CapCut357
Snapchat330
Telegram310
Subway Surfers304
Stumble Guys254
Spotify238

Source: Apptopia

Most Popular Games (2022)

AppDownloads (mm)
Subway Surfers304
Stumble Guys254
Roblox208
Candy Crush Saga138
Race Master 3D128
8 Ball Pool120
FIFA Mobile111
Merge & Fight110
Garena Free Fire109
Bridge Race107

Source: Apptopia

Most Popular Apps (2021)

AppDownloads (mm)
TikTok656
Instagram545
Facebook416
WhatsApp395
Telegram329
Snapchat327
Zoom300
Messenger268
CapCut255
Spotify203

Source: Apptopia

Most Popular Games (2021)

AppDownloads (mm)
Subway Surfers191
Roblox182
Bridge Race169
Garena Free Fire154
Among Us152
Hair Challenge138
Join Clash136
8Ball Pool130
Ludo King125
Candy Crush Saga119

Source: Apptopia

Most Popular Apps (2020)

AppDownloads (mm)
TikTok850
WhatsApp600
Facebook540
Instagram503
Zoom477
Messenger404
Snapchat281
Telegram256
Google Meet254
Netflix223

Source: Apptopia

Most Popular Games (2020)

AppDownloads (mm)
Among Us264
Subway Surfers227
Garena Free Fire218
PUBG Mobile175
Roblox171
Hair Challenge158
Join Clash155
8Ball Pool151
Ludo King149
Candy Crush Saga138

Source: Apptopia

Most Popular Apps (2019)

AppDownloads (mm)
WhatsApp769
TikTok727
Messenger723
Facebook682
Instagram438
Likee327
SHAREit321
Snapchat275
Spotify226
Netflix225

Source: AppMagic

Most Popular Games (2019)

AppDownloads (mm)
Garena Free Fire327
PUBG Mobile268
Subway Surfers227
Fun Race 3D210
Color Bump 3D205
My Talking Tom 2162
Run Race 3D158
Sand Balls154
Homescapes153
Stack Ball152

Source: AppMagic

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