Google Play app spending down in first half of 2022

The first half of 2022 has turned out to be disappointing for Android and its app store Google Play. According to the numbers presented by SafeBettingSites.com, app-spending on Google’s marketplace was down by 7.4% Y-O-Y during the first half of 2022. In the first half of 2022, Android users spent a total of $21.3 billion on apps.

Total app spending up by 1% in the first half

The growth of the overall mobile app market remained somewhat stagnant during the first half of 2022. The numbers show customers spent approximately $65 billion on both app stores worldwide. During the same period in 2021, customers had spent $64.4 billion on apps. Hence, the cumulative app market grew by almost 1% in 2022.

The low rate of growth in overall spending is primarily down to Google Play numbers. As stated above, the Android app market saw its spending decrease by 7.4% during the year’s first half. In the first half of 2021, Android users spent $23 billion on apps. During the same period in 2022, the spending tumbled down to $21.3 billion.

Why Google Play app spending has declined

The decline in Google Play numbers could be attributed to the post-pandemic effect. The Google app store witnessed a massive increase in its numbers during the pandemic as more and more people were spending time on their phones. In the first half of 2021, the Google Play store witnessed a 30% increase in spending compared to the same time in 2020. In comparison, App Store only grew by 22.1% in 2021.

However, now that things are mostly back to normal, the Google Play store has suffered chiefly the brunt of people returning to offices.

App store spending increased by 5.6%

The growth of Apple’s App Store has slowed down in 2022. But it hasn’t reversed like Google Play. However, the impact has been significant. In the first half of 2021, App Store spending grew by 22.1% year on year. This year, the rate of growth during the same period has significantly decreased to 5.6%

During the first half of 2021, Apple customers spent $41.4 billion in the Apple Store. During the same period in 2022, the spending grew by 5.6% to $43.7 billion.

When we look at shares of both app stores, App Store is responsible for 67.2% (more than two-thirds) of total spending on app stores.